Abacus Montessori School

Abacus is a contemporary Montessori school which strives for a balance of academic excellence, concern for the child and a strong value system.

Through the Montessori Method, children in Abacus are encouraged to learn through practical experience and self-discovery within a carefully prepared child-oriented environment.Aided by scientifically prepared material for each stage of development, the trained teacher guides the child to develop a well-adjusted, balanced personality.

Abacus was started to bring new thinking into the life of a school. Every decision about every aspects of school management are deeply questioned and thought out, taking into account, above all, the needs of the child, and through that, the development of the teacher, the participation of the parent and the inclusion of the community.

About a year into the inception of the school the philosophy of Abacus was formulated.

The school has 400 children from primary to class 12 and is affiliated to the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations, New Delhi.

A story
There was once a little village far away on the highlands. The inhabitants of that village sowed seeds in spring and harvested their crops in autumn, just like everybody else. But they used their hands and hearts to do all their work – be it fetching pots of water from the river or toiling with cows to produce the rich manure for their seedlings. The villages that surrounded them were bigger and more populous. They used machines and sprayed fertilizers and pesticides – so much so that they began to forget the use of their limbs.

The little village had a headman whose chosen work it was to provide the best conditions for the crops. He cared for them during the day and dreamt about them in the night. He fashioned channels and water inlets, cleverly using the landscape to suit the needs of his farms. He examined each crop as though it was a little child, watching to see if it was thriving well. “My harvest will feed and nourish a thousand”, he murmured fondly. “And my seeds will disperse to make a million more”.

However, the headman had a problem. He could not find the right chieftain for his people. No chieftain would stay for long. They looked at the crops and felt that they were not big enough or green enough. Each sapling even looked different from another and each seemed to have a growth pattern and duration of its own, this despite them being of one kind. Disappointed and disapproving, they exclaimed, “See how we have stagnated! And see how the other villages have progressed! We must, too”. They tried to bring motors and medicines which they felt would make all the crops look like one another and improve over-all yield. But nothing seemed to work for them. The elders were amused. “Machines are noisy and smoke a lot,” muttered a tobacco-chewing old man. “And see how they disturb Mother Earth! Chemicals poison the plants and those who eat them. These chieftains understand not our simplicity.”

One day the village headman, quite fed up with these entries and exeunt of chieftains, called for a meeting in the square and distributed all the work of his land among his people. Each performed his routine tasks and then some more.

This new method of working created some discord, for it just meant more work! “Why can’t we ever be comfortable? We seem to live such an inconvenient life!” people muttered. But soon the groaning settled and people began to go about their work in a more natural manner, for each had begun to discover the chieftain in him.

But the headman was dissatisfied. Something was missing. A chieftain, yes. His village needed one who can be called by that name. He called upon the tobacco-chewer and asked him if he would be the chieftain. The old man became nervous and chewed his tobacco with even greater vigour, swallowing and gulping. “You can chew tobacco and gaze at the stars, as you like to”, added the headman hastily, “if that’s what you’re thinking about. And be our chieftain.” The old man grunted what sounded like a “Yes”, for as long as he had the field and the sky and his crops, nothing else would ever make a difference.

Address:

3 Thirumalai Nagar,

Annexe III Main Road,Perungudi,

Chennai 600 096.