Elementary​

Ages 2-3

Ages 3-5

Elementary​

Program Overview

Elementary Team

Elementary Team

Micaela Almeda

As our Elementary Director, Micaela Almeda has taught and lead our Elementary students for the second year.  She is an experienced educator with more than 14 years experience in Early Childhood and Elementary education.  She received her American Montessori Society credentials for Elementary I-II (ages 6-12) from the Princeton Center for Teacher Education.  Currently, Micaela has been collaborating with the LGM directors and teachers to dovetail the Preschool and Elementary curricula.  

​Her past experiences include serving as the Head of the Upper Elementary Program and the Curriculum Specialist at a midtown Manhattan Montessori school, where she taught grades 3-7.  She designed the curricula for both the Lower and Upper Elementary programs, which incorporated the New York State Common Core Standards.  In addition, she organized and led professional development workshops for teachers, coordinated enrichment programs for the school, including collaborating with local museums and other community-based organizations.  With her marketing background, Micaela produced print-advertisements in Montessori Life magazine and various marketing brochures for the elementary program. 
   
Prior to becoming an educator, Micaela served as a consultant and a graphic designer.  After witnessing her son’s innate love of learning in a nurturing Montessori pre-school, she was drawn to the Montessori philosophy and became a chair member of the parent committee.  As her knowledge and passion for the Montessori philosophy grew, she leveraged her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Graphic Design, from the School of Visual Arts, and crafted Montessori learning materials.  Micaela used her talents to launch an Elementary Montessori program at her son’s school.  To achieve this goal, Micaela simultaneously earned her Montessori Elementary credentials while pursuing her Masters degree in Graphic Communications Technology Management (with a specialization in Elementary curriculum) from Kean University. 

Micaela was raised in Singapore in an international environment.  She looks forward to leading LGME in its goal to provide a high-quality education to a diverse community of students in an interactive, dynamic and supportive environment.    



Tegan McDonough will be joining our Elementary classroom for the 2016-2017 school year as a Lead Elementary Teacher.  Tegan grew up in the Midwest and moved to New York City to attend college at NYU, earning a Bachelor of Arts in Individualized Study, studying Art Therapy and Education Accessibility. While in college, she student-taught at Fanny Lou Hamer Freedom High School, Brooklyn International High School, and Rikers Island Academy.  
 
After graduation, Tegan moved to the mountains of Colorado where she discovered Montessori education.  She lived in Salida, Colorado from 2010-2016, taking breaks to live and work in South Korea and Costa Rica.  Starting in 2010, Tegan worked at a private Montessori school in Salida, initially as an assistant in both the Toddler and Primary classrooms.  She eventually found her best fit in the Elementary classroom.  She received her AMS Credential for Lower and Upper Elementary from the Montessori Education Center of the Rockies in Boulder, Colorado.  Tegan has also earned her Masters of Education in Montessori Integrative Learning from Endicott College and holds a TEFL Certification with an emphasis in working with young learners.  Tegan has worked as a Lead Teacher in both the Lower and Upper Elementary levels.  She is very excited to return to New York and join our LGM Community!