The Kavanaugh Report

I was working with Henry the other day on some math materials during his homeschooling time. We were working together on the multiplication beads. I had presented the work to him and he was working to fill in some sheets with basic multiplication facts. This work was really speaking to him, and he was surprisingly into it. Suddenly, as he was working, he looks up at me and says, "MOM! One times the number is always the same number! I discovered that!!" He was positively beaming. I simply replied, "you sure did! 1 times the number is always the number."  "I discovered that!"  That phrase hit me like a ton of bricks because as simple as it sounds, it is speaks to the essence of Montessori not only as a method of education but as a parenting philosophy. While my story involves an 8-year-old well into the Second Plane of Development, this feeling fo discovering is sometime we should all be striving to give our children at any age. We want to bring our childr…

I get a lot of questions about Montessori parenting. But, one of the most common questions I get is about quiet time. There seem to be a lot of parents out there hoping to carve out a little quiet time during they day - for themselves and for their children. So, I wanted to answer some of the most popular questions I get about using quiet time in our Montessori home. Here are 10 questions I get all the time!

What is quiet time? What is NOT quiet time?  Quiet time is a period of time during the day for rest. In our home, this means a break from adult interaction and busy activity. Quiet time for my kids is a time for rest, for play, for decompression from the busy morning. Quiet time for me is a time for rest, working, finishing household chores/projects, or other work I'm engaged in. 
Quiet time is NOT a time to enforce silence. It is not about control, compliance, or simply getting children out of my way. In our house, it is NOT something for babies or children who are still nap…

Between the ages of birth and 3, Maria Montessori identified children as having an unconscious absorbent mind. It's a fancy way of saying that children in this age group absorb everything around them effortlessly. Everything they see, touch, taste, hear, and experience is absorbed into their souls, shaping the adult they will eventually become. These influences are most prominent from two sources - the adult, and the environment. 

{Gus plays with the fraction puzzle from Monti Kids Level 8} 
Woah, pressure! Even just typing that all out, I can feel my blood pressure starting to rise wondering if I have done everything I need to for my babies and toddlers. If you feel those feelings of dread, there is some good news - babies and toddlers are inherently wired to explore and gather what they need from their environment. Their development is going to march on with or without us. 

{Gus using the Baking Set from Monti Kids Level 7}
The other good news is that we have a lot of resources t…

We are counting down the weeks around here until baby Theodore arrives. I'm feeling like we are in that limbo stage where it simultaneously feels like we have a ton of time before the baby arrives and no time at all. But, at 31 weeks, I am starting to make some concrete changes and preparations for the baby's arrival. Mainly, we're starting the process of moving bedrooms around to create our nursery space, gathering clothes, and preparing the movement area.  

{Picture is the beginning of Theodore's movement area in our home's playroom}
This process has me thinking a lot about the two main Montessori baby spaces we will have in our home - our sleeping space (nursery) and our movement area. I think some of the time the two spaces can become muddled in peoples' minds. And, it can be difficult to decide how these spaces should feel, if they should be distinct spaces, and what each should contain. So, here are some thoughts on Montessori infant sleeping spaces vers…

Young toddlers are so fully capable of daily participation in own homes. Someone recently asked me if I had any ideas for appropriate practical life for 1-year-olds, and it occurred to me that I've never really made big list of all the work Gus did around that time. So, I'm going to share some ideas that could work for 1-year-olds.


There are a few things to remember here. The younger the child the less a child will be able to complete a cycle of activity and do the task from start to finish. Your child's own interest, and how relevant these tasks are to your home will also play a role in how your child engages with any task. Keep these things in mind when thinking about practical life tasks for your young toddler:  Invite but don't require participation Model, model, model the taskPrepare your environment for successAdjust your own expectations  This work will not be done the way you or I do it, and that's ok! And it may be that they just start by doing part of thi…

It's been awhile since I have shared the work that Gus has been using. As a reminder when I say work, I mean the same things as "toys, activities, materials." It's all his work. I see no distinction between work and play, and this reminds me that his play is as important as any work that I may have to do. Read my last shelf update at 25 months here. 

Gus is 2.5-years-old now (32 months). These items have been chosen based on his interests, abilities, and things I have observed in him. Much of it is fine motor work which he seems particularly drawn to as he strengthens his hands. I'll go into detail below! 
I also want to make it super clear that this is only a small part of what Gus spends his day doing. Most of his day is spent involved in practical pursuits, reading, or playing outdoors. The materials are only a small part of how we incorporate Montessori into our home. 
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So here's a look at what's o…

Earlier this spring, I asked my son Henry what he would like to do for the summer. He was finishing up his second year in lower elementary at a Montessori public school. Typically, we mostly keep it slow in the summer. But, in the past he has attended either a few summer camps or a private Montessori school a couple of days a week. Much to my surprise, Henry didn't want to do any of those activities but wanted to "homeschool."


That was just fine with me! I took the money I had budgeted for summer camp and rolled it into a few Montessori and non-Montessori materials that would fit his needs and interests. Some of these materials were things I made a judgment call about, and some where suggestions by his guide.
Just a note, Henry is neurodiverse. We do not share, at this time, specifics about his exact diagnosis or needs. The materials have been chosen with this in mind. Use this post for inspiration, but follow your own child. 

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