Montessori

We are so fortunate to live in Southern California where the weather predominantly stays beautiful all year round, allowing us to enjoy outdoor activities with our little ones.  Nevertheless, with our generation of today, technology has also become a bigger part of our society.  Computers, TVs, video games, and such are so popular nowadays that why bother letting the children play outside with sticks and e

I would like to share with you a little bit about my journey into becoming a Montessori Directress. 

     The very first time I set foot in a Montessori classroom was for an observation I had to do for my psychology class.  I've never heard of Montessori schools then or even knew who Maria Montessori was.  The images I had of children were rowdy, full of energy, and that they don't listen.  I was proven wrong when a child opened the door and greeted me into the classroom.   

            I recently had the opportunity to spend the day with my four-year-old niece, Brianna. I would like to talk about some observations I made and let you know how we spent some of our days. We started off our day with a healthy lunch and Brianna had a wonderful two-and-a-half-hour nap. After her nap, we had a quick snack of veggies and fruit, and then it was off to explore my backyard.  Wow!  I was very surprised that my niece was so excited and eager to explore.

       One question that has come up often over this year is why we use cursive in the classroom. As most of you who already are familiar with our language curriculum know, we teach all letters and beginning reading by using cursive. Did you know that prior to 1940, most schools used the cursive-first approach to writing?

It is that time of the year where there's a lot of us who come down sick due to seasonal colds, flu, allergies, viral infections, and such.  As most of you probably already know, currently there is also a measles outbreak just north of us here in San Diego.  With that, we should pay extra close attention to our children's health and well-being. 

Many children seem to be "tired" when they come to school.  I see this tiredness in the way that they work and the work they choose.  In Montessori, we don't give homework for a specific reason.  We believe the work the child does at school is more than enough and that the home is for their lives to be outdoors, with friends and family, and a time to relax and be at ease.  Doing workbooks, educational games on iPads or the computer, being asked to work on handwriting or numbers at home, makes the children tired and ready for a break when they come to school in the m

I would like to write on my personal thoughts of how wonderful the Montessori method is and how it impacts the lives of our children daily. As a parent to a Montessori child and as a teacher, I can't say enough about how the Montessori method changed my child's life and changed my perspective toward the children I work with. Here are a few notes about the Montessori philosophy:

The Changing Environment

I would like to share with you something that I've learned recently through Miss Sarah McNeill, a Pediatric Occupational Therapist.  She came to speak to us about a very serious issue which is becoming more common with our children today.  Miss McNeil works with the Poway School district and she also runs her own practice.