Partners in Lörrach

»Help me to help myself«: Maria Montessori's educational philosophy of treating children with respect and appreciation and seeing them as the architects of their own development is a guiding principle for Nido, the Montessori Kinderhaus Lörrach, and the Gärtnerhaus Schöpflin. Both are places that offer a breeding ground for creativity, inspiration and self-efficacy. It is here that formative experiences take place and the course is set. No child is alone here, yet they can move around freely and develop. 

The Schoepflin Foundation provides financial support for the Nido Montessori Kinderhaus for children aged one to three. The Kinderhaus is run by the Montessori Kinderhaus Lörrach gGmbH, which also runs the Kinderhaus at Bühl.

The Nido Montessori Kinderhaus Lörrach and the Kinderhaus at Bühl, where children from three years of age to the end of the second school year are cared for, are united by a common educational concept. Here, every child is given the opportunity to understand and actively engage with their environment. The materials used support and promote concentration and clarity. Experiencing community, exchanging age-specific topics, getting to know one's own strengths – all this supports the development of an independent personality. Children with increased support needs are also a natural part of the groups: inclusion is lived here as an experience of togetherness.

The Kinderhaus is located in the grounds of the Villa Schöpflin. It was here, at what was formerly known as the Lindenhof residence in the Lörrach suburb of Brombach, that the Schöpflin siblings grew up – surrounded by apple trees, beehives, hen coops and an old redwood tree. In the 1980s, in order to maintain and sustain these idyllic childhood surroundings, the Schöpflin siblings opened up the grounds for future generations of children. In so doing, they stopped the land from being turned into a large commercial site. Over the course of the last thirty years they have created a world for children and grown-ups alike, filled with harmony, affection, security and variety.