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You can have a more filling dinner later. 3.

The Freedom to Interact with Others reflects one of Montessori's Tendencies of Humans: the Tendency toward Communication. We understand that part of the nature of human development is to engage and interact with other humans, to come into union with them, to learn together, make meaning together, progress together. And we understand that this drive is particularly critical in the early years of life, when we seek to surround children with language rich environments and highly responsive caregivers. Knowing the human drive to interact with other humans is inherent, the Montessori prepared environment prioritizes it and protects it by design. For example, look at the tiny table in most Montessori Infant classrooms. Even though children are preverbal, we provide space for them to interact with each other over common activities. Rather than a line of highchairs from which each infant can only interact with the adult who is feeding them, we sit infants at small common tables from which they can see (and motion to, and reach for, and babble at) other children. We respond to this early babble as though we are breaking bread together, acknowledging infant verbalizations and offering them words to describe what they seem to seek. Look at the time and space allowed in Toddler classrooms for Toddlers to observe, respond and experience new stimuli together. A teacher sitting on the floor reading to one Toddler will make space for another curious Toddler to join their book. The low aquarium will often be surrounded by three or four Toddlers at a time, as interested in each other's responses as they are in the lights and life in the tank. Even when Toddlers may be engaged in their own activity, observant teachers will notice what they notice and help them to make sense of it. "You are watching Max build with the wooden blocks. Max's tower is getting very tall!" But just as we protect children's nature freedom to interact with each other, we protect them from interruption when they want their own focus or need their own space. You'll hear even the Infant teachers model for children how to ask to play. "You'd like to touch Tabitha's cheek. Let's ask her. Tabitha, can Devin touch your cheek?" While this may feel cumbersome in imagining, a classroom that's constantly attentive to children's social development and benefitting from observant and responsive teachers will integrate these social norms with ease. In Toddler classrooms, you may notice Toddler teachers especially attentive to whether children want to socialize or not... knowing that preverbal toddlers will sometimes use their bodies to communicate messages they have not yet developed verbal language for, Toddler teachers are ever alert to the personal boundaries children have for their space. "Ally would like to use the pegs by herself right now. Let's watch her together." We don't presume that children all want to socialize with each other all the time. We recognize that some children want more space than others, and that some children need more engagement than others. We offer children language to communicate their own needs and stand with their request for social time or for space without judgment. And we never demand that children engage physically beyond their own motivation to do so. You won't hear Montessori teachers ask children to, "Give your friend a hug," but you may hear them saying things like, "You can ask Evan, 'May I hug you?'" Even when children are resolving conflict, Montessori teachers will support their resolution through their own choice of strategies. By remaining attentive, and understanding that the most rewarding Montessori environments are those that reflect the observed development of the children they serve, Montessori teachers seek to provide flexible boundaries for socialization and space, reinforcing healthy interactions that protect the diversity of individual development and remind children that they have agency in how and when they interact with others. #FirstPlane #Socialization #Toddlers #Infants #Freedom

For example, you’ll notice Montessori 0-3 classrooms rarely have furniture into which a child is placed

