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A few years ago, my sister was running a seasonal garden center. In her neighborhood, it was the go-to place for everything needed to create a beautiful yard. Needless to say, it was popular and busy, with most customers on a first-name basis. They struggled to find help. College students would be hired for the […]
With my almost five-year-old grandson visiting us for the past month, I have found it difficult to find a window of time to write. What I have been able to do, though, is observe him and work with him. This time together has given me another vantage point from which to see the power of […]
While working with a group of older four-year-olds on a craft project, I looked on in amazement as the children held their pencils like spears, ready to be launched. Scissors were clutched upside down and backward using all sorts of awkward finger combinations. Frustration and discouragement filled the air. “What happened,” I wondered, “to the three-finger grasp?” […]
Clarity, Calm, and Connection: Montessori Support for Everyday Parenting and Teaching Ever find yourself second-guessing how to respond to your child when things go sideways? Unsure if you’re actually helping—or just adding to the chaos? Whether you’re a Montessori parent, teacher, or school leader, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed, isolated, and unsure what “the right […]
What if…Every staff member in your school knew how to teach children how to read? What if…Every elementary student was a proficient speller, reader and writer? What if…Your teachers were better observers? What if…Your staff members knew how to ask the “right” questions to understand children’s needs and behaviors? What if…Your school community really “got” […]
When we talk about Montessori classrooms as prepared environments, many people see only a classroom with shelves containing various materials. Period. Montessori materials—that’s all there is to a prepared environment. And that would be an incomplete view. A prepared environment is not about materials—it’s about intentional design. A properly prepared environment requires thoughtful planning, along […]
As we work to prepare places for optimum learning and living with purpose and meaning, one idea that needs to be added to a prepared environment—consisting of people, ideas, tools, objects and the natural world—is how we help others obtain independence. Stephen Covey called these steps 7 levels of initiative or self-empowerment. In Montessori terms […]
Self-Construction: The Foundation of Learning As we explore ideas for creating optimal learning environments, one central concept emerges: from birth, each of us is engaged in the process of self-construction— building ourselves through our experiences and interactions with the world. We are born into an environment of people, ideas, tools, objects, and the natural world. As […]
There is an enduring quote about learning: “Tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn”. Attributed to Benjamin Franklin and to Chinese Confucian philosopher Xun Kuang, the idea that active engagement is key to powerful learning has survived for over 2000 years. When I was in junior […]
As I’ve come to a different stage of my life–as a grandparent–and I observe my grandchildren and their peers, I’ve seen the skills of practical life as key to living a happy life. These articles came out of my realization, too, that among my peers–fellow grandparents–the ones that were the healthiest and happiest practiced practical […]
