“The mind takes some time to develop interest, to be set in motion, to get warmed up into a subject, to attain a state of profitable work.  If at this time there is interruption, not only is a period of profitable work lost, but the interruption produces an unpleasant sensation which is identical to fatigue.” -Dr. Maria Montessori, What You Should Know About Your Child Consider, as an adult, what it takes for you to do your best work. What must your environment look like? What do you need from others? What constraints do you need removed in order to meet your goals? Dr. Montessori spent ..read more

Biography books for children have come a long way from the dull accounts of people’s lives that many of us read when we were young. Today’s young readers are captivated by learning about other people, whether they be major historical figures or not. The art of the memoir has changed how we tell the story of a life, and that style of writing has slipped itself beyond just autobiographies and can be found in mainstream biographies as well.   It’s impossible to list all the amazing books we would like to in this brief article, but please consider them to be a tiny slice of what’s available ..read more

Each month we highlight one of the amazing Montessori learning materials here on our blog. This week we take on a well-recognized  feature in any lower elementary environment: the word study cabinet. Typically housed in a tower of tiny labeled drawers, groups of cards allow children to study an important area of language, and to do so independently.   The Presentations Perhaps it is easiest to start by listing the skills covered by the word study materials: Compound words Prefixes Suffixes Homophones Homonyms Homographs Synonyms Antonyms Contractions Syllabication One of the most ..read more

Each year, the American Library Association announces its Youth Media Awards in January. These highly anticipated awards include the prestigious John Newbery Medal and Randolph Caldecott Medal, but there are also many more high-profile selections. Here we share each of the books that won in the 2022 Youth Media Awards. It’s important that we note there were many outstanding books that may not have won, but received honors, that are not listed here. There were also other winners, such as digital media awards and author and illustrator recognitions, that we could not fit into this article. We ha ..read more

It’s that time of year again. The temperature is rising ever so slowly, the daylight is gracing us with its presence a bit more each day, and it feels like the world outside is waking up. Spring does something amazing for us all. While we believe in the importance of finding fun ways to be outside all year round, spring seems to pull us there without the need for any convincing. Parents often ask us how they can support their child’s education at home. We don’t recommend going out and purchasing Montessori materials or recreating what goes on in the classroom environment. The home environment ..read more

When people think about Montessori schools, some of the most prominent materials that come to mind are the beautiful practical life opportunities in our primary environments. There are small wooden trays with pouring and transferring works. There are whole lessons dedicated to the arrangement of flowers. The children prepare their own snacks and wash their own dishes. They use special frames that teach them to tie, buckle, and snap. Those practical life materials at the primary level are so important. They are also very visible, because they take on the form of a standard material on a shelf ..read more

So much of what we do in our Montessori environments is with the goal of the child’s independence in mind. They may need our support sometimes, but children are capable of much more than many people realize. Each of our environments has ways of implementing practical life skills and practice activities that are developmentally appropriate and engaging for the children that will use them. While children of all ages benefit from practical life work, it tends to be the most obvious and discussed in the primary classroom. This is likely because between the ages of three and six, children are achi ..read more

You know Montessori classrooms are different than most. You’ve heard the rumors: children run around doing whatever they please. It’s all play and no work. Or perhaps you’ve heard the opposite: our structures are so rigid we stifle creativity and natural childhood behavior.  What’s it really like?  We can practically guarantee that once you step inside a classroom for yourself, sit quietly in a corner, and observe the children and adults at work, your impressions will be transformed. We encourage parents to do so whenever possible; the children are used to visitors and we have tips o ..read more

Some of you were originally drawn to Montessori because you’ve read about how different and special the approach is. Some of you were looking for a high-quality daycare or preschool and stumbled upon The Children’s Tree Montessori School.  There are a plethora of reasons families choose to send their children to Montessori schools. The vast majority of those families are thrilled with their decision once they see how their child is nurtured, encouraged, and celebrated in our environments. Something interesting tends to happen around the age of kindergarten and first grade. Families feel t ..read more

This action research sought to answer “What impact does a teacher’s insight about transition and attachment theory (Bowlby, 1982) have on a toddler’s transition into a new school?” The research was conducted in a Montessori school in Connecticut with 4 teachers, 11 new toddlers, and 11 parents. The researcher intervened with a teacher focus group examining their belief about transition. The data tools included teacher surveys and focus groups, parent checklists, observations on transition behavior, and interactions and program structures section of the infant toddler environment rating scale ..read more