Montessori Method

What Montessori Really Looks Like

Sunday, July 25th, 2010

I’m frequently asked these kinds of questions: Do children really do well in Montessori? What kinds of traits does a Montessori child develop? Is Montessori really a better way to learn?

I decided to ask for input, and posted this question on Facebook: “Parents, can you share some positive results you’ve seen in your child from being in Montessori?”

The answers were amazing!

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Spreading the Word About Montessori

Sunday, March 14th, 2010

Sometimes inspiration strikes us at unlikely times. Trevor Eissler, Montessori parent and the author of Montessori Madness, was watching the Super Bowl this past February when an idea hit. Why not have a Super Bowl ad to promote Montessori?

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Finding Leaders for the Next Generation

Sunday, January 3rd, 2010

Yesterday I was surfing the internet when I happened upon the website of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. If you’re not familiar with it, Bill Gates (founder of Microsoft) and his wife, Melinda, run a charitable foundation that funds projects all over the world, including those that combat poverty and disease.

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Why We Use Mixed Age Groups in Montessori

Sunday, September 13th, 2009

Because traditional schooling generally groups children of just one age together, mixed age groups is a striking difference between Montessori and traditional educational programs. There are pros and cons to the idea of mixed age groups, but I believe that the benefits definitely outweigh any possible negatives.

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The Neurology of Montessori

Monday, July 13th, 2009

Those of us in Montessori education see the positive effects of Montessori on a daily basis. We watch as children’s fine motor skills are strengthened, their reasoning skills sharpened, and their independence encouraged through daily interaction with the prepared Montessori environment.

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What Kind of Reading Program Belongs in Montessori?

Monday, January 26th, 2009

One question I’m frequently asked is, “What kind of reading program should Montessori classrooms be using?” The Montessori curriculum covers every imaginable topic, but there is no specific set of books that is firmly linked to the Montessori method. I’m going to look at a few different possibilities for reading programs in the Montessori classroom, [...]

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Helping Children in Need

Sunday, May 11th, 2008

I sat down to write a blog post tonight, but before starting my post I surfed a little bit. As I glanced at CNN’s homepage, I saw a few headlines about Myanmar and thought I’d catch up on the most recent news about the cyclone survivors.
Almost immediately, I found that tears were running down [...]

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Sterling Qualities of the ‘Normalized’ Montessori Child

Sunday, March 16th, 2008

I’ve been in Montessori (as a teacher, parent, or both) for over ten years. It’s become so much a part of my DNA that I automatically approach almost every situation – educational or not – from a Montessori perspective. When I think, “That child is normalized”, or “How can we work towards normalization?”, I don’t [...]

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The Montessori Method 3: The First Children’s House and Beyond

Tuesday, January 15th, 2008

If you’ve read the other posts in this series, Part 1 and Part 2, and I hope you have, you might have felt a little uncomfortable from time to time, especially if you haven’t ever read The Montessori Method before. It’s not quite as timeless a book as one might hope; some of Dr. Montessori’s [...]

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The Montessori Method 2: The Science of Observation

Tuesday, January 8th, 2008

Please join me for part two of an in-depth look at the seminal book that started it all: The Montessori Method. The first post in this series looked at the world and beliefs of Dr. Montessori in order to take a more holistic approach to how a book like The Montessori Method came to be [...]

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