Villa Montessori School in Cupertino is having a party Oct. 4 that has been 50 years in the making.
The little school for pre-schoolers and kindergartners is turning 50 and the school is hosting a party from 2 to 5 p.m. at the school, 20900 Stevens Creek Blvd., near Union Church of Cupertino. The event will be a “toast” to the school’s past and future, according to event organizers.
Attendees can also visit classrooms and see craft projects. The school will be offering commemorative ceramic tiles in the courtyard. Attendees will be able to meet school alumni and talk with current students and teachers, while also enjoying the school’s fall harvest celebration. The original school director is expected to attend as well as city officials.
Villa Montessori was founded by a group of parents from Santa Clara University and San Jose State University in 1964. Today, it continues the world-renowned, century-old teaching methods from Maria Montessori that focus on sensory and practical learning.
The program is “designed to enhance and guide each child’s spontaneous and natural desire to learn during the most sensitive years of life,” according to the school mission statement.
The school also mixes students together in classes regardless of age.
“We believe in mixed-age groups in the classroom,” says Estella Leung, school director. “We believe the youngest one will learn from the oldest and the oldest students develop leadership skills in the classroom.”
The school has done well for itself over the years by recruiting new students off past referrals and recommendations.
“It is normally spread by word of mouth; we have quite the reputation here,” says Alicia Taam, school office manager.
The rise of the Internet has also helped parents, particularly residents new to Silicon Valley, discover the school. It is estimated that about half the students now come from word-of-mouth recommendations or are the siblings of previous students.
The school operates as a nonprofit and currently educates 75 children in two classrooms, a number that has remained steady over the years. The second classroom and full-day program was added for 2004-05 academic year.
Students come to the school from all over Santa Clara County, with most coming from Cupertino, Sunnyvale, Santa Clara and Mountain View, Taam estimates. Some have come from as far away as Palo Alto.
Attendees and alumni interested in attending can RSVP by emailing villa50@villamontessori.net
For more information about the school and the 50th anniversary celebration, visit facebook.com/villamontessoricupertino and villamontessori.net.