Imagine a nursery: the crib, the bright plastic toys, the sparkling mobile swinging above. Maybe there's a detailed mural painted on the wall. Maybe there's a changing table for adults to change diapers without bending too far over. Maybe there's a play-chair, to place your older infant or young toddler in, their feet dangling just close enough to the floor to push themselves around or spin their seat. Now think about a Montessori classroom: neutral colors, with selected choices for children of beautiful, durable materials. Everything is at the child's level - even the smallest child - and the child is free to move about the room without relying on an adult to unbuckle or retrieve them. Like all Montessori classrooms, Montessori Infant-Toddler spaces reflect what we know about the children they serve. In this case, that means they allow for free movement to support the child's growing body and brain, reliable materials that teach the child about how the world works and their influence on it, and opportunities for independence to the degree their development allows. So those floor beds aren't just there because they're pretty. We use floor beds because they allow children to self-regulate their sleep and to feel confident that, when they are awake, they can return to activity without waiting to be retrieved. Likewise, we offer the children sturdy, low chairs for sitting at equally low tables, from which they can push back when they are finished. We offer the children durable, often wooden materials that they can act upon, free from misleading lights or electronic sounds, because we want them to learn how the world they influence responds to that influence. We avoid bouncing chairs or infant spin-chairs because we want to support children moving between the activities that interest them, rather than spinning within a contraption within which they are buckled and stuck. We offer, instead, surfaces for crawling up and over and through, practicing gross and fine motor control as they learn about the world. Finally, we support children through standing diaper changes, allowing them to manage as much of the process as they can (even if it's a little less contained) so that they continue to follow the signals their bodies give them as they learn to regulate their own toilet needs. Consider the same for your home. There's no need to invest in an expensive crib: a crib mattress on the floor in a simple frame is an elegant invitation to rest. Replace the large toy box with a few low shelves, accessible by the crawling child, and the toys with simple teethers, bells, books, animal figurines or puzzles. Hang a full-length mirror sideways on the wall, near to the floor, for your infant to admire themselves on their bellies or backs. Secure family photos or nature pictures down low as well, and avoid the bright murals. Install a banister low to the ground for your child to practice pulling up on, and for an extra place to hold during a standing diaper change. And those diaper changes? Ask your child's Infant or Toddler teacher to let you observe some. They're simpler (and cleaner) than you might imagine, and soon you'll wonder why you ever lay your child prone at all. Foremost, your child's bedroom in infancy and toddlerdom should be a place that's inviting for soft experiences, warm time with a loving caregiver, a secure climate that feels quiet and calm- in other words, the way you want to feel as you're falling asleep: safe, peaceful and full of love. #FirstPlane #Bedroom #Sleep #ForParents #MontessoriAtHome #Infants #Toddlers

Research suggests, though, that infants begin concentrating in utero, at about 34 weeks, when they start

Are children naturally empathetic? You may have heard of the phenomenon of infants crying in a nursery, reacting to each other's cries in a sort of snowball of emotional distress. Research shows that newborns, for example, respond more to the cries of other babies then they do to other loud sounds. They respond more to the cries of other babies than they do even to the recorded sound of their own cries. Caregivers often describe this response as evidence of the innate nature of empathy. But more recent research suggests that, while these early examples of sharing emotions with other infants may predict children's empathy later, in infancy anyway they are more likely to be the result of "emotional contagion," when one infant's cry triggers another infant's fears, causing them to cry as well. The infant isn't crying to demonstrate kindness to the first child, but because the cries of the first child caused them anxiety or fear. The old yarn seems to be just a story. So, are children naturally empathetic? More recent research suggests that we shouldn't throw the empathetic baby out with the nursery bathwater. While that particular phenomenon probably doesn't show us as much about empathic concern as it does about emotional contagion, there is good evidence that infants and toddlers are nonetheless empathetic. In fact, more recent evidence suggests that not only are they empathetic, but they are even more so in situations in which they may be able to influence the outcome. That is to say, when infants and toddlers believe they can make it "better," they are even more likely to behave in ways that seek to. Not only are children naturally empathetic, this research suggests... they are naturally kind. So why don't we notice that more often? Simple, the research suggests. We're too busy. We end up paying more attention to the behaviors that are problematic than to the ones that are quiet, kind, and compassionate. Montessori infant and toddler classrooms are often paced differently than the rest of the child' life. In these spaces, the development of infants and toddlers is the first, and often only, priority of the day. There are no older children to get to soccer practice or dinners to cook. There aren't pets to manage or checkout lines to navigate. Instead, there is a space prepared specifically for the development of the children within it and paced as their own development demands. It turns out that, when you take out all the rushing and distractions and commotion of the rest of our lives, infants and toddlers are actually pretty lovely people. Observe and you'll notice infants paying attention longer to teachers , making eye contact and connecting even before they are verbal. You'll see infants reaching out to comfort each other when they see sadness or finding each other's faces when something funny happens to share the joke. You'll see them sharing food or offering hugs. You'll notice toddlers helping each other to put on their coats or carrying heavy items together, patting each other on the back when one is hurt or offering consolation when one is crying. You'll see them bring each other flowers on the playground or wrap their arms around each other to cuddle up. These acts of kindness reflect their natural empathy for each other. While they may not yet be able to demonstrate the perspective-taking that will allow them as their development progresses, these early kindnesses can be protected and nurtured when they're in an environment that notices and reinforces them. This is not to say that there won't be challenging times: infants and toddlers often have more complicated agendas than they have language skills, and the disparity doesn't usually present as kindness. But in a classroom within which children set the pace, teachers can notice and affirm their efforts to care for each other, supporting and protecting these gentle qualities in them as they grow. #FirstPlane #Empathy #Infants #Toddlers #ForParents #ForTeachers #Theory

notice what you might need to work-around with items that will be stored at school instead of home. 3.

