Here are our top 10 suggestions for practicing independence at home with young children. We recommend practicing them a few at a time. It takes time and consistency to implement change, both for the parent and for the child.    Foster independence: Don’t do for a child what they can do for themselves.  Allow the child to speak for their self. Don’t speak for them to others.  Build a vocabulary for emotions and feelings and practice expressing them. Use virtues language: patience, cooperativeness, courage, kindness, etc.  Teach grace and courtesy i ..read more

Educating children about taste buds and How to get your three year old to eat kale When my son was two years old he would not eat carrots. I asked my doctor how she approached ‘picky eating’ with her kids. She said, “Don’t change what you cook and keep putting carrots on his plate.” I did exactly as she suggested, but Jack still refused to eat carrots, even until he was three and a half.  Then my doctor suggested that I include him in my love for gardening. Time Spent Together In the early summer I invited Jack to plant vegetable seeds in the garden. We made a trip to the gardening store ..read more

Montessori educators are frequently asked to explain why children enter the program at the age of three. Here is a brief anecdote we often hear from parents of older 3 year olds: Your child celebrated their 3rd birthday and in a few short months transformed from a toddler to an exploratory and creative individual who is clearly ready for more independence. You watch her blossom and grow before your eyes; she is inquisitive and curious to learn. It becomes apparent that she needs more than toys and activities in the home to stimulate her potential. A few months before, or at the time of the 3rd ..read more

There is a clear sense of purpose evident in the classroom. This current of positive energy belies the structure and foundation of the Montessori educational approach. Both the learning materials and the role of the teacher are key. The Role of the Teacher: The teacher has one clear defined purpose: To connect the child with the materials. The teacher ensures that each child receives lessons and builds their skills with the learning materials. Through individualized lesson planning and record keeping, the teacher tracks the progress of each child. This gives every child the opportunity to work ..read more

The two terms, ‘art’ and ‘craft,’ are commonly used interchangeably to describe children’s activities. This creates confusion about the true nature of the genres; each is defined by differing characteristics: Art is a creative activity produced by human imagination and expression, typically through visual and written forms: drawing, painting, sculpture, literature, music, dance. The works are created and inspired primarily for their beauty and their emotional power. Craft is an activity involving skill and technique in making or duplicating something by hand: woodwork, pottery, textiles, knitt ..read more

Cultural Influences Sewing was a familiar and practical skill in our house when I was a girl growing up in the 60’s. My paternal grandmother was a seamstress for the furrier department of Eaton’s department store; my maternal grandmother embellished linens and clothing with colourful cross-stitched needlework; my mom sewed beautiful dresses for herself and her four daughters. Today, as a teacher and a mother, I now find pleasure in passing along the art of sewing to children. A Calming Influence There is a peaceful, meditative state experienced in the quiet and repetitive motions that come wit ..read more

A child who is transitioning from a childcare program into an educational setting can experience significant physical and emotional changes. Childcare is primarily custodial in nature, providing the basic needs for safety and wellbeing, whereas preschool and kindergarten have an educational focus. Attending school for the first time brings with it new experiences, new teachers, a larger class size, and peers older in age. The physical environment is big and new, with desks and educational materials vs. the familiar toys at daycare. The first 6 to 8 weeks of the school year is considered a tran ..read more

The Montessori classroom is an educational environment enriched with materials representing geographical aspects of the world: the globe, puzzle maps, flags, land and water forms, animal figures, and nomenclature cards. Turning the conceptual idea of geography into a concrete concept The hands-on work with the geography materials offers children a concrete sensorial experience, attaching meaning and value to real-life physical environments. The wood jigsaw maps are built and matched to control charts, showing the shapes and location of the countries, continents and oceans. The knobs on the ma ..read more

Children love science!   Topics ranging from the solar system to dinosaurs to volcanoes have strong appeal. It is equally important for young children to have the opportunity to learn and practice the scientific study of experimentation: the tools, the procedures, the vocabulary and analysis.   Preschoolers have a natural attraction to the principle of cause and effect. We often observe a two or three year old pour the contents of a container out onto the floor simply to see what will happen: Will the objects bounce? What will it sound like? Will something new be revealed? The chil ..read more

Planning and Planting On Earth Day, during the spring of last year, the children, families and teachers at Four Seasons Montessori gathered together to plant flowers, vegetables, herbs and fruiting plants in the school garden. A new tin-roofed pavilion, flower boxes, a greenhouse, and raised planter boxes had been built and stood ready to go; it was an exciting day of activity and shared effort. Growth and Observation Over the following months and throughout the hot summer days, the children watered and watched the plants grow. The watermelon vines crept over and around the bushy kale and ..read more