A father in love with his experience in Montessori

Ángel Luis Ortíz has been in the philosophy for four years and encourages other parents to experience what he lived.

By Andrea Santiago Vicente

Angel arrives at the Juana Sánchez Montessori school in Juncos to enroll 3-year-old Jeykiriany in Early Childhood. On his visit to the open house, the silence on campus, the way the materials were presented, the respect among the children, and the amount of programming for parents through Casa Familiar were enough to make him decide for Montessori.

''Bringing her in, she was excited about school. We met her teacher, Ms. Ortiz. She started her first day of school, and when we came to pick her up, she didn't want to leave," Angel told us about Jeykiriany's first day.

Now, four years later, in the mornings, he takes not only Jeykiriany but also her brother Lezvany, who joins the Montessori experience after feeling satisfied with the philosophy.

Jeykiriany is a 7 year old girl. Ángel describes her as quiet, affectionate, and a future businesswoman. Instead, Lezvany is 6 years old and, according to what he tells us, he is very active and passionate about history, the planets, and studies. Both came into Angel and his family's with months of being birth to be raised by them.

With his wife, Ángel has three children, now adults, who all studied in the traditional public school. This allows him to have experience in two teaching methods. He mentioned that Jeykiriany and Lezvany are more affectionate, talk in a different way, and are aware of their surroundings, things that he did not experienced with his other three children.

''I'm so happy to live the Montessori experience. Sometimes people ask me why those kids are so friendly, affectionate, and respectful. And me: well, they are in a small Montessori school''.

He tells us that having his children in the philosophy gives him happiness as a father because he sees them happy, developing and achieving their goals. With great joy, he mentioned: "My children love school. They are like their father; he loves school''.

The expression of loving school goes beyond the classroom environment; he says that in the midst of his parenting process, Casa Familiar is and has been important since they have given him the tools to calm his concerns in the midst of parenting. They have answered every one of his questions and have been very supportive.

From the first day, the space and accompaniment provided by Casa Familiar guided him in the process of calming his concerns regarding the upbringing of his adoptive children. The knowledge of Casa Familiar specialists has been key to being able to explain to his children that he is not the biological father and many other questions that arose in the process that he described as "tough," but he acknowledged that without the support of the community he couldn't have done it.

Through this same program, he has taken workshops on preventing violence and mistreatment, school safety, and interpersonal relationships in the community, among others. Families can find these spaces of peace and tranquility thanks to the services provided by Casa Familiar, a strategy of the Escuelas para la Paz Program of Instituto Nueva Escuela (INE).

Finally, for him, the philosophy is wonderful. He loves the environment, how everything is positive, the way situations are resolved, and because what he sees and experiences makes him grow as an individual.

''I would recommend that parents seek information from the school. Let them experience what I've lived; the excitement of having their children in a Montessori school. To see the joy of those children all the time, that desire to go to school every day to do their job, their duties. If parents saw and knew more about the school, they would surely fight for public Montessori to continue growing as we are fighting for it to grow.''

Without a doubt, Ángel L. Ortiz is a Face of many from parents who are witnessed how School by School, a New Puerto Rico is built.