It's a good time of year to take stock of the people who have helped your child to get this far: the teachers and classroom assistants, the school support staff and after-school guides who've walked with your child from those early, frightened days of school, the support staff around your school who may have lent a hand to you, or offered a smile on one of those mornings when you just needed to be reminded that you're ok. The other adults with whom we share service to children may seem to float in and out of our days, but they're essential to the community we enjoy, even when we're paying most attention to our own little ones. Your school may have traditions for demonstrations of thanks at the end of each year: class gifts or tokens for the teachers from parents. Follow those to the degree that you're able and motivated, but don't overlook the important ways in which you model gratitude every day for your children. For children in the youngest classrooms, the social norms they see around them become ingrained in their own behaviors. If you want to see your infant or toddler grow into a spirit of gratitude, be certain you're demonstrating it yourself regularly. For example, when you see your infant noticing someone else at work, take the time to hold your attention with them. Watch along your infant or toddler, and offer a calm monologue that describes what you see. "We are watching Ms. Kennedy helping Sebastian with his socks. Ms. Kennedy is sitting with Sebastian as he gets those socks over his toes. Now, she's helping him to pull them over his heels. I am thankful that Ms. Kennedy knows how to help children so gently." When you are interacting directly, even when you're in a rush, be sure to mind your own pleases and thank-you's. Slow down your own interactions so that they can be modeled by your child. At the coffee house? Put your phone away. Make eye contact with the clerk. Offer a thanks that's specific. "Thank you for the coffee," will draw your child's attention more closely than the toss away, "Thank you," that many of us use without thinking of it. As you step away, remark for your child what has happened that you're grateful for. "That was very kind of her. She's going to prepare our drinks now." Don't worry so much about mandating that your child say, "Thank you." Instead, model it yourself and remark on it to your toddler. The goal is not for your child to be programmed into responses that lack meaning, but to appreciate and notice the people around them who help to make things better. That's best achieved by noticing them yourself and modeling a sincere thankfulness aloud. It may feel contrived at first -- and, indeed, it is. You are intentionally modeling grateful practices at a time when your child learns best by what they see around them. In turn, you should see your child mimicking the same language they hear you use regularly. You won't need to do it forever, but you just might find that, but the time your child has established their own grateful practices, you won't want to give yours up. #June

For example, you’ll notice Montessori 0-3 classrooms rarely have furniture into which a child is placed

