MSLF Native Plant & Tree Wish List
May 4, 2016

Expanding on our partnership with the Lake Forest Open Lands Association , this year we’ve created a school “wish list” of plants and trees that will be available for purchase through LFOLA’s upcoming Go Native! Plant & Tree Sale ! The wish list will give families an opportunity to purchase native plants that will be planted by the children at MSLF’s Laurel Drive Campus, continuing our prairie restoration and stewardship work.

Orders and payment are due Wednesday, May 11.
MSLF will then place our order for the Plant & Tree Sale, and the items will be delivered to us and planted by the children.

If you have questions about the wish list, please contact Julia Lunn .

You may also wish to visit the Plant & Tree Sale!
The MSLF Wish List will be available at the sale, to select from remaining items.

LFOLA logo Lake Forest Open Lands Association
Go Native! Plant & Tree Sale
Mellody Farm Nature Preserve
Saturday, May 14, 2016
8:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.

 

Thank you for supporting MSLF!

By Teresa Pavelich June 2, 2025
At MSLF, overnight trips become an important part of Montessori learning beginning in Lower Elementary. Each trip is carefully planned to meet the developmental needs of students in the second and third plane of development , with each overnight trip getting progressively longer to ease children into these independent journeys away from their families. These aren't just trips - they're carefully crafted opportunities for students to discover who they are, what they're capable of, and how they can contribute to their community and the wider world. Beginning in their first year of Lower Elementary, students take their first MSLF overnight trip to Nature’s Classroom in Wisconsin. For many Lower Elementary students, this trip represents their first nights away from home. During their trip they explore the outdoors, work together in groups, use their practical life skills during community meals, and grow! It’s this first overnight trip for MSLF students where parents and staff remark how students come back almost transformed after being able to develop their independence in a supportive environment. Our Upper Elementary classroom has embarked on overnight trips to both Camp Timber-lee in Wisconsin and The Country Experience at Amstutz Family Farm in Elizabeth, IL. Both locations provide students with increasing opportunities to apply their practical life skills, like checking the weather to ensure they have weather-appropriate gear for their trip. Every task empowers them to develop self-reliance and problem-solving skills. These trips are also opportunities for the students to get to know one another and build strong relationships with their peers and with the adults in their classroom. Adolescent Program students at MSLF have opportunities to visit both Springfield, IL and Washington, DC . These overnight trips tie directly into their studies – connecting curriculum learned in the classroom to experiences in the wider community. They often take their learning on the road, for example by watching a legislative session in action in Springfield to see which bills are passed during their trip or presenting their research papers at monuments in Washington, DC. And for these students, the skills they built on their trips in Lower Elementary and Upper Elementary are put to work, as they pack their own bags, learn more about public transportation, and plan their daily itineraries to make the most out of their visit. Experiences like these at MSLF support the child’s independence, laying the groundwork for transitions in later life: the start of high school, going away to college, a first job, and beyond. As they conquer challenges outside their comfort zone, their confidence soars, laying the foundation for the autonomy and independence they will continue to utilize throughout their Montessori experience and beyond. It’s good for parents, too, to see how truly capable our children are!
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Forbes Article highlights mental health benefits of Montessori education