International Day 2014 Online Auction

Nazareth Nursery Montessori School
START
22
May 2014
08:00 AM EDT
END
11
June 2014
08:00 PM EDT
RAISED
$5,222.00
GOAL $4,000.00
130.6% REACHED!

About Our Auction

This online auction raises much needed funds for Nazareth Nursery Montessori School, a non-profit pre-school located in Chelsea that is run by the Sisters of the St. Francis and serves families from all five boroughs of New York City as well as New Jersey.

International Day is an annual event held in June, as a way of celebrating the variety of cultures represented by Nazareth Nursery's diverse students and families.


About Nazareth Nursery Montessori School

Nazareth Nursery Montessori School is a non-profit Preschool and Kindergarten that has been serving the families in the local community for over a century.

The mission of Nazareth Nursery is to provide excellent early childhood education for the children of families in the New York Metropolitan Area. Each child is recognized as a unique individual with intellectual, emotional, physical and spiritual needs. The school further advances the child's sense of self-worth. As a consequence, each child will learn to respect himself, other people and the environment. It is hoped that each child will develop within himself a life-long love of learning.

The school follows The Montessori Method and classes are multi-age (2 to 6 years old) to encourage a family-like spirit of curiosity on the part of the younger children, and a helpful spirit on the part of the older children. Imitation rather than rivalry prevails. The older children learn as they teach the younger children. The child who teaches gains confidence and self-reliance.

Nazareth Nursery Montessori School, under the watchful direction of Sister Lucy Sabatini, was inspired and incorporated by Father Henry Van Rensselear during a time of real physical poverty. Early in the 20th Century, Chelsea was both changing and staying the same, as neighborhoods always do in New York City. The Flatiron Building, one of the first skyscrapers north of Lower Manhattan, was going up over 23rd Street at Madison Square. Seventh Avenue was being extended south of 14th Street, cutting a new swath through Greenwich Village. Sixth Avenue was still famous for its shopping. Great department stores such as Lord & Taylor’s and B. Altman’s, employed many of the young women of Chelsea. On the other side of Chelsea, the meat packing district and the Chelsea docks and ferries were in full swing. But the one constant force in Chelsea was the Catholic Church, always present and caring for the many needs of the poor who lived in the tenements that made up the bulk of the neighborhood.

The Reverend Henry Van Rensselear, a Jesuit on the staff of St. Francis Xavier Parish, was worried about the numerous young children he saw in need of a healthy and safe environment during the day. The Van Rensselear family’s unselfish commitment to the community led directly to the establishment of The Nazareth Day Nursery. We owe a great debt to the Van Rensselaers, as The Nazareth Nursery was begun as a private family project and has remained privately funded for the past 107 years. In December 17, 1901, Nazareth Nursery was officially incorporated. Thousands of children have benefited from Nazareth’s love, and many innovative steps have been taken over the years to provide an even richer environment for them.

Play and educational facilities have expanded. Lay teachers have joined the staff. But perhaps the most significant innovation occurred in 1981 when The Nazareth Nursery became an accredited Montessori school. The Montessori method of education for the preschool child was established by the Italian educator and physician Maria Montessori (1870-1952). Its philosophy is based on the belief that self-motivation, freedom with responsibility, and respect for the individual child is central to development. Dr. Montessori also felt that a child would learn naturally if presented with proper materials suited to his ability and interests. A “teacher-observer” demonstrates the proper use of these materials and only intervenes when individual help is needed—the reverse of the traditional system of an “active” teacher instructing a “passive” class.

A typical Montessori classroom has readily available materials, household utensils, plants and animals that are cared for by the children, and child-sized furniture. There is also a great emphasis placed upon physical exercise in accordance with the belief that motor skills should be developed along with a child’s sensory and intellectual capacities.

Now, 107 years after its inception by a farsighted priest and his dedicated and generous family, The Nazareth Nursery is on the brink of another new beginning, solidly grounded by the past 20 years of successful innovation. Endowed with years of experience as both a teacher and administrator in the schools of the Archdiocese of New York, Sister Lucy Sabatini, the Educational Director, began to implement the philosophy, method, and materials of Maria Montessori as the educational program for the children at Nazareth. In recognition of her exemplary work, Sister Lucy was named a Consultant for Early Childhood Education by the Office of Superintendent of Schools in the Archdiocese of New York. But finances were tight, so the acquisition of standard Montessori materials had to be acquired over the course of years and staff had too be trained to become qualified Montessori Directors. Within an amazingly brief five years, the complete Montessori environment was in place in each of the three classrooms.

The Chelsea neighborhood is changing yet again. Older buildings are being demolished and high-rises are taking their place. Large numbers of women are still entering the workplace, either to pursue their own careers or to help their families financially. And single parents—both men and women—are still seeking a place which will cherish a child while he or she works. These parents can rest easy, for 107 years later, The Nazareth Nursery still remains what it always was—a beacon of learning and a haven of love. This tradition and legacy is now being carried on by the new Director of Nazareth, Ms. Fatima Gianni. As it has done for the past 107 years, The Nazareth Nursery sends precious children out from its care with a solid foundation for becoming a proud and valued citizen of our world. Let's help lay the path for this continued tradition for years to come...

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