Conference program

A violin recital by Stanisław Borek, who, as a one-year-old child, attended the 1st International Montessori Conference with his mother

Phyllis Pottish-Lewis will discuss the fundamentals of Montessori education at the Primary and Elementary Levels. On the first day she will review the distinct, very different sets of universal characteristics of the child at both levels identified by Dr. Maria Montessori. Show more

LECTURE IN ENGLISH | AVAILABLE ONLINE

Relationships with parents can be unpredictable — praise one moment, pressure the next. How can we bring calm, stability, and compassion to this essential area of leadership? Beyond Parent Education offers a shared journey that combines Montessori principles with a compassionate understanding of the human tendencies shaping school–parent interactions. By recognising your own responses and the needs driving parent behaviour, you regain clarity and steadiness. Our approach turns challenging moments into opportunities for alignment, creating calm, collaborative partnerships where parents feel understood, connected, and ultimately become your strongest advocates. Show more

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The workshop consists of three parts:
– Reflection on key concepts regarding the third stage of development and the Montessori Work and Study Plan.
- Discussion on how a study plan aligns with adolescents' innate interests and integrates modern learning theories with Montessori principles.
– Participants engage in collaborative brainstorming to create a study and work plan guided by the instructor.
1. Workshop objectives
– Deepen understanding of the third stage of development – adolescence.
– Examine the internal structure of the Montessori Work and Study Plan.
– Apply this understanding to design a plan meeting adolescents' needs.
– Support adolescents’ personal growth through a connected, holistic plan.
2. Key topics covered
– Adolescents as active participants in their plan Understanding sensitive periods and responding to their needs.
– Education for the third stage as the foundation of the plan Focus on personality development.
– Prepared environment as context for the plan.
– Preparing them for life.
– Holistic learning: components and interconnections.
– Exploring relationships using the Theory of Variation.
– Adult as guide in learning cycle.
– Protect, provide, guide.
– Valuing as goal.
– Creating socially and economically independent adolescents with appreciated personalities.
3. Expected outcomes
– Understanding Montessori Work and Study Plan principles.
– Recognizing logical links between main plan components.
– Designing a constructive, systematic plan supporting adolescents’ development. Show more

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In this session, participants will:
- Gain an understanding of schema therapy as a framework for recognising children’s core emotional needs.
- Explore how unmet emotional schemas influence behaviour, learning, and cooperation.
- Receive practical examples of how educators can create safe, attuned relationships that help children return to a state of calm.
- Learn how schema therapy principles naturally align with Montessori values such as respect, freedom within limits, empathy, and observation. Show more

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In this highly interactive workshop, we invite you to unpack the ideas introduced in our Beyond Parent Education lecture and apply them to your own school context. We’ll explore why parents choose your school, what challenges them along the way, and what helps them stay and feel connected. Through guided reflections and practical frameworks, we’ll review current processes and identify specific opportunities for more connected and compassionate interactions with your parents, thus better aligning yourself with the needs of your parents. The focus is on building clarity, compassion, and partnership. You leave with a clear roadmap for understanding the forces moving through your school-parent relationships and a strong sense of direction for cultivating trust and meaningful collaboration. Show more

LECTURE IN ENGLISH 

The workshop till highlight five essential elements which can make math effective and engaging: Historical Context: Using mathematical timelines (e.g., from Thales to modern computing) helps students see math as a developing human story, allowing them to understand the world and recognize progress over time.
Conceptual Depth through Materials: Moving from concrete to abstract using classic Montessori materials such as the Geometric Cabinet, yellow triangles for area calculation, and Pythagoras theorem stands. This is supplemented by modern digital tools like GeoGebra and Mathigon.
Interdisciplinary Projects: Engaging students by showing the connection between math and other fields, such as "Math & Biology" (Fibonacci patterns in nature), "Math & Art" (Geometric Origami and Platonic Solids), and "Math & Physics" (geometry in roller coasters).
Social and Collaborative Learning: Implementing "Mathematical Seminaries" where students lead discussions. These sessions prioritize "elegance and courtesy" and the exchange of thoughts over simply finding the "right" answer, creating a safe environment for self-expression.
Practical Application: Utilizing real-world experiences, such as a student-run Christmas market, to apply mathematical knowledge to economics, manufacturing, sales, and organization.
The workshop will demonstrate that by providing a prepared environment that supports communication and cooperation, teachers/adults can work together with adolescents to make mathematics a vital tool for their personal and social development. Teachers will explore various assessment methods, including formative assessment, seminars, and collaborative projects that move beyond traditional testing. Show more

