Patricia (Patti) Rivera was practically born a Montessorian. She was raised in Upstate New York as the youngest of five girls. Patti remembers sewing, cooking, painting and antiquing with her entire family. After attending the State University of New York at Albany, she taught art classes and worked at the Albany Institute of Art. Patti and her husband Rick found their way to sunny Florida in 1994. The Salvador Dali Museum became her new home. It was about that time that Patti’s two nieces were attending a Montessori School in Missouri. Aunt Patti went for a visit and was hooked. She worked at New Gate School in Sarasota, Florida while taking her Early Childhood (3-6) training at Barrie in Silver Spring, Maryland. Patti continued her teaching at New Gate from 1996 – 2008 as an intern, a lead teacher and a teacher trainer. In 2003, Patti decided to enter the Sea Coast Training Center to receive her Lower (6-9) Elementary training. She currently works at Country Day Montessori School in Largo, Florida as a lead teacher and Curriculum Coordinator in a Lower Elementary (6-9) Cottage.