Emotional Intelligence

Dane Peters interviews Mitchel Adler, Psy.D. The article is published in the 2015-16 winter issue of Montessori Life magazine. Adler will be a keynote speaker at the 2016 American Montessori Society Annual Conference in Chicago this March. 

 

The Longest Runway

“Models have 45 seconds to present the latest fashions to people sitting on either side of the 60-foot runway they walk. With spotlights illuminating every inch of the way, each model’s gait, poses, and gestures help entice retailers to buy. There is another much longer runway—a runway that parents use to model for their children. Instead of displaying fashions, parents present habits, opinions, actions, and life skills for children’s viewing" 

Dane Peters wrote the  Longest Runway in the recent Montessori Life Magazine. It is great advice for all parents. 

Things We Say to Kids That Sound Positive But Can be Detrimental

Alfie Kohn in this recent Washington Post article " Things We Say to Kids That Sound Positive But Can Be Detrimental" sheds new and interesting light on the value of saying "Good job" to children.

“How can we help children grow up to be happy? That’s an important question, but here’s another one: How can we help children grow up to be concerned about whether other people are happy? We don’t want our kids to end up as perpetually miserable social activists, but neither should we root for them to become so focused on their own well-being that they’re indifferent to other people’s suffering. Happiness isn’t a good thing if it’s purchased at the price of being unreflective, complacent, or self-absorbed.” 

Age Appropriate Chores for Children ( and Why They're Not Doing Them)

As Montessori showed, and Montessori teachers witness everyday, children avidly seek real responsibility and are gratified when adults give it to them. Expectations for our children have sunk in recent decades. Indeed in many urban and suburban families the chores we assign them don't add up to much. Check out the chart of "Age Appropriate Chores for Children" and see how your family measures up!
age-appropiate chore

Seven Things Every Kid Should Master

A noted Williams College psychologist argues standardized tests are useful, if they measure the abilities students really need. Psychologist Susan Engels "7 things every kid should master" are based on her review of "more than 300 studies of K-12 academic tests". 

Kid's Talk

Here are some tried and tested parenting ideas from Montessori expert Maren Schmidt 


Schmidt founded a Montessori school and holds a Masters of Education from Loyola College in Maryland. She has over 25 years experience working with young children and holds teaching credentials from the Association Montessori Internationale. She is the author of Understanding Montessori: A Guide for Parents and Kids Talk : an award winning column dealing with child development.

Montessori Kindergarten: Essential & Empowering