Rheel News at IMS

The warmer days are upon us, and we’re soaking in all the beauty of this season—well, maybe not the constant layer of yellow pollen on our cars! 🌼 As we step into he final quarter of the school year, there’s so much to look forward to at Island Montessori. Be sure to read through all the exciting events and important dates coming up this month!

In Montessori, children learn best by doing—whether it’s a 3-year-old buttoning their coat, a 6-year-old writing their first story, or a 12-year-old planning a project. Each step toward independence is a moment of discovery. When children are given the time and space to explore challenges on their own, they don’t just complete a task—they uncover their own capabilities.

Maria Montessori reminds us, "The greatest gifts we can give our children are the roots of responsibility and the wings of independence."

At home, you can support this journey of discovery by inviting your child to take the lead in small but meaningful ways: preparing a snack, organizing their school materials, or planning a family outing. When we step back and say, “I trust you to try,” we give them the gift of realizing what they are truly capable of.

Wow! I was absolutely blown away by the incredible talent showcased at our
Whole School Discovery Showcase!

A huge THANK YOU to our amazing students and dedicated staff for all the time and effort you put into sharing your work. The creativity, presentations, and inventions at
every level—from Primary to Middle School—were truly inspiring!

And of course, thank you to our wonderful families for being part of this special day.
Your support means the world!

We are fortunate to be partnering with Work on Wilmington again this year to help beautify our campus! This year, we have two major projects to complete, and we’ll need all hands on deck.

Students are welcome to participate but must be supervised.

You don’t need to commit to the entire morning—join us for whatever time fits your schedule.
The more helping hands we have, the quicker the work will get done!

We’re especially excited about our playground project, where we’ll transform a shady area with mulch, trees, and a brand-new bench. Additionally, we’ll be working on the pathway around the main building, weeding, planting new shrubs, and replacing gravel.

We are beyond excited to share that our school has been nationally recognized for excellence in Community Engagement!

In the fall, I wrote an application for this award and partnered with Ms. Blair to create a showcase video highlighting our work. In January, we were thrilled to learn that we had made the top 10 finalists in the Community Engagement category. Following an interview in February with members of the Building Hope Board of Directors, we advanced to the top 5 semi-finalists. Last week, we received the incredible news that we have been selected as one of the winners of this prestigious award—placing us among the top three charter schools in the nation to be honored!

Ms. Blair and I will travel to the Building Hope Summit in May, where we will present our work together and find out our award amount. This achievement would not have been possible without the dedicated efforts of our Service Learning program, Saturday Serves, passion projects, and the incredible community organizations that partner with us each year.

We look forward to this opportunity to showcase our school, strengthen our connections, and expand future opportunities to partner with even more community organizations. Thank you to everyone who has supported and contributed to this work—we could not have done it without you!