The Freedom to Interact with Others reflects one of Montessori's Tendencies of Humans: the Tendency toward Communication. We understand that part of the nature of human development is to engage and interact with other humans, to come into union with them, to learn together, make meaning together, progress together. And we understand that this drive is particularly critical in the early years of life, when we seek to surround children with language rich environments and highly responsive caregivers. Knowing the human drive to interact with other humans is inherent, the Montessori prepared environment prioritizes it and protects it by design. For example, look at the tiny table in most Montessori Infant classrooms. Even though children are preverbal, we provide space for them to interact with each other over common activities. Rather than a line of highchairs from which each infant can only interact with the adult who is feeding them, we sit infants at small common tables from which they can see (and motion to, and reach for, and babble at) other children. We respond to this early babble as though we are breaking bread together, acknowledging infant verbalizations and offering them words to describe what they seem to seek. Look at the time and space allowed in Toddler classrooms for Toddlers to observe, respond and experience new stimuli together. A teacher sitting on the floor reading to one Toddler will make space for another curious Toddler to join their book. The low aquarium will often be surrounded by three or four Toddlers at a time, as interested in each other's responses as they are in the lights and life in the tank. Even when Toddlers may be engaged in their own activity, observant teachers will notice what they notice and help them to make sense of it. "You are watching Max build with the wooden blocks. Max's tower is getting very tall!" But just as we protect children's nature freedom to interact with each other, we protect them from interruption when they want their own focus or need their own space. You'll hear even the Infant teachers model for children how to ask to play. "You'd like to touch Tabitha's cheek. Let's ask her. Tabitha, can Devin touch your cheek?" While this may feel cumbersome in imagining, a classroom that's constantly attentive to children's social development and benefitting from observant and responsive teachers will integrate these social norms with ease. In Toddler classrooms, you may notice Toddler teachers especially attentive to whether children want to socialize or not... knowing that preverbal toddlers will sometimes use their bodies to communicate messages they have not yet developed verbal language for, Toddler teachers are ever alert to the personal boundaries children have for their space. "Ally would like to use the pegs by herself right now. Let's watch her together." We don't presume that children all want to socialize with each other all the time. We recognize that some children want more space than others, and that some children need more engagement than others. We offer children language to communicate their own needs and stand with their request for social time or for space without judgment. And we never demand that children engage physically beyond their own motivation to do so. You won't hear Montessori teachers ask children to, "Give your friend a hug," but you may hear them saying things like, "You can ask Evan, 'May I hug you?'" Even when children are resolving conflict, Montessori teachers will support their resolution through their own choice of strategies. By remaining attentive, and understanding that the most rewarding Montessori environments are those that reflect the observed development of the children they serve, Montessori teachers seek to provide flexible boundaries for socialization and space, reinforcing healthy interactions that protect the diversity of individual development and remind children that they have agency in how and when they interact with others. #FirstPlane #Socialization #Toddlers #Infants #Freedom

We're still doing this. It's been almost a year since most schools were affected by the pandemic, almost a year since many of our children have been inside their classrooms. Those who have returned have. found new preparations in these prepared environments, new obstacles to the society by cohesion. There's joy there, to be sure, but it's different. This week, I'll remind you of some basics for at home, then we'll think about issues of persistence and how they present themselves across learning and development. Here's a reminder of some basics for families who are still at home: In an ideal world, parents and teachers build collaborative relationships over days, weeks and months, working well when things are going well, and establishing the trust on which they'll rely when things get tricky. Y'all. It's tricky. One way to think about (enjoying/enduring/surviving) an extended time at home with your children is to start thinking about it differently. While there are certainly real and important challenges that have come to us all, financial and emotional and social and health, Montessori teachers know that the best way to manage the unexpected is to prepare thoughtfully for what you can predict. So, what are some things you might be do at home to maintain some calm in the midst of an ever-extending-storm? First, remember that it’s human nature to want to understand our environments and to feel some agency in them. Expect, in these unpredictable days, because even though we've been at it a while, it's still unpredictable, that your emotional resilience and your child’s may be tested, and that how that looks may be different for each of you. Your child may be (angry/energetic/fearful/aggressive/quiet/tearful/hungry/sleepy/confrontational/cuddly) … let’s just say, “not themselves.” You may be, too. Be calm in your own response. Acknowledge for your child that things feel strange, that we have been feeling strange so long that we may not remember how it felt before, and assure them that they are safe and supported. Use modeling language that helps them to identify the emotions they’re feeling and helps you to create space for talking about them. “These are certainly some unusual days! I’m feeling like I need some time to slow down and think about the changes around us.” “You look like you may be feeling scared right now. When you’re scared, it’s ok to ask me questions about your worries. We can talk them through together.” Then, in those conversations, sit quietly and give your child time to process their own thoughts. Try to avoid jumping to a solution for them. Instead, buy yourself a little time to think, “You’re raising some good questions. Let me think about how I can best answer them for you.” When you model wait time for your children, you demonstrate to them that you are listening carefully to their questions and that it’s ok to think about your answers before you offer them. For practical purposes, it also challenges you as a parent to take a beat, take a breath and really hear what your child is asking. While you may want to impress them with your confidence, you will do more to keeping the conversation going and providing them with reliable answers about unpredictable topics if you model reflective, careful responses. Your child’s questions may run the gamut: try not to oversimplify the current context, but avoid flooding them with information that’s beyond what they can make sense of. “Are we safe?” “Yes. We have changed the way we live and work to make sure people who may be sick get the care they need and to give doctors, scientists and other helpers the time they need to prevent others from getting sick, too.” For most children, this is simple and accurate. Avoid making assertions that you might not be able to follow through on and focus instead on actions your children can take in their own uncertainty. “You’ll be back at school so soon!” may be better phrased as, “School will open again as soon as we can. Would you like to write a note or draw a picture for your teachers in the meantime?” Finally, take the time to think ahead about what you’ll do “in the meantime.” Our pace these days is not quite as kinetic as we had become used to. Instead of worrying about what your child would have accomplished at school each day, ask yourselves what you can do today to strengthen their minds, to strengthen their bodies and to strengthen their relationships with others. There is no precedent for us to rely on; instead, this is a time to affirm what we value, what is nonnegotiable even in the weirdest of contexts. Start the day with good conversation with your children about how you’ll face today. Help to document those choices at the beginning of the day and come together again over dinner to reflect on how they went. Remember: Montessori is based on making connections for children between the ideas that are most interesting to them and the skills they’ll need to master those ideas. Follow your child. Need a quick-start? Here's a useful article written by a Montessori teacher to think about your child's needs at home in each of the planes of development. #ForParents #Parenting #MontessoriAtHome

