Teachers

 

 

Suzie Carrier - Directress

Suzie has been with The Lilliputian Montessori school since 1990, becoming the Directress in 2002.  Suzie holds a diploma in Early Childhood Education through the North American Montessori Center.  She has attended multiple conferences and workshops by the Northeast Montessori Institute, The Maine Montessori Association, and has continued her education through private classes with an AMI teacher.

Before coming to New-Hampshire, Suzie was born and raised in Quebec, Canada where she earned a degree in Special Education.  While in Canada, she worked with  delinquent teenagers and mentally handicapped children.

Suzie realized early on her passion for teaching children, through her large family and her work; teaching skiing, gymnastics and swimming.  She brings and shares with the Lilliputian children her many passions; the outdoors, gardening, traveling, reading, her french culture and most important her "Joie de Vivre".

 

 

Emily Benson - Directress

Emily began teaching at Lilliputian Montessori School when it relocated to Jackson in 2002. She was introduced to the Montessori philosophy when searching for a preschool for her own two children, and was subsequently a substitute teacher in her children's preschool classes.

Emily is a 1987 graduate of Middlebury College with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Northern Studies and a concentration in Humanities and the Natural Environment. She was awarded her Preschool/Kindergarten Montessori Teaching Diploma from the North American Montessori Center in May 2007 and has continued to take courses in Early Childhood Education at Granite State College.

Emily also teaches environmental education classes and preschool summer camps for Tin Mountain Conservation Center and loves telemark and cross-country sking, hiking, fly-fishing, kayaking/canoeing and traveling the world. She brings her love for nature and outdoor recreation in the White Mountains from her days working in the Appalachian Mountain Club's hut system, and believes that children should have a strong connection to their natural environments to ensure their healthy development and curiosity for the world around them as they grow into responsible and caring adults.

 

Lucy Gatchell - Assistant Directress/Art Teacher

Lucy came to LMS as an assistant in 2007 and shortly thereafter also became the school’s music and art specialist.

Her college education included two years spent at College of the Atlantic and two years with the National Audubon Expedition Institute, all leading to a BA from the University of the State of New York with an Environmental Education concentration. Since coming to LMS she completed her Montessori training at the assistant level.
Lucy draws on a range of work experience with various ages in different situations. She has been a birth assistant, head gardener/greenhouse grower, nature camp counselor, outdoor education teacher. Before coming to the Lilliputian School she was the Art teacher for eight creative years at the Jackson Grammar School. She has a strong grasp of many ways of supporting creativity in developing child artists.

Music has long been a part of Lucy’s life. She plays her penny whistle weekly at a local Irish Session and during the summer at the Jackson Farmers’ Market. She organizes, plays music and dances at a variety of community, traditional, dance events around the valley. She sings weekly with the acapella group, The Potluck Singers, and loves to sing with children. A member of the Children’s Music Network, Lucy has been trained through “Music Together” and constantly gathers new teaching resources (art and music) through the larger professional community.

Lori Whipple - Preschool Directress 2012-2013

Lori Whipple brings over 20 years of experience to the Lilliputian Montessori School.  She has an AS degree in Early Childhood Education from Champlain College and a Montessori Teaching Certificate from the Montessori World Educational Institute.  She continues to seek out progressive early childhood ideas and wholesome concepts.  Outdoor classrooms and creating a children’s home for body and soul are on her radar these days.  Lori has worked in New Hampshire, Colorado, and Vermont with children from birth to 10 years of age.  She believes in providing children with a secure, peaceful environment where they are free to explore the wonder and beauty of life.

Lori shares a joyful life taking spirited adventures with her family.  She is compassionate about organic, local food and farming, challenging her impact on the earth, and furthering her ability to find and keep the peace.  She enjoys dancing and music, simple handwork projects, getting outside, and sparking lively conversation.  These interests are delicately woven into the fabric of her work with children.