Khalsa Families
“I am so grateful for my son’s experience as a member of the Toddler Program at Khalsa Montessori. The lead teacher in the Toddler Program has had such a tremendous impact on my son’s development—from nurturing his sense of humor to helping him develop independence and self-control. The Toddler Program has been an integral part of my son’s development—from his reasoning skills to his intellectual curiosity, from his sense of self to his capacity for self-care. The Montessori imprint will be forever.”
—Natasha Behl, Khalsa School Parent
“It wasn’t until I got to high school that I saw what Khalsa had done for me. I left Khalsa to attend Brophy College Prep, the best, and one of the most challenging high schools in the state. As a freshman, while my peers were struggling to adjust, I found the course load quite manageable, thanks to Montessori. Khalsa didn’t just prepare me academically; it gave me a skill set that is invaluable whether you are a high school student or the president of the United States. I was self-motivated, resourceful, and able to work efficiently by myself or with others, all skills that Montessori structures its curriculum around. A Montessori education is incredibly unique because of its structure, or rather lack of structure. There is so much freedom and opportunity for each student to grow and learn as he or she wants to, and that self-directed learning is key to success.”
— Riley Carpenter, Khalsa School Graduate
“We are very pleased with the Khalsa School’s approach to education; social and spiritual as well as academic. During the year Damian has attended Khalsa, we have noticed a great difference in his enthusiasm for learning, his respect for others and the environment. We are positive that the social environment in school has resulted in a child who is much more patient, understanding, considerate and able to take and follow directions pleasantly. Congratulations Khalsa Montessori School! Thank you for offering such a wonderful complete learning environment for the children.”
— Joy Ann Newton, Khalsa School parent
“As I go off to Swarthmore College, I cannot help but think that subliminally I am looking for a Khalsa Montessori experience at a different level. It is worth it. The new world order is being fabricated in young minds right as we speak. It is shifting and changing and the status quo and “business as usual” is not sufficient. Luckily, I and all these other students are familiar with this type of “out of the box” thought the world thirsts for, since we were young playing with golden beads. We have sampled the beauty of flexibility, ownership, and individuality within the Montessori classroom. We, even though it sometimes required arduous work, have developed the beginnings of eloquence of thought and philosophy that will satiate the appetite of the hungry opportunities out there that are created out of hard times.”
— Taylor Tucker, Khalsa School Graduate
State Test Scores and Achievement Profiles
Community
“Imagine a classroom that believes a child’s hand is the extension of the mind … Finding the right day care is not always easy. We came across one with a very unique approach to teaching and caring … Imagine a classroom in a preschool that teaches children the alphabet, numbers, color, and time; yet, at the same time, teaches courtesy and grace, respect for themselves and for others, and total love for everyone and everything around them. Imagine a classroom that believes a child’s hand is the extension of the mind and that a child learns more when he can see and feel what he’s being taught … The Montessori method of teaching provides the learning process … the Khalsa School provides the loving process.”
— Channel 10 reporter Jan D’Atri in her televised documentary “Under the Sun.”
”Teachers at the Khalsa School … follow the Montessori method, which allows children to choose from a variety of educational materials that teach them math and letter concepts and manual coordination … the center emphasizes a “total approach to the development of mind, body and spirit.”
— “Picking the Best Day Care,” Money Magazine
”PHOENIX magazine rates the top academically performing schools in the valley.” [Top Five Charter Elementary Schools]: ”Khalsa Montessori Elementary”
— Phoenix Magazine Best Schools edition, August 2010
”The Khalsa School emphasizes the self-esteem, self-confidence and development of the child.”
— Geoff Davidian, Arizona Republic article
”Out of more than 200 Arizona charter schools, three stand out as top performers in a first-of-its-kind study examining year-to- year progress of charter-school students’ AIMS scores.
Students at BASIS Tucson, Mesa Arts Academy and Phoenix’s Khalsa Montessori School rapidly improved their scores on both the AIMS math and reading exams from year to year, according to the study to be released Wednesday by the Arizona Charter Schools Association. Also, the schools maintained overall scores above the state average…”
– Pat Kossan, “3 schools models for other Arizona charters: First-of-its-Kind Study Highlights Leadership,” The Arizona Republic, 8/19/08
“All Arizona educators want their students to get a quality education. Success Measured, a study conducted by the Arizona Charter Schools Association, offers some valuable answers on how to achieve that goal. The rigorous research identified four foundational elements of student-level growth that schools – district or charter – must have to help students perform better academically. They include a leader with a purpose; teachers who take responsibility for the end result; a culture that promotes teamwork; and using data to solve problems….Success Measured used four filters to identify the best charter schools in Arizona. Two methods focused on student growth and two focused on systematic high achievement and sustainability… As soon as we were confident that the data we used identified schools that were succeeding beyond just having high test scores, we were ready to take a closer look at each one. Three schools met the Success Measured study’s criteria in both reading and math: BASIS Tucson, Mesa Arts Academy and Khalsa Montessori in Phoenix.”
“Initially a private school, Khalsa Montessori became a charter school in 1996. The Montessori teaching method emphasizes a multi-sensory learning environment. Student’s intellectual, physical, and psychological abilities are nurtured through extensive use of hands-on activities, a non-traditional classroom and multi-age grouping. At Khalsa, a culture of comfort and respect is fostered in an atmosphere where students and teachers remove their shoes, sit on floor cushions, as well as traditional desks and speak in quiet voices. Hands on learning activities include using beads or puzzle like grids to calculate math problems and working in the vegetable garden…The students move through their work, receiving lessons from the teacher or guidance from a well-trained classroom assistant. Students are allowed to work together which encourages peer learning…Homework forms a bridge between hands-on Montessori materials and more traditional formats, preparing students for life beyond Montessori. Class work is monitored daily, to address a student’s difficulties immediately. This learning culture has worked well for Khalsa Montessori, whose students place near the top of the state in both reading and math.”
– “Success Measured: Four Foundational Elements of Student Level Growth,” Research Study by Rebecca Gau and Marcella Gemelli, 2009