In Celebration of Earth Day, Students at Daycroft Montessori School of Ann Arbor Get Eco-Conscious

On Earth Day, worldwide events heighten awareness and appreciation of the Earth’s natural environment.  This year, Earth Day happened on Sunday, April 22.  Just a couple of days before that, students at Daycroft Montessori School (www.daycroft.org) of Ann Arbor did their part to celebrate and respect nature’s bounty in their own special corner of the Earth.

Abby Knue, head kindergarten teacher at Daycroft’s Elementary Campus on Zeeb Road, spearheaded the school’s Earth Day observance.  “Our aim is to introduce our students to the environmental impact of what we do every day,” she says.  “We’re opening them to the responsibility they have to be good stewards of our Earth and its resources.”

Daycroft’s Earth Day celebration took root fairly modestly last year.  Knue says, “I set up different ecology-themed stations for each classroom to travel to.  We had a great time.”

This year, Daycroft’s other teachers joined with Knue to significantly expand the event.  Each class came up with a special Earth Day project or lesson for all of the school’s students to engage in.  For example, students made buttons with Earth Day slogans.  They decorated shopping bags and returned them to area stores for their customers’ use on Earth Day.  Students also cleaned up the school’s grounds and planted flowers. 

In a scavenger hunt, students looked for recyclables.  They planted seeds in Daycroft’s garden, and donated other seeds to Growing Hope (www.growinghope.net), the Ypsilanti-based non-profit organization that provides resources for community members to improve their lives and healthy nutrition through urban gardening and farming.    

“Our hope,” Knue says, “is to continue growing our Earth Day celebration every year.  We may include guest speakers, and we’d like to connect more to the local community – maybe even somehow to the global community.”

About Daycroft Montessori School

Daycroft Montessori School blends the distinctive student-centered teaching methods of Maria Montessori with traditional and progressive education.  This helps Daycroft accomplish its mission: to provide a personalized learning environment that appreciates individual differences, nurtures the whole child, and enables students to develop at their own pace and achieve to their potential.

Daycroft is one of Washtenaw County’s leading private schools.  It began as a preschool program in 1968.  Daycroft has since grown to include a full-day kindergarten program, an elementary school program through 6th grade, before-school and after-school care, summer camp programs, and enrichment classes.

Daycroft has earned accreditation from the Independent Schools Association of the Central States (ISACS; www.isacs.org).  It is a member of the Association of Independent Michigan Schools (AIMS; www.aims-mi.org), the American Montessori Society (AMS; www.amshq.org), and the North American Montessori Teachers’ Association (NAMTA; www.montessori-namta.org).

Daycroft Preprimary School (preschool and kindergarten) is at 100 E. Oakbrook Drive, Ann Arbor, MI 48104.  Phone: (734) 930-0333.

Daycroft Elementary School (grades K through 6) and Daycroft’s administrative offices are at 1095 N. Zeeb Road, Ann Arbor, MI 48103.  Phone: (734) 662-3335.