Seeds for Ukraine

09/29/2026

Standing with Universe in the Pocket

On September 25, a Shahed drone flew through a classroom window at Universe in the Pocket Montessori School in Kyiv, causing extensive damage to the school building.

For the Hopscotch community, this news is especially personal. Universe in the Pocket was founded by Maryna Losytska, an AMI Montessori educator, school leader, and longtime friend of Hopscotch. Maryna has been part of our community since the opening of our first Kyiv campus in 2008.

In 2022, another school founded by Maryna in Bucha was destroyed during the first months of the war. Today, she and her team continue creating Montessori environments where children in Ukraine can learn, grow, and feel a sense of safety and belonging.

Through Seeds for Ukraine, we are asking our community to stand with Universe in the Pocket as they rebuild their school.

Every contribution, big or small, can help restore this important space for children and their community.

If you would like to support the rebuilding, you can donate through the link donate.stripe.com/9B68wQ2jIa6Hcio3fA0oM06

09/23/2026

Peace Education gives children space to talk about kindness, respect, empathy, and the ways our everyday actions can create a more peaceful environment around us. Together, we created a Peace Contract — a shared agreement about how we want to treat, listen to, and care for one another. Each child contributed their ideas and added their own mark, making it a truly collective promise.

We also gathered in a circle to talk about peace — in Ukraine and around the world, in our families, and within ourselves. When there is war outside, creating a space where children can feel safe, connected, and at peace within themselves becomes especially important.

As part of our Peace Day tradition, we sang Light a Candle for Peace, passing the light from hand to hand as a symbol of hope. At the end, we blew out the candle together, sending our thoughts and wishes for peace to everyone who needs it most.

Peace is not only something we hope for. It is something we practice every day — in the way we listen to each other, resolve conflicts, ask for help, and care for those around us. 🕊

08/27/2026

Even though the sirens continue and the war is still part of everyday life, this summer we wanted to give children something just as important: moments of joy, curiosity, play, and childhood.

Our summer camp at Hopscotch Montessori Kyiv continued throughout the season, creating space for children to learn, explore, create, and simply have fun.

This summer, the children discovered the world beneath the waves and around the water. They made their own crocodiles, created crabs from paper plates, colorful fish with scales made from cotton pads, cardboard turtles, and playful octopuses.

And whenever it was possible to spend time outside, we did. The children enjoyed a picnic and even built their own little rafts — then put them on the water to see them float.

These may seem like small moments, but during wartime, the opportunity to laugh, create, play, and make happy memories means so much.

And none of this would have been possible without your support.

Thank you for helping us create a summer filled with bright moments for the children of Hopscotch Montessori Kyiv. Your support gives them something they deserve: the chance to keep learning, growing, and being children, even in the middle of such difficult times.

Ahead is another school year. We hope to make it just as bright, meaningful, and memorable for every child.

07/16/2026

Throughout the war, our community has come together to support children in Ukraine in meaningful ways. Thanks to the generosity of our donors, our Hopscotch Montessori Kyiv campus has been able to continue operating and providing children with a safe, nurturing environment despite the ongoing challenges. We are deeply grateful for this continued support.

As the war continues and daily attacks persist, children and newborn babies remain among the most vulnerable. That is why one of the causes we have consistently supported throughout the war is the Neonatal Department at Okhmatdyt Children’s Hospital in Kyiv.

Today, the department is raising funds to repair an Infant Flow machine—specialized equipment that provides non-invasive respiratory support for premature and newborn babies, often preventing the need for invasive ventilation.

If you would like to contribute, any donation https://surli.cc/dhdces — large or small—will help return this essential equipment to service and support the youngest patients who need it most.

Thank you for continuing to stand with the children of Ukraine. Your kindness and generosity truly make a difference.

07/07/2026

In June, Hopscotch Montessori Kyiv classroom held something special — a graduation celebration for our children, filled with joy, excitement, pride, and warm hugs.

Even now, amid everything happening in Ukraine, our team believes children deserve moments that are loud with laughter, not sirens — memories that outshine the sound of war. This day became exactly that.

Over this time, the children grew, learned new things, and became more confident and independent. They proudly showed off their talents: playing the keyboard and performing a delightful English-language play, “The Gruffalo,” for their parents. Bright laughter, dancing, and genuine smiles filled the room with a special warmth.

One of the most touching moments was the presentation of keepsake photo albums — little treasure boxes of memories from their years together. Each child received warm words from their teachers and a gift to mark this important milestone.

Thank you to everyone who supports us in giving these children more moments of happiness — you’re the reason days like this are possible.

05/22/2026

05/15/2026

🌱 Even in the most difficult of times, life goes on — and so does our responsibility to nurture it.

This Earth Day at Hopscotch Montessori Kyiv, our children did what they have done every spring: they planted trees. Apple trees, carefully placed in the park beside our campus — holes dug with small hands, seedlings set gently into the earth, watered and covered with care. The enthusiasm on their faces, the way they supported one another through the work — it was genuinely moving to witness.

But this year, the tradition carried an extra layer of meaning. While so much around them remains uncertain, our children are learning that beauty can still be created. That the earth still needs tending. That their actions — however small — leave something good behind. They also checked on the cherry and pear trees planted in previous years, watching their earlier efforts grow into something real and lasting. That moment of recognition — seeing what you planted actually growing — is one of the most powerful things a child can experience.

Back in the classroom, morning circle conversations continued the theme: how to reduce waste, how to treat nature with care, how to be responsible for the world we share. Planting trees is not just an ecological project. It is an act of hope. And at Hopscotch Montessori Kyiv, we believe that teaching children to hope — and to act on that hope — is one of the most important things we can do right now. 🌍

04/24/2026

When the world feels uncertain, joy becomes essential — not a luxury, but a necessity. Moments of laughter, warmth, and connection help children’s brains regulate stress, build resilience, and feel safe. At Hopscotch Montessori Kyiv, we hold onto this truth every single day. 💛

On April 1st, our kids celebrated April Fools’ Day the Hopscotch way — with a real pajama party. Children and teachers alike arrived in their coziest PJs, ready for a day full of joy. Hot cocoa with marshmallows, dancing, pillow fights, favorite toys from home, cozy reading nooks, and cartoons together. Simple things. The best things.

For children growing up surrounded by uncertainty, these moments of warmth and lightness matter more than we can measure. They recharge, reconnect, and remind everyone that happiness is still here, still possible, still ours. These are the traditions that make Hopscotch Montessori Kyiv more than just a preschool.

04/17/2026

In our Hopscotch Montessori Kyiv classroom, Easter became a space filled with meaning, warmth, and creativity. The children made their own candles, dyed eggs, and explored a unique engraving technique to decorate them. They carefully glazed traditional Easter bread, enjoying not only the taste but the process itself—hands busy, eyes focused, and smiles all around.

During our circles, we spoke about the symbols of Easter, about kindness, renewal, and the feeling of a new beginning that comes with spring. It’s not just about traditions—it’s about helping children feel connection, care, and a sense of belonging through shared experiences.

And perhaps most importantly, in times that have felt uncertain for so long, these celebrations become something deeper. They create emotional anchors, helping children feel safe, grounded, and stable—even when the world around them is not.