About Us
The Montessori Learning Centre of Newfoundland & Labrador (MontessoriNL) is a private, independent Centre for children ages three to six years.
Mission
Our mission at the MontessoriNL is to “Inspire Curiosity and Nurture Success in Young Children”
Director
Norine Bannister, BA(Ed), BSpEd, MEd
Even as a young child, Norine Bannister has always loved caring and nurturing for children younger than herself. It was this interest that compelled her to attend Memorial University and first obtain her Bachelors of Arts Degree in Primary Education.
Norine had a wonderful opportunity during her undergraduate University Studies to travel to Harlow, England for four months to participate in her Internship Program. England is world renowned for their excellence in young childhood education and Norine took full advantage of her experience.
After Norine began teaching, she quickly realized that her Bachelors Degree had not fully equipped her with the tools needed to help all children in her classroom to reach their potential, namely the academically weaker students as well as the gifted students. As a result, Norine returned to Memorial to work towards and then complete her Bachelors in Special Education.
Two years later, Norine once again satisfied her curiosity and eagerness to learn more about teaching and learning by enrolling in and then obtaining a Masters Degree in Education at Memorial. During this program, she was again fortunate to travel to Harlow for six weeks to do a comparative study between Teaching Initial Reading in the Educational Systems of England and Newfoundland & Labrador. It was during this second visit that Norine obtained special permission to observe a Montessori School. She was fascinated with all that she saw and to this day, her teaching and educational values have been profoundly influenced by her Montessori experience.
Norine showed her commitment to early childhood education when she had her first child early in her teaching career. It is at this time that she decided to resign from her permanent teaching position in order to devote four years of her life to raising her two children (now ages 18 and 19). This experience has proven to be instrumental in the way Norine has approached her teaching and the way in which she has counselled parents.
For over twenty years, Norine has taught in all classrooms from grades K-12. She has dealt with students having a wide range of abilities; from those who were severely challenged to those who were amazingly gifted. Throughout her teachings, Norine has always made efforts to infuse Montessori Methods.
Finally, things have come full circle.
As an experienced educator and a proud mother of two children, Norine has all that is needed to begin the next stage of her educational career namely, opening the first Montessori Centre in Newfoundland & Labrador. She has completed a Montessori Certification with the North American Montessori Centre and she looks forward to inspiring curiosity and nurturing success in young children for many years to come.
Co-Founder
Steve Bannister, BSc(Math), BEd, MEd
Steve is a caring father and a devoted educator. Over his teaching career, Steve has given his free time towards many educational endeavours. He has coached Boys and Girls High School Volleyball Teams and he has coached his son’s soccer teams. For six years, Steve was the sponsor of his School’s Student Council. During this time, he served on Provincial and National Leadership Committees as well as taking his students to Student Council Conferences throughout Canada.
With a Bachelor of Science (Mathematics), Bachelor of Education and a Masters in Education and for almost 25 years, Steve has taught children from grades 7-12. He has specialized in mathematics and he continually uses the most up to date technology to infuse his courses with interesting and relevant information.
Steve has made great strides in assisting other teachers in how to deliver the Mathematics High School Curriculum. He has written and co-written two Mathematics Workbooks (one which is still used today). Steve has also written two 300-page Guidebooks for the Provincial government. These Guidebooks are used to assist teachers in their instruction.
With all that Steve has seen in the teaching of mathematics from grades 7-12, he firmly believes in the importance of the beginning years as it pertains to grasping early mathematics concepts. Once children start grade seven, it becomes very difficult to go back and make efforts to truly understand basic numeracy. Steve is looking forward to eliminating this gap by assisting children at a very young age.
Steve has always been drawn to small children and infants wherever he goes. You will frequently see him trying to make baby’s smile in grocery check out lines or when passing by. Children are drawn to his playful and down to earth personality and they delight in his interactions.
Steve enjoys watching children learn. He is looking forward to finishing his Montessori Accreditation in the near future and he looks forward to helping Norine grow a close-knit Montessori Family.
Norine & Steve
The most important jobs that Norine and Steve Bannister will ever have are that of parents.
As their children have grown, Norine and Steve have volunteered and helped along the way (coaching soccer, leading Girl Guides, etc). With all that their children have done, Norine and Steve still feel that their numerous outings and vacations over the years have offered the best opportunity to inspire curiosity and nurture success in their children.
When Norine and Steve’s children were young, they tented all over Newfoundland & Labrador. As their children got older, the family began to venture outside of NL. These trips abroad cumulated in a 7-week, 20,000km family camping trip across Canada and back down through the Southern United States (this time they went in a tent trailer and their two dogs came too).
It was all throughout this trip that Norine and Steve practiced their Montessori Philosophy of inspiring curiosity and nurturing success. Each province and state was a perfect opportunity to pose thought-provoking questions and engage in meaningful discussions. Whether it was the Terry Fox Monument in Thunder Bay, Ontario or the Grand Canyon in Arizona, Norine and Steve left their children with an indelibly experience.
Now that their children are growing into young adults, Norine and Steve feel that they have much to offer young children and their parents. Whether it is their personal experiences as parents or educators, they look forward to growing a Montessori Family that will work together to inspire curiosity and nurture success.