LOCAL EDUCATIONSRQ MAGAZINE EDUCATION ON THE GULF COAST • MAY 2013

Education is constantly evolving to improve the learning development process by encouraging good values and socialresponsibility at an early age. We talked with educators from schools and non-profit entities in the area and asked themto share insights into their academic environment, teaching philosophies and community involvement.

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ROUNDTABLE EDUCATION ON THE GULF COAST CREATIVE MARKETING SECTION :: SRQ MAGAZINE MAY 2013

The NewGate School is an international, coeducational, non-sectarian, college preparatory Montessori school in Sarasota. NewGate is the LabSchool of The Montessori Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to the advancement of Montessori education in the United Statesand abroad. Head of School Tim Seldin is also president of The Montessori Foundation. Under his leadership the school develops curriculumand best practices for Montessori schools around the world. The goal of The NewGate School is to nurture intelligence, curiosity andimagination while supporting and developing each students' unique talents. Classrooms are carefully prepared environments for learning anddiscovery, set up to facilitate student discussion and stimulate collaborative learning. There are no rows of desks facing a large blackboard,but rather warm inviting spaces filled with plants, animals, art, music and books. Much of the curriculum takes place outdoors as studentsalso learn to be stewards of their environment. The NewGate School teaches universal values and instills a global perspective, responsiblecitizenship, and encourages an entrepreneurial spirit. The aim is to graduate young people who are balanced between their knowledge andcharacter so they become life-long learners, critical thinkers and active leaders in their local community, their country and the world. By 2015,The NewGate School hopes to offer the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme to all of its students. This internationally recognizedprogram is the equivalent of two years of university work. New Gate’s graduates go on to succeed in university and in life.

THE NEWGATE SCHOOLTIM SELDIN, HEAD OF SCHOOL

The NewGate School

5237 Ashton Road, Sarasota, FL 34233

Phone: 941-922-4949 • www.newgate.edu

“We ‘follow the child’ and adapt to whatever they need, creating a collaborative learningenvironment in which kids are learning from

each other and from the teacher.”

SHARE YOUR TEACHING PHILOSOPHY. We believe that children areborn intelligent, curious and filled with a sense of wonder, and weput our energy into cultivating their personality and intelligencefrom a very young age when learning comes easily andunconsciously. The basic idea of all Montessori is to recognize thatchildren are real human beings, not empty vessels into which wepour curriculum. Each child is unique and learns in their own way,at their own pace. One of our mantras is “Follow the child.” Ourteachers have the flexibility to do whatever it takes to help a childsucceed, working closely with the same students for several yearsin a culture of partnership and respect. Together we create lifelonglearning and deep understanding, not just the ability to passmultiple-choice standardized tests. In Montessori, our studentslearn by doing and solving real problems. A child of six or seven willlearn the table of elements while conducting experiments; a groupof students in ages ranging from six to sixteen perform dissectionswith the help of a scientist. Our elementary students produce achildren’s opera and full-scale Shakespeare play every year, andour older students do intensive sessions at Florida Studio Theatre.Students learn history by literally creating a living civilization,making their own costumes and tools and then writing andperforming plays to bring a past time and place to life. They alsocreate “archaeological digs,” in which each team invents animaginary civilization, prepares artifacts and written materials in acreated language, buries them for the other team to dig them upand learn about the culture through artifacts left behind. We teachthings in very pragmatic ways that help our students develop apassion for learning. We create joyful scholars.