Organized and accessible shelving is a staple to the Montessori environment, and when we switched to this setup at home we noticed an immediate improvement with engagement. I’ve never really given this setup a second glance until recently, when I took a moment to reflect on how I use these shelves today vs. when I just started. Continue reading “Montessori shelves: trays or toys?”
The kitchen is my favorite place to incorporate practical life and spend one-on-one time with my kids. There’s something so magical to letting your little one experiment with real food and utensils, and watch batter become cookies or veggies become soup. It can be exhausting at times to slow down in these ways, but the way it fills their cups is hard to beat. Plus, cooking is just a huge passion of mine that I want to pass down to them. Continue reading “A Montessori Kitchen Experiment”
Something I’ve been struggling with lately is this concept of independent play. It wasn’t something I thought much about after the birth of my first son. Nobody talked about play probably because everyone wants to talk about sleep with your first. I wish that play was more of a topic because I could’ve used the inspiration and ideas. I am currently trying to un-do some minor “play dependencies” with my now 3-year-old. Continue reading “Bringing back play starts with doing less and being bored”
When my first born turned one, the google guides started referring to him as a toddler, but my baby he remained. Then we hit “the terrible twos,” and I finally accepted the toddler label, which I found to be endearing far more than it was terrible. Surely, I’ll change my mind when he hits “threenager,” I thought. Well, here we are, and once again I’m clinging onto a defiant optimism that three will be wonderful. Continue reading “Bring it on: my son is a threenager”
I remember when I first started Montessori, I felt so torn on my role around the home. I had all these new expectations to better maintain the “prepared space,” but transforming the space proved to be easier than transforming my role as parent. Continue reading “The delicate balance between supervising and observing”
Lately, patience has been, well, everything. It’s the thing I most need as an outnumbered toddler mom frequently parenting solo. Ah, deep breaths. Continue reading “Finding patience the “Montessori way””
I just learned that it is Montessori Education Week, which has the Montessori mama in me super giddy and reflective of our personal journey. My love for this method recently grew as we sent our first-born off to Casa Dei Bambini, or The Children’s House. These past four months have been a huge leap for our family as we get a front-row seat to the inner workings of this unique path – one that is continuing to expand its reach as it inspires more families, educators and professionals tasked with reforming today’s education. Continue reading “Off to The Children’s House: why we love Montessori school”
