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Nothing To Fear... But Fear Itself
Almost invariably, if I tell a parent that my son has been in underpants since he turned one, they look horrified and ask: "But... What if he has an ACCIDENT???"
Uh, I change him and wipe the floor?
I get the same horrified look when I say that he's been drinking from a real glass and using porcelain plates and glass bowls since he was six months old: "But... What if he BREAKS ONE???"
Uh, I sweep up the pieces and throw them away?
And don't even get me started on using forks with sharp tines or pota…
Uh, I change him and wipe the floor?
I get the same horrified look when I say that he's been drinking from a real glass and using porcelain plates and glass bowls since he was six months old: "But... What if he BREAKS ONE???"
Uh, I sweep up the pieces and throw them away?
And don't even get me started on using forks with sharp tines or pota…
Playing Catch Up
There's one thing that sets children ages 0-3 apart from children in all other Montessori age groups, and it's been throwing me for a loop recently:
THEIR NEEDS AND ABILITIES CHANGE SO DARN FAST!!! AAARRGGGHHH!!!
I spent almost two hours observing through a one-way window in my son's Toddler Community. What I saw was amazing. And disconcerting.
Because the environment I worked so hard to set up for my one-year old just a few months back? Yeah, completely useless now.
My baby, the one who was con…
THEIR NEEDS AND ABILITIES CHANGE SO DARN FAST!!! AAARRGGGHHH!!!
I spent almost two hours observing through a one-way window in my son's Toddler Community. What I saw was amazing. And disconcerting.
Because the environment I worked so hard to set up for my one-year old just a few months back? Yeah, completely useless now.
My baby, the one who was con…
How to Get Your Toddler to Make Dinner
It was a grey and rainy afternoon. Zach had just woken up from his nap and my husband wouldn't be home for two more hours. I had a sinus infection and had no desire to move, but explain that to a toddler...
I had to make something for dinner, so while Zachtrashed explored the kitchen cabinets I pulled out a bean curry I had made the night before. It needed some greens, so I quickly chopped up some kale. I was about to toss it into the pot (hello, automatic pilot) when I realized something:
bored …
I had to make something for dinner, so while Zach
bored …
Why Boring is Good
You might think that the home of a Montessori teacher is like a miniature classroom, with shelf after shelf of perfect little materials and not a plastic object in sight. That might be true for some teachers' homes, but not for ours! We have a little cupboard that holds a few activities: musical instruments, a basket of containers, nesting cups, and a couple of books. He also has a Ball Tower, a basket with assorted balls, a push toy, and a couple of stacking toys. That's pretty much it.
Sometim…
Sometim…
A Celebration of Work on Labor Day Weekend
Going to work... Doing housework, yard work, homework... Yuck! For adults, work is something we want to do as little of as possible, because it takes time away from play! (This was recently confirmed by the Twitter Mood Map, which showed that people are considerably happier on the weekends, when fewer of us work.)
It's therefore understandable that one of the Montessori concepts which can throw parents for a loop is the idea that their little child will "work" in the classroom. Here are some…
It's therefore understandable that one of the Montessori concepts which can throw parents for a loop is the idea that their little child will "work" in the classroom. Here are some…
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