Ambassadors Classroom: Oneness-Family School (OFS)
Lead
With
Ages 12 – 15
The Ambassadors is our student-centered program for grades 6–8. Students manage their time, make choices, and take ownership of learning in a flexible classroom designed for collaboration, independent study, and hands-on exploration. The environment fosters self-regulation, curiosity, and leadership, supporting growth academically, socially, and emotionally.
“HELP ME Find Myself”
Through meaningful work, real responsibility, and a strong peer community, students begin to shape their values, voice, and identity. The classroom becomes a safe space to take intellectual risks, develop personal discipline, and grow in self-awareness.
Explore Our Middle School ProgramTake A Look Around Ambassadors
Students choose their workspaces freely, following their own rhythm of focus, collaboration, and quiet thought. The environment supports autonomy, reflection, and meaningful engagement.
Individualized guidance helps students deepen their understanding and take ownership of their learning. Respectful mentoring relationships are central in the Montessori adolescent community.
Conversations between students and guides are grounded in trust and mutual respect. These moments build confidence, self-awareness, and the ability to advocate for one’s own learning.
Small group discussions give space for ideas to unfold, challenges to be met, and questions to be explored together. Montessori education empowers adolescents to think critically and work collaboratively.
In the adolescent classroom, learning is active, social, and purposeful. Students move through the day with growing independence, choosing work that challenges and inspires them.
Peace Ambassadors
At Oneness-Family School we call our Middle School the Peace Ambassadors because they are ready to manifest their global perspective, creative thinking, and capacity for connection with real-world projects.
Meet Your Teachers
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Hannah Chick
Middle School Teacher (Grades 6-8)
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Biography
A Howard Hughes fellow who was awarded the Merck Fellowship while at Earlham College while earning her B.A.in biology, Hannah joined the Oneness-Family School team in 2009. She has a Montessori Secondary I-II credential.
Prior to joining the faculty, Hannah worked at the Thornton Friends School in Silver Spring, MD, where she served as Dean of Students in the Middle School, and as a science teacher for middle school and high school students. There she developed a 3-year integrated science curriculum for Middle School with an environmental focus. In addition to courses in the earth, biological, and physical sciences, Hannah taught courses in photography, nature writing, writing, literature, and physical education.
Hannah lives in Mt. Rainier, MD with her husband, Ben, her two children, Wells and Paley, who both attend Oneness, and their cats, Charlie and Bandit. In her free time, Hannah enjoys spending time with family, going to the beach, and cooking.
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Pearl Brown
Middle School Teacher (Grades 6-8)
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Biography
Pearl applies her scientifically trained mind and poetry-writing heart to provide versatile teaching and mentoring to Middle School students.
The mother of five nearly grown boys, she enjoys teaching difficult concepts and seeing “the light come on” when students break through to higher understanding. She welcomes their daily interactions and the challenges young teens pose to her adult perspectives on life.
Known to employ, by turns, power and tenderness, and pressure and patience in the work to inspire and instruct, Pearl is often amazed when witnessing the journey that her students make from immaturity to maturity, in academics and as people.
Pearl holds a BA in Chemistry and has earned a Montessori Secondary I-II credential.
Driven from Within
The environment is designed to support intrinsic motivation—not through gold stars or grades, but through meaningful work, freedom of choice, and personal responsibility. Guides offer support, not pressure, and students learn to take ownership of both successes and challenges.
A Typical Day In Ambassadors
Freedom To Focus
When you walk into the middle school classroom, you will see students working together with friends or by themselves on assignments from their weekly Natural World/ Social World/ Language checklists. The students are free to sit at tables, on the bleachers, or in the hallway to complete their work. There is a general hum of students discussing, laughing, and getting work done.
Solving Problems Through Leadership
Group work gives students the opportunity to engage in process skills critical for processing information and evaluating and solving problems, as well as leadership skills through the use of roles within groups, and assessment tools involved in weighing options to make decisions about their group’s final answer.
Applying Math to Real-World Projects
Math is integrated into real-world projects and studies. Students use practical materials like graphs and data, tackling problems independently or in small groups. They manage their time to complete work, ranging from abstract algebra to calculating business expenses, always with the teacher as a guide.
Take The Next Step
If you’re interested in learning more, we can arrange for you to visit the school and take a tour
Book a TourAbout Ambassadors
Finding Your Voice
In the Ambassadors classroom, students begin to step into the wider world—finding their voice, taking leadership, and learning how to contribute with purpose. This is a place where identity, responsibility, and real-world impact come together.
Learning Real Contribution
