South African Montessori Association

On this Workers’ Day, we recognise the significance of work in all its forms, and its role in shaping both individuals and society.

Work is more than productivity. It is how we participate, contribute, and grow. Through work, we engage with the world and with one another. In Montessori education, work is not only a human tendency, but a means through which the child constructs their intelligence, independence, and sense of self.

As we support children, families, and communities, we recognise the importance of meaningful activity in developing purpose, capability, and connection.

Day 1 of SAMAcon Flourish was a truly exceptional start. A beautiful day marked by meaningful engagement, insightful contributions, and strong connections. 🤍🤲🏼

Thank you to our attendees and speakers for making it so memorable - and Day 2 is already proving to be just as exceptional. More highlights to follow soon!

SAMAcon Flourish is here!

We extend our sincere gratitude for the invaluable support of our sponsors and all those involved in making the 24th Annual SAMAcon possible. Here’s to connection, growth, and a truly flourishing experience together. 🤍

We’re pleased to have Penny Taiton leading our SAMA Management Day. With over 40 years of experience across corporate, government, and political sectors, she brings deep expertise in leadership development, governance, and systems change. Through her consultancy, Evolve, she supports organisations to navigate complexity, build resilient teams, and drive meaningful, lasting impact.

The day will focus on strengthening SAMA’s national presence and deepening its impact by fostering meaningful collaboration among Montessori schools. Together, we will harness the collective wisdom of the community to generate practical, sustainable solutions, build a shared vision, and establish shared responsibility for implementation.

We are pleased to announce Kid-Ease as a Gold Exhibitor at SAMAcon: Flourish.

Be sure to visit their stand, where they will be showcasing their beautiful equipment and offering exclusive conference specials!

We are looking forward to a meaningful, enriching, and truly memorable conference experience. 🌱

🎤 Breakaway Sessions | SAMA Con 2026: Flourish

As the final breakaway session of the day, this offering invites a gentle and meaningful close before we gather for the closing ceremony.

🌱 The Bells: Keys to the World of Music, Helen van der Merwe.
With nearly 20 years of experience across Montessori environments, Helen invites us into the rich and often underexplored world of music in the classroom. Drawing on her work with children across the planes, she shares how the bells can open the door to musical understanding, exploration, and joy. This session offers a thoughtful look at how music can become a meaningful and accessible part of the child’s learning experience.

🌱 Origami Crane Mobile for Young Babies, Claire Howie & Joelene Draper.
A hands-on, creative workshop where participants will craft a delicate origami crane mobile for young babies. Rooted in the Montessori understanding of the prepared environment, this session is both practical and playful, offering a chance to create something beautiful while exploring how simple materials can support early visual development and wonder.

🌱 Timelines and Materials for Igniting an Interest in History, Sharon Caldwell.
With decades of experience in Montessori education, Sharon explores the central role of history in the 6–12 environment. This session unpacks how timelines and key materials can spark curiosity, imagination, and a deeper understanding of the world. With a focus on relevance, participants are invited to consider how history prepares children not only to understand the past, but to navigate an unknown future with awareness and purpose.

Each session offers a unique opportunity to deepen practice and reconnect with the richness of the Montessori environment.

📅 26 April 2026

🎤 Speaker Announcement | SAMA Con 2026

We are honoured to welcome Shaun Dunn, educator and lecturer in Sustainable Development at Stellenbosch University, as a speaker at SAMA Con 2026: Flourish.

Shaun’s work explores the intersection of leadership, sustainability, and ecological wisdom. In Sustainability Education, he goes beyond teaching to facilitate transformation, guiding students toward ecoliteracy and systems thinking through immersive experiences in nature as teacher, guide, and healer.

After nearly eight years in secondary education, Shaun spent time in Tanzania learning from traditional medicine practices and indigenous understandings of health, community, and the natural world. Alongside his engagement in African Earth Jurisprudence and work with indigenous communities in southern Africa, these experiences shape his deeply relational approach to learning.

Grounded in regenerative leadership and the ethics of Ubuntu, Shaun’s work asks a powerful question: how might remembering our interconnectedness with each other and the Earth reshape the way we lead?

In his keynote, “Flourishing: Learning from Nature and Ancestry,” Shaun invites us to reflect on how relationships with the natural world and ancestral knowledge systems can inform the way we teach, lead, and care. His work offers a thoughtful lens on education that is rooted in belonging, responsibility, and a deeper understanding of our place within the wider living world.

