Late August into early September is back to school time across the country, but on the Outer Banks of North Carolina, it’s also the height of Hurricane season. Summer is often a crazy time for parents everywhere, and especially so here. It’s the busy season, when most of us are hustling, trying to take advantage of the huge influx of tourist dollars. We look forward to getting back into some semblance of a routine with the start of school. Unfortunately, many school years here begin as such: school starts, school is canceled for a hurricane, school starts a second time.
It’s typical for storms track up the coast, being pushed eastward by the normal west to east weather patterns making their way across the country. Because of the shape of the Outer Banks, it’s typical for Ocracoke and Hatteras Islands to take a beating. Up here on the north Outer Banks, we are frequently spared the brunt of a direct hit. This is how it went with Hurricane Dorian. We missed nearly a week of school, after having just started, waiting for the storm to pass. Where we live, there was some flooding, some downed trees, missing roof shingles. But it wasn’t terrible.
And because it wasn’t terrible, I found myself mildly annoyed with the break in routine. This particular summer had been crazy for me- working full time at a restaurant, moving, starting a new business. For weeks I had daydreamed about all the dust settling and getting into a normal routine. I had been so distracted by my minor inconveniences that I wasn’t even thinking about the difficult rebuilding that was needed just south of me…
… that is until one of our students suggested we make and sell jewelry to raise money for Ocracoke.
Hurricane Dorian made direct landfall at Cape Hatteras. The combination of high winds and flooding wreaked havoc to homes and businesses across Hatteras and Ocracoke Islands. People were in desperate need of support in the rebuilding efforts. What was a minor inconvenience for me turned out to be pretty devastating for people down south. Of course it was a nine year old who helped me regain some perspective.
Maria Montessori believed in the “nobility of work.” And this includes all work, be it intellectual, physical, or spiritual. In the context of a Montessori classroom, this means children participate in work of the head, heart, and hands. Learning to serve others is part of the heart work we do.
So it was natural that one of our students had the idea to raise money for Ocracoke. And her big-heartedness gave me an important reminder about the importance of serving others.
We got to work almost immediately. Kim had a huge stash of jewelry making supplies that she generously donated to the effort. Within a few days, our students had produced countless pairs of earrings and bracelets, ready to sell.
We found out that the Outer Banks Brewing Station was hosting a fundraiser, and we were invited to set up a stand to sell our jewelry. It was a beautiful community event, and in the end our kiddos contributed over $300 to the fundraising efforts that day.
A few days later we set up outside Ashley’s Espresso Parlour to raise some additional money, this time specifically for Eduardo’s Taco Stand on Ocracoke Island. Our students raised an additional $435 to support this well-loved Outer Banks business.
According to Maria Montessori, the second plane of development (ages 6-12) is a time when children begin to understand their place in the unfolding story of the universe. They learn this in equal parts through intellectual work and heart work. Academic work opens their minds. Service feeds their souls.
Just as our studies of geography and math begin with concrete materials, charity work starts in the most concrete way, by serving others locally. Children can recognize local needs, and see how their acts of service impact people in their local community. In the midst of serving they are also completing tasks, making decisions, engaging with people in the community, working with money, practicing math skills, and increasing their independence and self confidence.
While big service projects are an incredible experience for young people, becoming a service-minded human comes from our daily practices. Part of Montessori’s vision for education was to help young people grow into kind, compassionate, and responsible humans who actively participate in society in positive ways.
We Montessorians have a phrase: “grace and courtesy.” It represents how we treat each other with kindness and respect. You see it in a Montessori classroom in daily interactions amongst students and teachers. The other day we had a new student in our class. A shy boy who had never been in a Montessori environment before. He had just finished working on the 100 board and needed to put it away, a tedious and daunting task for a young person. He was struggling to get it done when another student noticed. Quietly she walked over and whispered to him, “Do you need some help? I’ve done this one before, so I can show you how.” This, too, is service.
I remember a moment from my first teaching job. It was a public high school in Washington, DC. I noticed a piece of trash on the floor, and as a student walked by I asked if he could throw it away for me. With a look of disgust, he responded, “I didn’t put it there!” Now, to be clear, I don’t believe this student was a bad person. I believe he was a product of a particular kind of environment.
But at the end of the day, it doesn’t matter who put the trash there. It’s there. And someone will have to pick it up. That was true of the trash on that classroom floor in Washington, DC, and it’s true of the debris left in the wake of Hurricane Dorian.
Our elementary aged students might not see all those connections just yet. And that’s ok. When someone in our class spills a cup of water, and three others jump up to get a towel, that is enough.
Daily acts of kindness and generosity weave into the souls of our children and make them who they are. It’s why it was the most natural thing in the world for our nine year old student to decide we should do something about what happened to Ocracoke. Her spirit of generosity flowed through our whole classroom, and our little group of seven, eight, and nine year olds raised over $700 for a beautiful cause.
That is work of the heart. <3
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