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International Montessori School teachers and students settle into their new classroom space in Chapel Hill By B rooke Spach Photography by J ohn Mi chael Sim ps on
School C
thought “I
offer you peace; I offer you friendship; I offer you respect. I hear your needs; I see your beauty; I acknowledge your feelings. My wisdom flows from a higher source; I salute that source in you. Let us work together,” the International Montessori School students said in unison, repeating their peace greeting. That version of Mahatma Gandhi’s “Universal Greeting” kicked off the beginning of the class meeting for the 16 fourth- through sixth-graders. The weekly student-led check-in is a time to speak openly about whatever they want; the floor is totally theirs for 20 minutes. Student Reed Milton presided over the meeting centered around how to create peace throughout their school in celebration of the International Day of Peace on Sept. 21. He called on his classmates around the circle who offered ideas related to compromising, active listening and promoting equality. These concepts aren’t foreign to the students in Teri Gentri’s class, nor the first, second and third graders in the class next door. As 58
chapelhillmagazine.com
Fourth grader David Garrett reads “Alphabreaths: The ABCs of Mindful Breathing” in the peace corner.
November 2022
the only trilingual immersion school in the Triangle, IMS students spend most of their days learning in Spanish, French or Mandarin. Enrollment increased this school year, leading both classes to move to IMS’s new Barbee Chapel Road location. IMS originally opened in Chapel Hill in 1996 but moved to Durham in 2008. The main site in Durham houses the toddler class, three primary classes and two other lower elementary classes. Plans are underway to renovate a second building on the 37acre Chapel Hill property into a two-story unit with multiple classrooms so that all elementary classes can be on one campus, and staff hope to eventually expand the school’s offerings through the eighth grade. The class’s curriculum consists of traditional elementary subjects like science, math and reading. The subject stations around the perimeter of the classroom allow the students to work at their own pace on whatever subject they choose, and the