Montessori: What is it?
Montessori education, a revolutionary approach to learning developed by Dr. Maria Montessori over a century ago, stands out for its unique focus on the individual child’s natural development. Characterized by self-directed activities within a prepared environment and guided by specially trained teachers, this method nurtures children’s innate curiosity and desire to learn, fostering both academic […]
Work at Home Montessori Parent
The Work-at-Home Parent Conundrum For so many of you, working from home while caring for your children will undoubtedly bring challenges. While I cannot promise it will always be comfortable, I can say that if we focus on modifying some key points, you can manage. One up- one down If there are two of you […]
Montessori in the Kitchen
Space, the first frontierā¦ in your home Ok, so first things first. We need to help you set up space in your house. There are so many ways we will work on modifying rooms in your home, and the most accessible place to start is the kitchen. Because you are in […]
Consistency and RoutineĀ for Preschoolers and Kindergarteners at Home During Coronavirus
Some schools have already been out for a while, but for much of the US, this week has seen the start of a lot of extended school closures. If you are faced with having your children at home for an extended school closure, consistent routines will help you settle into patterns of existing in this […]
Pearls of Wisdom: Working with elementary aged children
I recently returned from the AMI Elementary Refresher Course, and I enjoyed it so much that over the course of the two days I took 25 pages of notes! Alison Awes, the presenter and a Montessori trainer, was a very inspiring and engaging speaker, breathing fresh life into some familiar concepts, lessons, and theories, while […]
Why are we afraid of big numbers?
A second-grade teacher in a public school environment is well aware that, by the end of the school year, their students should be able to add and subtract fluently with numbers less than 100. However, in a Montessori environment, children begin to learn place-value into the thousands beginning in the 3-6 childrenās house. At the […]
Choice in the Elementary Classroom
Understanding how to facilitate, organize, and prepare an environment that fosters student choice is one of the most challenging aspects of being a Montessori elementary teacher. But it can be done and done well. Students can have choices in their work and still develop the skills needed to master standards. Follow the Trillium Montessori Talks podcast […]
How to Guide the Young Elementary Child
The youngest elementary childrenā¦the beginning of a new cycle. When the 6 or 7-year-old child enters into the elementary classroom, teachers sometimes struggle with understanding this newly emerging second plane child. When I was teaching and had the benefit of observing my students in their primary classroom environment before they transitioned into elementary, it was […]
Is it a Request for Help or a Bid for Connection?
Identifying the True Need Under the Request Throughout my years of teaching and leading schools, I have witnessed certain personality characteristics surface and resurface again. Thereās a particular one that I want to address and that has cropped up a few times during my career in education. Though the children are different, the script is […]
7 Ways to Enhance Your Storytelling Skills
Telling a Story vs. Giving a Lecture in the Elementary Classroom Environment Have you ever been spellbound by a captivating storyteller spinning a thrilling tale that had you propped at the edge of your seat, eagerly awaiting the next piece of colorful imagery to pique your curiosity and tantalize your imagination? If so, you likely […]
Cosmic Education and its Role in the Elementary Classroom
I am pleased to welcome Sharmeen Niazi of MOM_tessori_Guide to Trillium! Sharmeen is a Montessori Elementary guide at the Archgate Montessori Academy in Dallas, TX. Today she is sharing with us some insights about the role of cosmic education in the Elementary classroom. Keeping into consideration the inquisitive minds during the second plane of development, […]
The 6 Year Old: The Age Of TattlingĀ
If you have taught elementary, you surely have noticed that your youngest community members have a tendency to tell on one another, otherwise known as ātattling.ā I remember when I was a teacher, I always had at least a couple of 6-year-olds who tattled frequently, and I also clearly recall feeling some annoyance with this […]
Montessori Professional Development Plan
Tammy Oesting speaks to Daneen Goncalves of Nido Marketing about how and why to create a professional development plan for your staff. For affordable monthly staff development, please join Montessori Principles to Practice. You can find a variety of online workshops for your Montessori professional development needs on the Trillium Montessori Courses site.
A Tour of Erin’s Montessori Classroom
I recently had the opportunity to visit my friend Erin Roberts in Asheville, NC. I’ve known Erin for about 14 years. We worked together at the Montessori School of Syracuse and she is one of the small handful of people I’ve met who seem to have been born with an intuitive understanding of Montessori. A […]
10 Ways to Encourage Your Child to Do Chores
by Gabrielle Nussbaumer Did you grow up with Saturday morning or afternoon chores? Maybe you had Saturday all day chores!? Did that question make you groan as you remembered the list of things you had to accomplish and the consequences if you didnāt? Fast forward to the present moment and think of your own children. […]
What We Want For Our Children
By Virginia Lozuke A couple of years ago I started approaching parent teacher conferences a little differently. Ā Before I compiled all my observations, notes, recordkeeping, and pictures, I went back to my files and pulled out the original application that parents filled out prior to enrolling at our school. The answers to those questions are […]
Rocks Observation and Discussion
Walkinā N Rockin’ A beginning-of-the-year lesson plan by Claudia Mann If my Facebook āteacherā groups are any indication, this is a pretty exciting time of year for most of you who are called to this profession. Photo posts of prepared classrooms almost shout the anticipation of teachers who are ready to get those little ones […]
Handwork in the Montessori EnvironmentĀ
In Montessori environments, we pride ourselves on having a culture of self-lead work. We inspire children to be mathematicians, writers, discoverers and researchers. We also teach children the value of the ability to work with our hands. How to Create a Culture of Handwork in Your Montessori Environment By Carol Palmer Handwork, the creative, constructive […]
Filtering Out Hiring Bias
I am dripping with bias. So are you. From affinity bias to confirmation bias, we are all prone to filtering our decisions through the lens of our personal biases. It is normalā¦and it is not okay in a hiring process. In the United States, hiring bias is significant. The rates of several measures of hiring […]
A Tour of Pine Cottage
I am delighted to feature Pine Cottage from the Montessori School of Syracuse (MSS) in our Classroom Showcase series this week! My Montessori spiritual roots lie at this school. This was the school where I first discovered Montessori. I found a job here as an assistant teacher right out of grad school. I then went for […]
Care of Self for Montessori Teachers
If you have Montessori training for the 0-6 year old levels, then you are familiar with the section in your Practical Life Album called “Care of Self”. This section covers all kinds of exercises to help young children learn to take care of themselves such as dressing, blowing their nose, preparing a snack for themselves, […]