Montessori at Home

E over at Growing a Foosa messaged me the other day curious about putting together a more Montessori-friendly environment in her home.  She asked about resources that might encourage her do so.  I wanted to respond publicly in the hopes that it might be helpful to someone who is simply curious or who may want to include tidbits of Montessori in her home.

Dear Mama Foosa,

One of the first blogs I became addicted to years ago was written by Meg McElwee at Montessori By Hand.  While these entries are slightly dated and mostly focus on the classroom, much of the information and ideas are still relevant and easily incorporated in the home.  She has since written a book (maybe 2) and blogs at Sew Liberated.  Montessori is still a main focus of her writing, but she now includes a wealth of knowledge related to Waldorf and sewing.

Photo credit: Montessori By Hand

Another blogger, Sara Cotner, is continually challenging herself by writing a book whilst opening up a charter school in Austin, TX, currently raising a toddler, and gestating another child.  How she keeps focused is beyond me.  Feeding the Soil is another helpful resource with information about how to intentionally create a space for a child in your home.

Photo Credit: Feeding the Soil

The last source of information that will be helpful to you is Maria Montessori (dot) com.  Various trained Montessorians contribute to make this website lush with ideas.  Much of it is related to the classroom for parent understanding, but again you can incorporate the ideas at home.

On to the goods!  For Small Hands and Michael Olaf are both online catalogues that I wholeheartedly endorse.  Everything you find here will serve it's purpose and do it well.  Here is where we spend most of our money when buying our children materials.

Photo Credit: How We Montessori

When you're looking to incorporate Montessori ask yourself these questions:

• Will my child be independent in this activity?  
• Is it challenging but not too difficult?  
• Will/Does my child concentrate for a good amount of time?  
• Is it a purposeful activity (e.g. does he build with the blocks or is he throwing them like balls)?   

Good luck to you! 

What questions do you have related to 

Montessori and helping transform your home 

into a child-centered environment?