Mission Statement
Our mission is to give glory to God and to assist parents
in the role as primary educators of their children by
offering specially prepared environments founded upon
the principles made by Dr. Maria Montessori.
Catechesis of the Good Shepherd and the Atrium
The Catechesis of the Good Shepherd is an approach to
the religious formation of children. It is rooted in the
Bible, the liturgy of the
Church, and the educational principles of Maria
Montessori. Children gather in an "atrium," a room
prepared for them, which contains simple yet beautiful
materials that they use. You may be wondering how
these materials help the religious life of children?
If an adult hears a beautiful passage from the Bible, the
adult might take a Bible, find the passage, and read it
slowly again and again. He or she may think deeply
about the words and perhaps speak to God in a thankful
or
hopeful prayer. But a little child, too young to read,
needs another way.
In an atrium the child can ponder a biblical passage or a
prayer from the liturgy by taking the material for that text
and working with it – placing wood figures of sheep in a
sheepfold of the Good Shepherd, setting sculpted
apostles around a Last Supper table, or preparing a
small altar with the furnishings used for the Eucharist.
Older children who do read often copy parables from the
Bible, lay in order written prayers from the rite of baptism,
or label a long time line showing the history of the
kingdom of God.
Win a Car or Cash!*
Once again, Siena Academy is participating in the All-
Saints Car Raffle. In 2008, a lucky winner came from our
parish. Siena Academy keeps $3 of every $5 ticket sold.
If you’d like more, the are available in the school or
rectory offices. Look for one of the cars to be on display
in front of the church on February 13-14. All proceeds
will go to benefit the Siena Academy Annual Fund.
Shop at Harris Teeter and support Siena Academy
Siena Academy is a member of Harris Teeter’s Together
In Education program. Our account number is 8166.
Simply tell your cashier during check-out that
you want Siena Academy's account number (8166)
linked to your Harris Teeter VIC card. Once the account
number is linked, every time you shop during the
program, 5% of your Private Label purchases will be
contributed by Harris Teeter to Siena Academy's
account.
Do you shop online?
If so, please support Siena Academy (ID number is
500003075) by using the eScrip Online Mall. Shop at
over 1,000 of your favorite online merchants and earn up
then Shop at your favorite brand name stores and
automatically donate to our group.