Mt. Lebanon Montessori School and Academy

About MFLC Since its inception in 1973, the philosophy of Mushroom Family Learning Center has been that each child is a unique individual who deserves a warm, secure environment that promotes a sense of wonder and discovery in learning. By providing a trusting and inclusive atmosphere with mutual respect between teachers and children, each child is free to grow socially, emotionally, physically, intellectually and creatively. Mushroom offers half-day classes for children age two through five as well as Kindergarten enrichment and other programs, with a total school enrollment of approximately 120 children. Our small student-teacher ratio (six to one) allows the teachers to nourish, stimulate, support and recognize the uniqueness of each child. This enables every child to discover the special gifts that lie within and begin to develop confidence in his/her abilities. The teachers serve as guides to facilitate each child's discoveries, with emphasis on the child's self-direction and control rather than teacher control. We also adhere to the views of well-known teacher and educator Vivian Paley by teaching acceptance and inclusion of others. We reinforce this with an important rule in all classes - You cannot say you can't play; that is, children cannot exclude other children from play. By using the language of acceptance, the teacher conveys the validity of each child's feelings and personality and promotes the sense of belonging to a community. This acceptance gives each child the freedom to try, to fail, and to try again, with each experience contributing to his/her growth and development. Everything we do at Mushroom is intended to support our primary mission to provide children with opportunities for individual growth within a shared environment, but parents and families are also key to our success. With parents comprising a majority of the board of directors, the school director and staff invite and strongly encourage parent participation in the decisions and activities of the school.