Older children in a Montessori environment (aka, the Afternooners) play a vital role in our community. They are called upon to be leaders, to step up if an extra chore or duty needs to be accomplished, to help the younger ones with frustrations and to be caring, respected role models for the other children.

Maintaining literacy and numeracy skills in the home can feel like a daunting task. Here, we are providing a few ideas on how you can support your child's academic learning during this time. The attached PDF message may seem overwhelmingly long, but don't worry; because the games and activities that are appropriate vary by age and ability, we are including a variety of ideas broken down roughly by age or skill level. Just scroll through to find the most applicable ideas for your children. If you are unsure of your child's skill level, you are welcome to check in with their guide.

Children and adults thrive when they know what to expect from the physical and emotional environment around them. Boundaries help us feel safe and gain trust in the environment around us. These next few days are really important in helping to set the tone for the upcoming days when everyone is home. If you are willing to put in more time and pay attention to the details up front, your child(ren) will know what to expect from you and themselves.

There was a great New Yorker cartoon several years ago showing a chaotic school of fish pointing every which way. Two fish are observing from afar, and one is remarking to the other, “I believe that’s a Montessori school.”

Wednesday, March 15th, several Three Tree Montessori staff and parents had the pleasure of attending a talk by Dr. Steven Hughes, board certified pediatric neuropsychologist and vocal supporter of Montessori education.

When we bring something new into the child’s mind, we must dedicate exclusively to the child the few minutes needed to offer him these items in knowledge. No matter what happens around us, no matter what calls us, only one task must exist for the teacher at that moment, the imparting of the lesson to the child. The child knows that during these few minutes we exist for him alone and nobody else.