With guidance from certified Montessori teachers, students at J. J. Hill use hands-on materials to establish critical thinking skills and respond to real-world issues. Through multi-age classrooms, students develop relationships with the same teacher and community.  Montessori education seeks to educate the whole child: developing social emotional skills while maintaining high academic expectations. 

Our Mission: To nurture and empower individuals to become lifelong learners, skilled peace-makers and problem solvers.

International Peace Site

J.J Hill is proud of its designation as an international peace site. We originally became a peace site in October, 1992.  Each classroom develops an activity, a presentation, or a play to illustrate a specific theme for that year. The theme relates in some way to the overarching goal of peace. It's a delightful and beautiful time in our yearly calendar, a time of joy and creativity.

Peace means that, on the classroom level, we involve children in making peace and building community. Students are taught responsibilities such as facilitating a class meeting, peer mediation, and mentorship of younger students. Community service is an important part of what we do. It can involve care of the classroom environment, listening to younger students read in another classroom, or social problem solving skills that emphasize listening and problem solving.

J.J. Hill Montessori takes pride on the continuity of its staff, and the diversity of its children. Many teachers have been with the program since elementary grades were introduced in 1989. The student body mixes students of all nationalities.

The Prepared Environment allows choice of work; choice of work stimulates concentration; the responsibility for taking things out and putting them away develops order; and the ability to move about the room enhances coordination, maturity and independence. Serious about the child's capacity as well as the propitiousness of the age, Montessori claimed it is our job to "prepare children for life."

Multi-Age Groupings

Montessori classrooms are multi-age. A child stays with the same teacher for two or three years at JJ Hill. Multi-age groupings enhance academics (students see and hear parts of lessons one to two years before they are taught the material); and socialization (older students support younger students).

• Children's House (CH) - Children in pre-K and kindergarten (This is an all day program)
• Elementary I (E1) — Children in grades 1-3
• Elementary II (E2) —  Children in grades 4 and 5.