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Welcome to Elonera Montessori School – a whole school offers a positive life-long approach to learning that prepares children to be self-confident, responsible, and successful in our global community. We are a not-for-profit, non-denominational, internationally-minded, and inclusive organization that offers quality Montessori education in the Illawarra for children aged 18 months to 18 years. At elonera, we cultivate our students a passion for excellence in everything they do, both inside and outside of school. We continuously aim to be happy, harmonious, and hands-on. Elenora Montessori, located 80 km south of Sydney between the mountains and sea, is a dynamic school with 150 students from pre-school to High School. We provide a stimulating and positive learning environment for ages 18 months to 3 years in our Parent Toddler Program, 2-3 years in our Montessori Long Day Care Program, 3-6 years in our Montessori Pre-School, Primary and High School Program through to 18 years in the IB Diploma Programme. Our philosophical framework is the Montessori approach to learning. We are a multicultural school that has no religious affiliations. Our curriculum is designed to prepare students both for further learning and for life. We have a firmly held set of universal values, including self-respect, respect for others, honesty, integrity, empathy, compassion, and a sense of international understanding. We are a close-knit community of students, educators, parents, and friends of the school committed to diversity. Three year age groupings are fundamental to the successful implementation of the Montessori Method. Other key components include a unique curriculum, low student to adult ratios, individualized assessment, an uninterrupted work cycle, and teachers trained both traditionally and with Montessori qualifications. Families are connected with the school community and involve themselves in various committees, working bees, and information sessions. We recently surveyed a group of 37 alumni, of whom 36 recommend Elonera Montessori School to prospective students. They commented on the aspects of Elonera that they liked the most (the year they left the school is stated): The sense of community and unity it provided and respect of individuality" 2013. Freedom and independence to discover myself" 2014. Combined stages, interactive, self-directed learning, family feel, fantastic teachers" 2003. The warm, loving vibe, acceptance for all personalities and the freedom" 2012. They take a differed approach with all and ensure we all develop to our best" 2016. The friendships with other students as well as parents and teachers and the freedom to control my learning (A lifelong skill)" 1993. I think the way the staff encouraged us as students to pursue what we were interested in as well as those few things that interested us less was excellent" 2013. "They take a differed approach with all and ensure we all develop to our best" 2016. Community" 2007 "The people and the atmosphere" 2002. An analysis in SCIENCE vol 313 Sept 2006 comparing educational outcomes indicates that Montessori education leads children with better social and academic skills. The summary highlighted benefits such as essential word recognition, mathematics, and cooperative play, in the early years and more creativity and problem-solving ability by 12. More recently, a comparison of interventions that aid executive function development by Diamond SCIENCE 333 Aug 2011 states that at age 5, Montessori children showed better executive function than peers attending other schools. They performed better in reading and math and showed more concern for fairness and justice. At age 12, relating to executive function, the children showed more creativity in essay writing than controls. They also reported feeling more of a sense of community at school. View full school