About Maren


Welcome!  I’m Maren Schmidt.Maren-KT2014 About Me PORTRAIT in Circle at 500 px

With my newsletters and books you’ll find tools to use immediately in your relationships with children.

In my Kids Talk Newsletters you’ll discover practical, put-it-into-action advice and insight about children.

You’ll learn time-tested techniques based on proven child development principles that you can start using right away!

You’ll be able to tap into my over thirty years of experience gained as I worked with children, and their families, as a parent, Montessori teacher, Girl Scout leader, Sunday School teacher, Montessori school owner and administrator, parenting coach and workshop leader.

If our children could verbalize what they need from the adults in their lives, the information in my newsletters and books is what our children would want us to know.

Working with children may be the most important adult role we’ll ever have.

I want to help you create adult-child relationships that are joyful, satisfying and productive for a lifetime.

In my Kids Talk Newsletters you’ll get time–tested tips to start using today to create loving relationships.

Parent, teacher, grandparent, caregiver… Kids Talk is for you.


Kids Talk

Take a look at these Kids Talk offerings:

Kids Talk Newsletters

Free Monthly Webinars

Books


Here’s what Kids Talk Readers are saying…

Your Kids Talk Newsletter provides quick, easy-to-read and digest bits of advice and info that I look forward to. I have shared your columns with parents and teachers in my school and adult learners in the Montessori teacher education program where I am an instructor. I have also encouraged all of them to subscribe so they can receive your words of wisdom right to their own inboxes!

I am grateful for all of your many insights! I joyfully pass these along to parents to address a particular need.

Our Preschool enjoys gathering in circle when they hear (your song)  “I feel happy, happy, happy…”

The song calls them together and sets the environment for our pledge to the flag, followed by “God Bless America” and morning prayers and more singing!!

The Catechesis of the Good Shepherd is the foundation of our preparation for Kindergarten!

I have been a faithful follower of your weekly newsletter for 10 years and find your style of communication really effective.

Just a little bit every week with some theory and practice included. Always so relevant to anyone dealing with little children.

Your support of new parents and young families is a great contribution to the next generation on earth. My compliments.


Here’s What Kids Talk Is All About

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Take advantage of my over thirty years experience working with young children!

I think you’ll find my Kids Talk approach of working with children fun and effective.

Here’s a sample of my professional activities:

  • Founded a Montessori school, acting as a teaching administrator.
  • Certified Montessori teacher with the Association Montessori Internationale (AMI) with a Masters in Education from Loyola College in Maryland, as well as a B.A from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock in Interpersonal and Organizational Communications.
  • Co-author with my daughter, Dana, a Dartmouth grad, of Understanding Montessori: A Guide for Parents
  • Author of Building Cathedrals Not Walls, a collection of ninety of my Kids Talk essays to inspire your work with children, whether you are a parent, a teacher, or other adult in the life of a child.
  • Award-winning Kids Talk columnist and blogger.

For weekly put-it-into-action advice you can trust, sign up for my award-winning newsletter, Kids Talk today.  It’s free!


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