Downtown Montessori Academy is a small, diverse, community-focused Montessori elementary school that has been serving families in Milwaukee since 1976. As a City of Milwaukee charter school, students who reach age 4 by September 1 can attend our school with tuition provided by public funds. Our mission has always been to provide a Montessori education for elementary children within a small communi
ty of learners. We have just recently reached our goal of adding an Adolescent program to fulfill our mission of extending Montessori education to grade 8, and giving parents an alternative to larger middle school programs. We strive to provide an environment that supports meaningful work in a community of learners that builds trust and allows children to create a vision for their future. We believe that children learn best when they are at ease and comfortable. The key is to see the hidden nature of the child at given stages of development and to design an environment that will fulfill the child’s innate potential. Our educational approach is for children to trust in their own ability, to think and to solve problems independently. The goal is to lead students to think for themselves and become actively engaged in the learning process. Like the rest of us, children learn through trial, error and discovery. They learn to try and try again without fear of embarrassment. As we allow students to develop a meaningful degree of independence and self-discipline, we also set a pattern for a lifetime of good work habits and a sense of responsibility. Our Montessori students are taught pride in their work. In the over thirty years since its founding, Downtown Montessori Academy has grown from a small child care and pre-school program in a rented room in the basement of a church to a vibrant community of over 125 students up to 8th grade in a historic Bay View school building. I invite you to take the time to get to know Downtown Montessori and to understand the remarkable educational journey that we offer to children from the age of three through eighth grade. Sincerely,
Virginia Flynn, Head of School