📅 26 April 2026
Join us as we reflect on what it means to truly flourish

🎤 Breakaway Session 10 | 26 April | SAMA Con 2026: Flourish

🌱 Practical Life Across the Ages (0–12) | Joelene Draper, Shamiemah Jassiem & Sinéad Feely
A powerful collaboration exploring Practical Life as a thread through the child’s development. Using baking as a living example, this session traces growth from early participation in the 0–3 environment, through skill refinement in 3–6, and into purposeful, socially meaningful work in 6–12. A reflective look at how we prepare children for independence, collaboration, and real life.

🌱 Helping Children (and Adults) with Dyslexia to Flourish | Marietjie van Zijl
With over 40 years of experience, Marietjie offers a deeply practical and personal perspective on dyslexia. She explores what dyslexia is and how it is experienced by those who live with it, as well as how we can better support learners to truly flourish. Participants will leave with practical strategies that can be applied immediately in their classrooms and support contexts.

🌱 Alumni Discussions
A much-anticipated highlight of the conference, this session brings the Montessori journey to life through the voices of former students. Alumni reflect on how their education has shaped their paths through adolescence and adulthood, offering honest insight into independence, purpose, and the long-term impact of our work.

Each session offers a meaningful opportunity to reconnect with the heart of Montessori education and the adult the child is becoming.

📅 26 April 2026
Which session are you most looking forward to?

🎤 Speaker Announcement | SAMA Con 2026

We are proud to welcome Hawa Tayob and Kate Rooseboom as speakers at SAMA Con 2026: Flourish.

Hawa Tayob brings decades of experience in Montessori education across toddler, pre-primary, and primary environments, both locally and internationally. As the Founding Director of the Montessori Early Learning Foundation (MELF), her work has been instrumental in expanding access to Montessori education in South Africa, particularly within underserved communities. Her background spans teaching, training, curriculum development, and national contributions to inclusive education.

Kate Rooseboom is a lecturer at MELF, where she draws on her background in psychology, research, and classroom practice to support the development of Montessori educators. With experience as a pre-primary guide and a strong focus on literacy and curriculum development, she brings both academic depth and practical insight to her work.

In their session, “How Montessori Principles Are Interpreted and Implemented Across Diverse School Contexts within the South African Landscape,” Hawa and Kate explore how Montessori practice takes shape across a range of educational settings. Their work invites reflection on how we remain grounded in Montessori principles while responding thoughtfully to the realities of our local contexts.

📅 26 April 2026
Join us as we explore what it means for children and humanity to truly flourish.

🎤 Breakaway Sessions | SAMA Con 2026: Flourish

On the 26th April, join us for a series of engaging breakaway sessions designed to deepen your practice, spark reflection, and offer practical insight across the planes of development.

🌱 Flourishing Begins with the Adult: How Each Fold of a Lesson Shapes the Child’s Becoming, Yumna Hoosain.
With over two decades of experience in Montessori education and adult training across Europe and Africa, Yumna brings a deep commitment to both the child and the adult who serves them. Her work is rooted in expanding access to Montessori education, particularly in underserved communities, and empowering educators to make a lasting impact. In this session, she explores how each lesson, each gesture, and each moment of awareness contributes to the unfolding of the child, and how the adult’s own preparation shapes this journey of becoming.

🌱 A Sensorial Exploration Through All Areas, Emma Medell.
Drawing on 35 years in Montessori education across all planes of development, Emma brings a depth of wisdom grounded in both classroom practice and community work. In this session, she invites us to reimagine the prepared environment as a sensorially rich landscape, where textures, colours, sounds, and movement come together to support the child’s natural curiosity. Together, we explore how beauty, intention, and thoughtful design can nurture joyful discovery and meaningful engagement.

🌱 Music and Movement with the Second Plane Child, Allan Nguyen.
An AMI 6–12 Trainer with over two decades of global experience, Allan weaves together Montessori theory, storytelling, music, and the arts. His work highlights the unfolding potential of the second plane child and their role within the wider human community. In this session, he explores how music and movement can support the development of the child’s personality, imagination, and sense of belonging in the elementary years.

Each session opens a different pathway into understanding the child and refining our practice with care and intention.

📅 26 April 2026