education
International Montessori School HK
One exceptional school, two languages, four locations
– we take a tour of the IMS Stanley campus
G
reeted by the welcoming
smiles of Maly, Head of
Communications, and Karin,
one of the school’s two main
founders, we delve into a conversation
outlining the particulars of the school
in Stanley known as the International
Montessori School, or better known
around Hong Kong as IMS.
In case you’re unfamiliar with the
Montessori method, it’s worth noting
that it has been around for over a
hundred years and is based on the
philosophy of education established by
Italian physician, Dr. Maria Montessori.
It involves self-directed activity, hands-
on learning (with specially designed
materials) and collaborative play in a
mixed aged group classroom. Children
are free to make choices in their
learning, giving them opportunities for
exploration of a particular topic and at
their own pace.
The classroom environment is
designed with purpose and great
care with materials which support
natural interests to help solidify a love
of learning. Montessori materials and
learning tools are used in this way
–“show children how to use them and
allow them to solve questions with
these tools their own way”. Montessori
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teachers, embracing this philosophy,
spend a year of their training learning
how to use these materials.
As for IMS, you couldn’t find a more
passionate school founder than Karin,
although to be fair I didn’t get to meet
her co-founder Anne. It is Karin who
tells me how IMS came to fruition from
an idea borne out of creating a dual-
language school in which children could
be nurtured sufficiently to truly thrive,
reaching their full individual potential as
students. It was a chance meeting with
her Montessori educated co-founder,
Anne Sawyer, that set the wheels in motion.
Karin grew up in HK, speaking
Cantonese and English, later learning
Putonghua as well, and saw immense
value in being bilingual. She also saw a
need for a nurturing way for children to
learn. After her schooling in HK, Karin
was educated in the US. She worked in
finance and at a pivotal point, she met
Anne Sawyer. Anne, an American who
has been in HK for quite some time,
had attended 2 years of Montessori in
her youth and was convinced this was
the answer. The Montessori method
could help fulfil their joint vision of
creating a child-centric, supportive
learning environment and one which
could accommodate dual languages.
Believing that children are born
with a natural desire to meet their
own needs and to learn, IMS founders
got to work designing the school and
the materials for teaching in English
and Putonghua.They had to invent
the Chinese curriculum and materials
based on the traditional Montessori
teachings and materials. This was a
time before Montessori was introduced
in mainland China. Today there are
Montessori schools and training
programs in China.
Early childhood
education is the key
to the betterment
of society
– Dr. Maria Montessori
The dual language aspect of IMS
was meticulously crafted and was of
utmost importance to the founders
of the school. Chinese shares equal
value in the curriculum as English.
“The mindset at IMS is to have faith