I wouldn’t call myself a gardener, more like gardener-adjacent, and either in because or in spite of this, I experience what most would call disproportionate excitement whenever 1) something grows and 2) I can use it. Grape tomatoes, jalapenos, zucchini, basil–all of it tastes better when I grew it, and I’m not ashamed to say …
Our multi-age classes are shorter than others, with less time for food prep, so the snacks have to be simple. (During smoothie week, we make it work!) This day, the task was drying the blueberries–something that seems almost like a non-job, and something that you might not even make time for at home. (Haven’t we …
(Adapted from a post to our private Instagram group from October, 2022. Session families, join to read them all…occasionally, I share an older favorite here.) You may have figured out by now that I love to talk, so it’s sometimes hard for me to take this piece of my own best parenting advice: When explaining …
**A repost from last year from our private instagram group. I noticed that I had misspelled “assumptions” on the image, and am taking this opportunity to model what I tell parents and is at the heart of Montessori: Mistakes are just an opportunity to self-correct.** Until this week, I had never put green peppers out …
There’s a lot of conversation in the Montessori community about what’s “not Montessori.” Montessori often gets what I consider to be a bad rap as “too rigid”–and to be sure, there are strong opinions among teachers about how best to follow and implement Montessori’s ideas. I personally am fairly confident about how this lives in …
(Adapted from a post to our private Instagram group from December, 2022. Session families, join to read them all…occasionally, I share an older favorite here.) I use this phrase often to mean that the things we need/want/hope for our children to learn/do/internalize develop–eventually, with our continued commitment to them (both to the things and to …
You might guess that we’ll be talking about apples, and I suppose we will be. Because I did ask: Would you like to cut the apples for snack? And the child responded excitedly, ready to get started. And the child’s mom, as she had done since their first day at Clementine, got up to follow …
(Adapted from a post to our private Instagram group from October, 2023. Session families, join to read them all…occasionally, I share an older favorite here.) A number-one strategy for building independence and confidence is to let your child walk whenever possible, whether in beautiful weather as in the photo above or in gray and blustery …
Full disclosure: I actually got out the camera to photograph big brother, who was seated at the table fitting the pieces into the puzzle. My focus was off and how lucky for me, because without that mistake, I’m not sure I would have seen what we’re seeing and talking about here which is: Reaching is …
(Adapted from a post to our private Instagram group from May, 2023. Session families can join to read them all, and I occasionally share a favorite here.) This morning, a child walked into the entryway, sat down in the shoe chair, took off her own shoes, set them on the bench, and excitedly walked to …
