Why MCHD
Montessori Children’s House of Denver is different from any other Montessori school – here’s why.
Culture and Community
At Montessori Children’s House of Denver, we model a profound respect and joy in every classroom at every campus. In this positive environment, children can learn more about themselves and develop their interests and self-confidence. On any given day you can see for yourself how much our staff and teachers love what they do by watching their interactions with our students and their families. At MCHD, our respect extends throughout the community, and we volunteer and become involved in community service and activities whenever possible.
Learning Environments
As a pre-K through 6th grade school, Montessori Children’s House of Denver is committed to helping each child lay the foundation for a lifelong love of learning, a foundation that can take years to build. The classrooms are set up with a child’s engagement and independence in mind. The furniture is sized for the age of children in each classroom. The learning environments are filled with Montessori materials that are specially designed for all areas of study. Each campus has active gardening areas and sustainability programs, and our Central Park campus has a greenhouse and more extensive gardens where students learn about agriculture and sustainability practices.
Our Montessori learning environments have a 1:5 toddler-to-teacher ratio; 1:10 preschool and kindergarten student-to-teacher ratio; and 1:15 elementary and middle school student-to-teacher ratio. Each student can move throughout the classroom and meticulously prepared learning areas, guided by the highly structured Montessori curriculum to choose lessons that reflect their interests and their developmental needs.
Montessori materials are designed to intrigue students and help them move forward with their learning through isolation of concepts, built-in points of interest, and controls of error that enable them to develop their inborn reasoning abilities. With encouragement and guidance from the teachers, students direct their own learning and progress at their own pace, repeating and practicing lessons as many times as needed, to reach their full potential in each subject area in the time span that’s right for them.
Our goal at Montessori Children's House of Denver is to help each child reach their fullest potential, supporting them throughout their journey of self-discovery so that they may be successful in all areas of their lives. Our alumni, and especially those who stay with us through middle school, emerge with a strong sense of self and are ably equipped to pursue whatever they would like to make of their lives. We love hearing from our alumni, because they have become such amazing people (as you can see below).
Longevity and History
MCHD was founded in 1991 by Gina Abegg and Rachel Averch. This pair of dedicated Montessori educators were committed to creating an excellent Montessori school that reflected their core beliefs about the strength and beauty of Montessori education. Since then, MCHD has grown steadily, now with three campuses in the heart of Denver.
Leadership and Teaching Staff
The MCHD team is cohesive and committed, collaborating with and supporting each other to achieve the school’s purpose and direction. MCHD teachers are highly qualified, holding their MACTE accredited Montessori certifications and ECT credentials in addition to any licensures, degrees, certifications or director qualifications. All staff members engage in regular professional development to keep abreast of the latest advances in both child development and Montessori techniques.
Our leadership team, Rachel Averch, Michelle O'Donoghue, Sarah Mohagen, Irene O'Brien, and Julie Buck are experts in Montessori methods, with more than 85 years of combined experience in Montessori education. The entire team is united with the MCHD vision and implements that vision daily.
MCHD Vision
At the Montessori Children’s House of Denver, our vision is to challenge, nurture, inspire and support each child’s individual growth and development within an effective, safe, enriched, beautiful and welcoming learning community that embodies the Montessori principles.
Our schools do not discriminate in employment or the provision of educational services on the basis of race, color, religion, age, gender, national origin, disability, citizenship status, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local law.