Montessori Moms: Planting the Seeds of Growth

Montessori Moms: Planting the Seeds of Growth: What Happens After Montessori : So your child attended a Montessori school for preschool, now what?  Will they have difficulty transitioning to traditional schooling, will ...

So your child attended a Montessori school for preschool, now what?  Will they have difficulty transitioning to traditional schooling, will they have friends since many of the local children went to a traditional preschool, will they be behind academically........these are many of the questions I have been asked over the years about the children leaving our program and moving on to kindergarten or first grade.  Every child is different, but it has been my experience that most of our students transition with little difficulty to a more traditional setting, however the lifelong skills they learn from their time at Montessori will be benefit them time and time again. My children all went through Montessori and completed the 3 year cycle.  Upon entering first grade I was honestly a bit nervous.  We had been teaching them based on their ability, interest etc and was a bit worried what would happen when faced with an "assignment" they did not want to do or a tim...

What is Montessori? Truth be told the first time I stepped into a Montessori classroom I felt like I entered a whole new world.  I was not prepared to work with children who could sit where they were comfortable and do their work, choose work that interested them or even prepare their own snacks.  Having a very traditional schooling background my first thought was “this educational philosophy is way too alternative for me”, but I needed a job.   By my second week of working as a teaching assistant I was applying to a teacher training program and rethinking my career path.  That was 18 years ago and I am still in awe at times at what children are truly capable of given the right environment. Montessori to the untrained eye can look a bit “chaotic” and unstructured.  The opposite is actually true.  The teachers are trained to observe and teach to each child as an individual.  We plan activities and lessons based on each child’s development. ...

Montessori Moms: Planting the Seeds of Growth With the upcoming Holidays and lots of new toys coming into our homes I thought this might be a good time to repost this from last year. Wednesday, October 17, 2012 Setting up a play area for your preschool age child Creating a play area for your child can be frustrating, but it is easier than you think. Just think of these 3 rules: 1.         Get rid of the toy box 2.         Invest in 1 or 2 sets of shelves 3.         Less is best 1. Get rid of the toy box .  Honestly they scare me.  I never know what I am going to find on the bottom and either will your child.  Keep their toys displayed so they can see them. 2. Invest in shelves.  Don’t feel like you have to get expensive she...

Montessori Moms: Planting the Seeds of Growth: Terrible Twos at Three! : I always heard of the "Terrible Twos" and believed in them until my oldest child turned 3!  I thought the worst was over with the ...

I always heard of the "Terrible Twos" and believed in them until my oldest child turned 3!  I thought the worst was over with the temper tantrums, crying because his granola bar broke in half and much much more but was I wrong.  I learned pretty quick that with 3 brought on a whole new set of behavioral issues and he was able to communicate them to me.  At three he started to negotiate and reason with me about his behavior.  He tried yelling at me, stomping away, slamming doors, throwing toys, oh the list goes on and on.  I realized quickly that his world was changing everyday and he was trying to figure it out.  I was told he was a "perfect" kid at preschool ( I was home that year pregnant with my 2nd child ) but I soon realized it was a Jekyll and Hyde situation.  The moment he got home he lost control. At this point I started to realize that I needed to bring a bit of my knowledge of managing  a classroom of 3 year olds into my home...

Montessori Moms: Planting the Seeds of Growth: Sensory Play...So Easy And So Important Your todd... : Sensory Play...So Easy And So Important Your toddler and preschool age child is constantly learning new things and exploring the world.  T...