Montessori Centenary: A Walk For Water in New Zealand

A Walk For Water banner was carried in the parade.

Montessori students in New Zealand celebrated Maria Montessori's birthday on August 31 and the centenary anniversary of Montessori education by parading down the streets of Wellington, New Zealand in A Walk For Water. Vicki Rowe, whose son attends one of the schools, shares a report:

The parade was just fantastic. We had about 700 people and arranged for some wonderful African drummers to lead us. This was a great tie in for those schools raising money.

The schools that participated in raising money for the Amman Imman project were:

Tawa Montessori Preschool
Wa Ora Montessori School
Mana Montessori Preschool (had a disco instead of the walk)
South Wellington Montessori School

There will be an article in our New Zealand Montessori Newz and we are hoping that other schools take it on board and do some of their own fundraising.

Anja Geelan, director of Tawa Montessori PreSchool, read about the Amman Imman project in the International Montessori Council's online newsletter. She brought it to a meeting as the schools were organizing the centenary parade. When she presented the idea to the children they wanted to help:

I am amazed how our 3 and 4 year olds haven taken to it, how concerned they are. And they feel very special about the idea they can help and make a positive contribution. It’s having a big impact.

After the parade, Anja sent this report:

It was awesome! A beautiful sunny day. For me, and many others, it was a powerfull experience. Walking behind African drummers, holding this banner “Walk for Water”, walking with hundreds of children downtown, what an experience! Money for Azawak at our preschool is still coming in, way beyond expectations. One child raised as much as I had quietly hoped to raise in total at our preschool!

The whole project has been fantastic, and for us, as preschool, it won’t stop there. The children are so in to it. Today, our new rainwater tank was empty, for the first time. No water coming out of the tap. We talked about how the children in Azawak experience this day after day.

It was a fitting tribute to Maria Montessori!