- Overview
- Programs
- Our Team
Beloved Montessori is now Cadence Academy Montessori!
The Montessori Approach
“The child is both a hope and a promise for mankind.” — Dr. Maria Montessori
Montessori is a unique educational approach that nurtures a child’s intrinsic desire to learn and focuses on the whole child—his cognitive, social, emotional, and physical development.
“Follow the Child” — Maria Montessori
The theory behind Montessori education is simple: Children learn naturally. The main purpose of a Montessori school is to provide a carefully prepared, stimulating environment which will help the child develop an excellent foundation for learning.
Following the Montessori philosophy, Cadence Academy Montessori’s entire goal is to treat each child as an individual and allow them to foster their “personal liberty” or “choice” when it comes to their education. We believe that children are individuals with their own strengths, weaknesses, interests, learning styles and therefore, acknowledge each trait within each child. By doing this, we find it impossible to state that “every child needs to be on the same page on the same day.”
We trust their instincts and use the “follow the child” approach because we believe they intrinsically know what it takes to grow into an independent adult. This empowers every child to be responsible for his or her education process, with guidance, support and encouragement.
Fostering a Montessori approach in the classroom takes a lot of practice. Our teachers are not there to make sure each child fits into a mold. They are present to guide in the excitement of curiosity and foster each child’s innate love for education. We pursue maintaining a positive learning environment so every child is allowed to become what he or she is meant to be.
Our priorities include:
- Nurturing
- Guidance
- Acceptance
- Honor & Respect
- Thoughtful Education
- Observance
- Giving more of what each child needs to grow in their development
Each teacher is specifically trained to watch what each child naturally gravitates to, observe and help foster the progression in that learning process.
Cadence Academy Montessori provides a positive, loving, and nurturing learning environment for young children with programs for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers. Our programs are designed to enhance what children naturally love to do… learn! Our indoor and outdoor environments were specially designed to give each individual child opportunities to learn and grow in beautiful surroundings. We serve families throughout the greater Portland area including West Linn, Lake Oswego, Wilsonville, Oregon City and Tualatin.
Fresh n’ Local
We proudly serve the Fresh n’ Local meal program from Organic Fresh Fingers. All the meals served use a combination of fresh, local, natural & organic ingredients and never contain any artificial colors, flavors or high fructose corn syrup. We serve the children a variety of nutritious and delicious foods to improve your child’s palate and stimulate the senses.
Programs
- Infant Program
- Toddler Program
- Early Childhood
- Kindergarten
Programs Offered
Our Team

Lizzie Locke (she/her)
Assistant Director
Lizzie has been working with children for the past 10 years. She began working at Cadence Academy Montessori-when it was called BeLoved-in 2015. She left for some time after having her daughter to stay home with her and returned in 2021. She earned her Infant/Toddler Montessori certification in 2020. She was recently promoted to Assistant Director and loves being able to not only support and guide the children of our school, but now the teachers as well. In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with her husband Steven and daughter Logan-who is also a student here!