When you visit a Montessori Early Childhood classroom, you're likely to see children preparing foods of all kinds: chopping apples, mixing dough for bread, steeping a cup of tea to share with a guest, serving carrots or other vegetables they've peeled and cut. And you're likely to see children eating foods that you might not have expected them to try at home, setting the table for each other, sitting together, waiting for everyone to be seated before they begin their lunches, and offering each other courtesies that you don't dare to hope for at your own dinner table. What gives? We understand that, for children at this age, a primary motivator is the opportunity to make a real contribution to their community. Mealtime is a great time to do that. Children in Montessori classrooms don't practice slicing with pretend knives and velcroed wooden fruit. Instead, they learn to manage the real tools of a kitchen, to prepare a variety of healthy, wholesome options, and to share them politely with each other. Food preparation is not merely a means for fine and gross motor development (although it does that, too,) but an important connector for the society the children are creating in the classroom. It provides a sense of independence and accomplishment, and unites children through an important shared experience. You can capture this at home. Your children want to be involved, active contributors to your home community as they are at school. Consider your kitchen space. In the classroom, all the tools the children need to set the table, prepare simple foods, and clean up are accessible to them without reliance on an adult. At home, you might swap out the less-used items usually stored in your lower cabinets for some simple dishware and a utensil caddy, allowing your child to set the table on their own. Look to the lowest shelves of the fridge to offer small containers of healthy food for your child to select when they're hungry. Provide a small jug of milk or cool water for your child to pour their own drinks. Instead of occupying your child with a screen as you prepare dinner, invite them into the kitchen with you to help wash and cut the vegetables, fill pots with water, set the table and cook with you. Your child is more likely to eat the food they've prepared, even exotic tastes. Afterward, clean up the kitchen together, with each family member working together. Keep your patience: at first, this might be messier and take longer than doing it yourself. That happens in the classroom, too. You can avoid some of the frustration by starting with small skills and then increasing your expectations as your child shows mastery. So, at first, you might direct your child to, "Place the placemats on the table," wait for them to finish and then ask them to, "Place a plate on each placemat," wait and then ask them to, "Place a fork for each plate," and so on. After a few days of that routine down, you can instruct your child to, "Place the placemats, plates and utensils out, please." After a few days and noticing whether your child remembers each step, you can instruct them to, "Please set the table." The same small steps can be used to break down other common mealtime tasks, making them manageable for your child until they've mastered each skill. Throughout, remember that you are setting your child's habits for their diet and palate for years to come. Fill your fridge with healthy choices, fresh berries and vegetables, and avoid the processed, pre-packaged foods (and avoid making these foods a "reward" for particular behaviors.) When you're packing lunch (with your child!) let them select portions into divided containers, choosing balanced portions of proteins, grains, vegetables and fruits. Make fresh water available and inviting, letting your child cut lemons or limes or wash and tear fresh mint leaves to add to a pitcher of cool water. Model healthy food choices (including healthy portions) in your own diet, and know that you're setting your child up to make the same healthy choices when they're in charge of their own groceries. #Mealtime #FirstPlane #Primary #ForParents