The New Way Montessori School is located in Meridian, Idaho in the Sagecrest Office park, near Eagle Rd. and Overland by Mountain View High School. It provides a full and part-day Montessori learning environment for children aged 2-6.

The school is sponsored by the Idaho Montessori Trust and recognized as a Montessori school by the International Montessori Society (IMS). Meridian resident, Wendy Lieberman, trustee, also serves as the school’s program director. The other member of the board of trustees is Lee Havis, IMS executive director. Lee and Wendy established the Trust to provide a learning environment for children that would faithfully bring about true normal development in children as described by Dr. Maria Montessori in 1907.

Montessori teaching originated with Dr. Maria Montessori’s discovery of the child’s true nature in Rome, Italy in 1907. Observing young children in their free activity with self-teaching materials, she discovered that they spontaneously gave up their ordinary tendencies towards disorder and inattention, acquiring instead such outward qualities as spontaneous self-discipline, love of order and complete harmony with their surroundings. Further research confirmed these qualities as normal in all children. Dr. Montessori therefore set about to scientifically study how to bring about this true natural being in a reliable and consistent manner. In time, this practical scientific research was referred to as Montessori teaching, which is the approach employed at the New Way Montessori School.

Lee says the problem with Montessori teaching in the past has been a lack of complete understanding and practical knowledge of its original experience as described by Dr. Montessori in 1907. He says, “after Dr. Montessori’s death in 1952, conventional Montessori teaching deviated even more from its original purpose to bring about true normal being, following culture or personality, rather than being committed to infinite and eternal laws of nature.”

Since 1969, Lee has been studying the nature and dynamics of the original type of true natural Montessori teaching, first as a classroom teacher and then later through training Montessori teachers. In 1979, he discovered what is Montessori teaching that brings about the child’s true nature, and established the International Montessori Society to help others learn this type of true natural Montessori teaching through teacher education, publications, and consultation throughout the world.

In 2003, Lee completed further research to consolidate a breakthrough technology for practicing true natural Montessori teaching, consisting of specific techniques, protocols, lesson presentations and safe words. Using this technology, he says that anyone can now bring about the results of normal being in children.

The New Way Montessori School is serving as a model school to test out the use and value of IMS technology. To inquire about enrollment or for more information, contact: New Way Montessori School, Wendy Lieberman, program director, 208-870-1144.