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Training for teachers and specialists who want to consciously support children’s emotional development. Participants will learn how the Montessori environment—order, rhythm, silence, observation, and freedom of choice—naturally fosters the development of self-regulation. Special emphasis will be placed on psychoeducational stories, which are the most effective tool for talking about emotions in both age groups. The training provides practical strategies for supporting children in recognizing and regulating their emotions, as well as building their inner sense of strength. This is a program for those who want to integrate neurobiology and the Montessori approach into their everyday work with children. Show more

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This practice-oriented session will enable participants to:
- Learn a range of simple, ready-to-use CBT techniques that can be integrated into Montessori environments.
- Help children identify their thoughts, emotions, and bodily signals.
- Apply emotional-pause strategies, self-regulation exercises, and cognitive tools that support calmness and focus.
- Explore examples of using CBT with children experiencing stress, impulsivity, anxiety, or difficulty with transitions.
- Learn techniques that help adults regulate their own responses, maintain calm, and become a “co-regulation anchor” for children. Show more

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LECTURE IN ENGLISH | AVAILABLE ONLINE

This session explores the deep connection between structural clarity and psychological safety.
In many schools, "wellbeing" is treated as an afterthought - like a chocolate bowl in the staff room. This workshop argues that true wellbeing is not a perk, it is a byproduct of a robust Strategic Plan.
We will discuss how a clear roadmap:
● Supports alignment with school goals and focuses us all on our shared destination.
● Eliminates the anxiety of the unknown by providing a consistent "North Star" for every decision.
● Creates a stable structure where all staff feel heard, seen, and empowered to do their best work.
Key Takeaways: By the end of this session, participants will walk away with:
● The "Strategic Prepared Environment" Framework: A practical model for creating a School Strategic Plan through a Montessori lens, ensuring the administrative "shelves" are as organized as the classrooms.
● The Wellbeing Correlation: Critical insights on how role clarity and shared goals directly lower staff turnover, reduce illness, and prevent common team friction.
● The Roadmap to Stability: A clear understanding of how to move from reactive "firefighting" to a proactive, calm, and functioning school culture. Show more

LECTURE IN ENGLISH

In a world of constant rush and sensory overload, the Montessori Great Lessons invite us to pause and look at reality from a broader perspective. Through grand narratives about the history of the Universe, life, and humanity, they encourage reflection on recurring processes, interconnections, and the place of humans in the long history of the world. This workshop will show how the Great Lessons help us enter deeply into a story that calms, organizes thinking, and allows us to find meaning in what often seems chaotic. It is an offering for those who seek in education not only pace and efficiency, but also mindfulness, meaning, and time for true understanding. Show more

LECTURE IN POLISH (SIMULTANEUS INTERPRETATION INTO ENGLISH) | AVAILABLE ONLINE

We invite you to an hour-long session of silence and mindfulness, inspired by the concept of silence in Montessori pedagogy. This will be a space of pause – a moment to briefly escape the busyness of the day and return to balance. This experience will be accompanied by the harmonic sounds of acoustic instruments: singing bowls, delicate bells, the subtle sounds of a flute, the deep sound of a gong, and the rhythmic sound of drums. These sounds will support the body's natural process of calming and relaxing. In Maria Montessori's pedagogy, silence is not the absence of sound, but a state of inner focus that allows one to better hear oneself and one's needs. This session is an invitation to precisely such an experience – pause, regulation, and return to mindfulness. This time can support concentration, regeneration, and readiness for further, conscious work. The session is entirely secular and voluntary. Show more

Phyllis Pottish-Lewis will discuss the fundamentals of Montessori education at the Primary and Elementary Levels. On the second day of the conference, Phyllis Pottish-Lewis will expand and deepen the inaugural lecture topic. She will discuss how to appeal to and develop the child’s universal characteristics at two levels — in the classroom and in other related environments — supporting the child’s growth toward becoming a fully formed, independent human, drawing on her 54 years of experience as a teacher, trainer, consultant, and author. Show more

LECTURE IN ENGLISH | AVAILABLE ONLINE

In this lecture, we will examine children’s behavior through the lens of their core emotional needs and look at how the Montessori environment can either support inner balance or reveal where that balance has been disrupted. We will discuss how children’s need for safety, autonomy, and spontaneity shapes their sense of calm, and why challenging behavior is often a child’s way of signalling that something important has not yet been understood or met. A special focus will be placed on the educator’s own calm and presence, which often serve as the most powerful source of co-regulation for the child. I will share practical ways to recognize triggers, maintain boundaries, and restore a sense of calm in the classroom so that both the child and the educator feel grounded and supported. Show more

