Featured Posts

Santa Cruz Sentinel: Mount Madonna School has Successful In-Person Instruction

Santa Cruz Sentinel, 11/9/2020, “Mount Madonna School has successful in-person instruction,” by Ryan Stuart; photos by Shmuel Thaler. WATSONVILLE >> Mount Madonna School in Watsonville is leading the charge in the return to in-person learning in Santa Cruz County. The private school…

Growing Up in Santa Cruz: “Children are Parched for In-School Learning,” by Lisa Catterall

Growing Up in Santa Cruz, November 2020, Behind the Teacher’s Desk, “Children are Parched for In-School Learning,” by Lisa Catterall. I’ve learned that terror doesn’t happen because some group of people somewhere like Pakistan or Afghanistan simply decide to hate us. It…

Sugar Skulls, Friendly Games and Electrical Engineering: Fourth Grade’s Creative Curriculum

“La rosa…pan de muerto…tumba decorada…calavera de azucar…cocinar…ofrenda…flor amarilla,” called out Mount Madonna School (MMS) elementary Spanish teacher Luis Hernandez, one by one, as fourth grade students, sitting physically distanced at tables in their outdoor classroom, carefully practiced spelling and writing this new…

Flannel, Fleece and Wool: Kindergarteners Celebrate Pajama Day and Craft Felted Pumpkins

On a recent autumn day, Mount Madonna School (MMS) kindergarten students, dressed in their favorite flannel, fleece or knit pajamas, and with faces reflecting concentrated effort, made felted pumpkin “stuffies” by rubbing and squishing bits of colorful wool in warm soapy water….

Voices for Change: Student Government Representatives Elected

While there were no mail-in ballots, ballot collection boxes, or extended in-person voting, last week Mount Madonna School (MMS) middle and high school students participated in the democratic process, by electing student council representatives for the school’s new Student Government Association (SGA)….