By Heather Gray The New Year is a contemplative time for many people. It is a reminder that, wherever we find ourselves, we may begin anew again and again. Over the holiday break, I found myself reading poetry by John O’Donohue. O’Donohue was an Irish poet and author; he was also a priest who is […]
Reading Aloud to Your Children
By Curriculum Specialist Heather Incao Parents often ask what they can do at home to support their child at school. Always, the first answer to my mind is to read aloud to their children. Read often and to all ages from birth into the teen years. Making time to read aloud to your child […]
Path to Abstraction
By Victoria Gaber Throughout the elementary years, children are following their own internal path towards abstracting concepts of math, language, the sciences, and the rest. The weeks right after the holidays can tend be a time of serious academic growth as the students remember the feeling of focusing on work after a long break […]
The Great Lessons
By Mary Donovan Once children reach Elementary age, they are beginning a new plane of development (ages 6-12). This child is able to have a reasoning mind. At this stage, children are beginning a gradual journey to abstraction and they have a major focus on social relationships. Children in this plane also have a […]
Happy New Year Dear Families!
With the New Year brings the promise of new things. Resolutions are made and we’re off and running into 2020. I would like to propose an addendum to the resolutions list: a plan to simply do better, specifically in this case, to do better by our children. I recently attended a seminar on parenting and […]
Montessori Inspired Checklist For Choosing Toys
By Kendyll Murray LOOK FOR NATURAL MATERIALS Choose toys that are made out of glass, wood, and ceramic. Montessori is about facilitating the child’s connection with nature and too much plastic is an empty experience. Plastic doesn’t smell, taste, or have texture. Natural materials are also less toxic to children. LOOK FOR THINGS […]
Setting up a Toddler-friendly Home
By Whitney Kimbro Toddlers crave independence and are in a sensitive period for language. They sometimes have a hard time communicating what is needed, especially if they are tired, hungry, ill or something is just off. There are usually power struggles in these delicate years. To help minimize these power struggles, and encourage independence, we […]
Creating an Elevator Pitch
By Heather Gray, Head of School One of the Walnut Farm Board Members posed that it would serve the school well if we developed a “Walnut Farm Montessori School Elevator Pitch.” When we think about an “elevator pitch” we may envision a scrappy screenwriter scurrying in after an unsuspecting film producer just as the doors […]
Practical Life in the Upper Elementary Classroom
By Victoria Gaber Upper Elementary children have a strong desire to use their knowledge and abilities in meaningful ways both in and outside of the classroom. That is why it is so important to provide an array of experiences that will utilize children’s learning at home, school, and on field trips or vacations. “Going out” […]
Hello and happy fall! We are getting into the swing of the school year and I can feel normalization beginning in Lower Elementary classroom. Maria Montessori described normalization as a process that occurs over a period of time and requires the child’s total engagement with the materials. Montessori said, “The children are now working as […]
