Sofia Cavalletti Passing...

http://books.google.com/books?id=4U2dgU-xevkC&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_atb#v=onepage&q&f=false

Sofia Cavalletti, 94, dies
The following is the message sent out by the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd USA board:
With tears and with peace, we want to share with you that our beloved Sofia Cavalletti, at 94, a founding mother of the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd, has entered the celestial pasture of the Good Shepherd. There is great rejoicing in heaven for her with Gianna, Tilde, Fr. Mongillo, Maria Christleib and Tina, along with members of her family who have gone before her.
Francesca Cocchini sent the following announcement from Rome, Italy: "Dearest, this is only to say that during this night - at ten after midnight (Tuesday, August 23) Sofia encountered the Good Shepherd face to face." The funeral Mass will be on Wednesday, August 24.
Francesca also shared the announcement for the Italian newspaper, Repubblica:
"The Maria Montessori Association for the Religious Formation of the Child sings the Magnificat for the life of Sofia Cavalletti who gave the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd to the Church. Eucharist is at 11 am, Wednesday, 24 August, at S. Giovanni dei Florentini Church, Rome."
Sofia goes ahead of a large family of Catechesis of the Good Shepherd catechists and children in thirty-seven countries around the world. A Hebrew and scripture scholar, Sofia began to work with children in 1954, collaborating with Gianna Gobbi, a Montessori educator. Together they were called and inspired by the children they served to listen, watch, and deepen an understanding of children's spirituality in relationship with God.
Sofia leaves to the world an approach to the Christian formation of children from the ages of three to twelve that is theologically sound, systematic, and rich in Bible, liturgy, and sacred history. Sofia's reverence for the Bible and liturgy, her fresh and compelling style of writing and speaking, her wise and intelligent way of discussing complicated theological themes simply, her sense of humor, and personal warmth will be greatly missed by many.
Please go to our Facebook page (The National Association of Catechesis of the Good Shepherd) to share your prayers and remembrances of Sofia and feel free to forward this email to other catechists & friends you know who may not yet be members of our association.
http://www.cgsusa.org/

For Godly Play click here:

http://www.godlyplayfoundation.org/newsite/Main.php

Jewish and Montessori?

Some Jewish Montessori schools which I think
would be good models for integrating
specific religious and cultural cirriculum
can be found here:
http://www.netivotmontessori.com/
http://shalommontessori.org/index.html
http://www.alefbetmontessori.org/programs/judaic-studies
http://www.sinaiacademy.co.za/
http://www.mjds.ca/

Here is a blurb from the school website:
Are you curious about how we integrate Montessori and Judaic Studies?
In our unique integrated program, a certified Montessori teacher and a qualified Judaic Studies teacher work together in each classroom, all day every day. The Montessori teachers at MJDS have all undergone extensive training in the methods of Montessori education. The Judaic Studies teachers are all fluent Hebrew speakers, who have experience teaching in Israel, and who speak to the children in Hebrew at all times throughout the day. This gives the children the experience of hearing and using Hebrew conversationally and in a practical way on a daily basis, and gives them a more intimate understanding of the language.
The Judaic Studies and Montessori teachers work together to create new materials based on Montessori and Jewish principles. They also work towards full integration and use of the Montessori materials in Hebrew.

All our teachers pursue further professional development in the form of workshops, courses and visits to other schools.
This AMI/Jewish conference looked interesting:
http://www.regonline.com/builder/site/tab3.aspx?EventID=179587
A great article on Jewish Montessori schools
is here: http://www.forward.com/articles/2650/

Have fun reading!

K.