Michael Dorer, The Passing of a Friend
By Mary Ellen Maunz
February 12, 2024
I have known Michael since 1990. We first got acquainted through MACTE and often took time to talk when we saw one another at events over the years. While I never had the opportunity to be fully trained by him, I spent many happy hours with videos and in-person time with him at his many workshops. I want to take this moment to honor his memory and his legacy.
He was a welcoming, open-hearted individual, always willing to share what he had gleaned about Montessori and life. We had many conversations about AIM’s project of Upper Elementary. Had his schedule been different, he would have been willing to work for us, but as it was, he taught me a great deal as a friend. When we got to math and grammar, he laughed and said that from his experience, most of the students needed to learn some of the basics their education had not taught them before they could learn specific presentations.
AIM has hosted several webinars with Michael, on the Cosmic Plan and on storytelling. This is what he sent me for the first. “Imagine the Universe as an all-encompassing cosmic egg. When that egg hatches, it reveals the realm of life as a second egg. The second egg then hatches to reveal humanity, once again as an egg. When that third egg is opened it reveals two great human inventions: language and mathematics. This wonderful wooden nesting egg is a metaphor for the five Montessori cosmic themes. This webinar will help you to completely reimagine your approach to cosmic education. You will leave this experience renewed and inspired. Come for the webinar, stay for the cosmos!”