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I must admit that I can vividly recall a time when I graciously traded my younger sister five whole pennies for one quarter. In the process I absolutely convinced her what an amazing deal she was getting, because “everyone knows five is more than one.” Glowing with pride over her …

Tips & Activity Ideas from Birth to Age 6 “Good morning. It is a lovely day today. Should we take a walk in the park? Let’s get our mittens and jackets. It’s crisp and cold this morning.” You might chatter with a four-year-old this way. What about a four-month-old? It …

We often take for granted the natural growth of children that happens without our direct involvement. Just think of the physical changes that take place in the first year of life. We do so many things to encourage and support our children’s growth, but often without knowledge of what we …

There is a lively debate going on in the country about whether, in this age of electronics, cursive handwriting is a necessary skill. Cursive is not required by the national educational Common Core Standards. Many states across the country are removing or reducing cursive instruction from the curriculum while only …

As a parent interested in the Montessori method, you may have heard about the three-period lesson, a hallmark of Montessori education that helps young children learn vocabulary and concepts. In simple terms, the three steps, or periods, are: 1. Naming (Introduction) “This is a dog.” 2. Recognizing (Identification) “Show me the dog.” 3. Remembering (Cognition) “What …

Of course, we all need to move to get through life, but how children learn is intimately connected to their movements. When movement is involved, the brain is stimulated differently than it is when one is passively watching and listening. Especially in the face of our sedentary lifestyles and our …

In amazement we watch as the newborn responds to the world. We notice how infants startle at loud sounds, cry when hungry or wet, listen to mother’s soothing voice, and follow movements with their eyes. From infancy until about age three, the child is unconsciously absorbing the world through his …

Many of us have seen a young child more interested in the wrapping paper than the gift; or watched as a child played with just a string and a popsicle stick or a large empty box. Maria Montessori observed the same phenomenon at her first job as a doctor in …

Maria Montessori wrote the above over a century ago. Today children entering pre-school or kindergarten are expected to know many things that were not required in earlier generations: how to write their names, recognize letters and numbers, and know their address, phone number, parents’ names, etc. Knowing and understanding are …

From the soft chimes inside their soft, furry toys to the full orchestration of “Carnival of the Animals,” children learn how to distinguish different sounds, rhythms, and melodies. The soothing songs of lullabies sung by mom or dad help them feel loved and fall asleep. At the same time, children …