In schools at this time of year, children are often found doing things out of their typical routine – preparing for a show, baking or cooking, sewing, creating an art or craft project, wrapping gifts to be shared with others, or sending a note to a special friend, to name a few. They eagerly approach many of these tasks, enjoying the variety from typical school-day assignments and lessons.
As we continue to learn more about how we learn and how the brain engages when learning and performing novel tasks, we are reminded about how important it is to go beyond books, lectures and typical school assignments. As students prepare sets for the stage, learn how to run the lights, or cue the songs, they are learning so much about how to integrate technology to support the performers, how to juggle multiple responsibilities and how to work to support others. When baking, cooking and sewing, measurement and fractions reign supreme. You can’t do these things without math. The creativity involved in these tasks is crucial for the brain’s involvement in consolidating information learned in other domains.
Maria Montessori somehow knew, long before fMRI, through her education as a doctor and her observation of children, that children need to experience learning in many ways. Montessori classrooms are equipped with opportunities to go beyond what is contained in a typical school environment. From toddlers through high school, Montessori students are offered opportunities to go beyond the typical educational experience. Learning is an opportunity that exists in all forms and lasts a lifetime.
As I listened to 
Assessments are performed at the beginning of each school year. Teachers use them to determine what children remember after a long summer, which skills are strong and where additional support might be needed. Most of the assessments are measured against the “norm,” or the average student of that grade or age. When the results are favorable, the student is deemed to be on the right path; when they are less than optimal, it is determined what skills are lacking and what help is needed to reach that benchmark or average. Though this information may be useful in determining an instructional path for the development of specific skills, it cannot serve as the guiding force for learning. 
Creativity of thought and action is something that is regaled in our society. Have you thought about what allows creativity to blossom? Where it comes from? How it is nurtured?
ur children deserve a rich and creative environment. School’s purpose is not to squelch the desire to imagine, play with ideas, learn and question. It is precisely the opposite.
