Once I left Montessori Visions Academy, I was thrown into the public school system, and I do mean thrown. The classes were singularly focused and had very little space for ideas to flourish naturally. I was loud, obnoxious, and out of control. I was very much a “problem child” in this new system. At Montessori my traits weren't looked at through a negative lens, but instead were seen as productive. My energetic movements (when not destructive) were helpful to my learning, and my obnoxious talking was actually a productive tool for growth when I received the one-on-one support that Montessori was so amazing at providing. My primary school education set me up for success. It instilled an idea in me that everyone is different and works at their own level. I used this knowledge to grow past the challenges of public school, and I flourished. After leaving Montessori in 4th grade, I learned how to play an instrument and was accepted into the prestigious Las Vegas Academy of the Performing Arts. Later, I graduated with the highest diploma my school offered, and then received a plethora of scholarships to universities all around the country. This this fall semester I will be traveling abroad to France, and I will be attending Oxford University while in Europe. I strongly believe that without the foundation Montessori provided and the loving support my family gave me though it all, my life would look very different now.