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Children naturally seek ways to regulate their emotions through movement and sensory engagement. Visual art-making offers a powerful pathway for calming the nervous system and helping children return to a focused, balanced state.
In this session, Spramani Elaun explores how tactile handwork and sensory art experiences support emotional self-regulation in young children. Drawing from her book The Way Children Make Art, she will discuss how the sensory system responds to hands-on creative activities and how intentional art environments can help children release stress and restore calm.
Participants will learn how different art materials and mediums engage the senses and provide children with constructive outlets for emotional expression. They will also have the opportunity to use their own hands and participate in an art activity. Pokaż więcej

LECTURE IN ENGLISH

A Strategic Plan is only as strong as the people who execute it. If the Plan is the "What," then your Team Values are the "How."
This session is a hands-on, practical lab designed to move values off the school's website and into the daily life of the staff room.
We will use a tactile, collaborative process to define your school's values. We will discuss how defined values:
● Simplify Decision-Making: When values are clear, the "right choice" becomes obvious.
● Create Accountability without Conflict: Values provide a neutral language for feedback and professional growth.
● Protect Team Energy: By identifying what we stand for, we naturally filter out the behaviors that lead to "team problems" and burnout.
Key Takeaways: By the end of this session, participants will walk away with:
● The "Value-to-Action" Matrix: A direct link between your school’s philosophy and the daily behaviors expected of every adult on campus.
● Your School’s Core Deck: Using Value Cards, teams will have physically identified, debated, and landed on the 3–5 core pillars that define their unique culture.
● A Strategy Integration Plan: Practical steps on how to use these values to interview new staff, conduct reviews, and resolve classroom-level friction.
● The "Living Document" Draft: A concrete set of values ready to be embedded directly into your school’s Strategic Plan. Show more

I invite you to a unique workshop “Silence Lesson +”! (ages 3–6)
Do your children need a moment of calm, better concentration, and the ability to manage their emotions? Discover the magic of the Silence Lesson—during our workshop we will practice and discuss several variations of these practical life exercises.
During the session, we will revisit how to teach children to enjoy silence, develop self-discipline, and build sensitivity to their surroundings. Practicing calm together is not only fun, but also helps build a sense of community and respect for others.
What does the child gain?
Better concentration
Self-control skills
Calmness and joy from being “here and now”
Join us and let your children discover the power of silence!Show more

LECTURE IN POLISH | AVAILABLE ONLINE

The Montessori community of leaders and educators is driven by a desire for service and peace, yet our relationships with parents can still bring frustration. Parents happily choose our schools, then ignore our suggestions or complain when things don’t go how they expected.
How do we bridge that gap between us?
In this workshop, we will explore why go beyond parent education, where barriers to compassion emerge within our daily processes and how we can intentionally infuse more gentleness into our interactions. Together, we will look at past experiences and personal biases that show up in the present, shaping the way we react, not respond to parents. Through reflection, role play and guided exercises, we will reconnect with the human story to build genuine connection. It is a journey of compassion toward calm. Show more

LECTURE IN ENGLISH

This workshop explores how role-play serves as a "safe laboratory" where adolescents can experiment with social dynamics, decode emotional cues, and develop the moral independence necessary for adulthood. Practical Application: Three Core Case Studies This session demonstrates the power of role-play through three distinct exercises designed for the adolescent's daily environment:
The Dynamics of Connection (Listening & Feedback): By experiencing all roles, participants gain a visceral understanding of how their communicative choices impact the emotional well-being of others.
The Impact of Social Labels (Stereotyping and Prejudice): This simulation reveals how social preconceptions dictate our behavior and how being "labeled" can restrict one's freedom of expression, fostering a critical awareness of the importance of seeing the individual beyond the stereotype.
Global Empathy (Model United Nations): This deepens adolescents' understanding of world affairs and cultivates a sense of "Global Compassion" and “world citizens”.
Conclusion These practices do more than teach "good manners"; they provide adolescents with the emotional intelligence and perspective-taking skills required to navigate a complex, diverse world with elegance, courtesy, and genuine empathy.Show more

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The lecture focuses on the Montessori teacher’s work with a “difficult parent” in situations of tension, pressure, and lack of trust. It presents the “difficult parent” as a person acting from a place of fear and a need for security. The most common parent types described in psychological literature will be discussed, including the demanding parent, the controlling parent, the anxious parent, the authority-challenging parent, and the avoidant parent. The lecture explains the psychological mechanisms underlying these attitudes and teaches how to recognize them without judgment or escalating conflict. Special emphasis is placed on the teacher’s stance as a calm and stable adult. Participants will learn how to build authority without domination or submission, and how to set clear boundaries in line with the Montessori philosophy. The lecture includes examples of real-life situations from Montessori settings. It shows how to protect the child, the prepared environment, and the developmental process. It highlights the importance of communication based on calmness, clarity, and adult responsibility. Overall, the lecture supports building a partnership-based relationship with parents, with the child’s well-being at the center. Show more

LECTURE IN POLISH | AVAILABLE ONLINE