Wonderland Montessori of McKinney

Looking for some games this summer? Here are 13 guessing games to try with your kids (and their friends!).

13 Fun and Educational Guessing Games for Kids Guessing games for kids are one of the best ways to learn new things while having a fantastic time! Check out our top choices for the classroom.

Sometimes our children say no-good, terrible, scary things. What do we do when that happens? Here's a simple reframe to restore healthy communication.

When Your Child Says No-Good, Terrible, Scary Things Has your child ever shocked you with "I'm going to kill you" or "I wish I was dead"? Don't panic or demand they speak nicely. Respond to the emotion they are trying to articulate.

MATERIALS SPOTLIGHT: While timelines represent time in a linear fashion, the Clock of Eras shows the passing of time in the form of a circle. Designed to provide an impressionistic image of the relative periods for each stage of the Earth’s development in comparison to 12 hours on a clock. This sensorial impression shows the time it took for the earth to form and life to develop, culminating in the appearance of human beings on the planet. In addition, we use the Clock of Eras to introduce children to the terminology associated with the significant sections of Earth’s history: the Hadean Era, Archeaan Era, Proterozoic Eon, Paleozoic Era, Mesozoic Era, Cenozoic Era, and Quaternary Period. The Clock of Eras is often a jumping-off point for children’s further research.

Learning about money is an important skill. This post breaks down how to help our children from early childhood through the teen years.

The 8 key money milestones to mark with your kids, according to an expert Research shows that money habits can form in the elementary school years, which is why it’s important to educate kids on the topic of money and financial independence from an early age. The director of education at Greenlight shares the 8 big money milestones to mark with your family. Category : M...

Our children play a lot. But what about us as adults? Here's a reminder about the importance of play.

Have You Played Today? — The Super Journals “Your body cannot heal without PLAY. Your mind cannot heal without LAUGHTER. Your soul cannot heal without JOY. “

Making mistakes offers our children an opportunity to learn. Check out this short post and video for how to support this in a healthy way!

Allowing Your Child to Make Mistakes Allowing Your Child to Make Mistakes

Mom of three explains why she doesn’t ask her kids to ‘help’ around the house.

Mom of three explains why she doesn’t ask her kids to ‘help’ around the house One mom of three explains how managing a home is work–and not solely the work of the mother or woman in that household. Here’s how she frames the conversation for her kids–and it’s so smart. Category : Viral & Trending, Parenting

MATERIALS SPOTLIGHT: One of the ways we indirectly help children prepare for writing is with our rough and smooth boards. Divided into sections, these three rectangular boards isolate the tactile sense. The first board has two equal parts: one half covered with sandpaper and the other highly polished wood. The second board has ten equal sections, covered alternately with sandpaper and polished wood or paint. The third board has five equal sections covered with a gradation of sandpaper. When presenting this material, we emphasize using the index and middle fingertips to lightly trace the different sections of the boards. For the youngest children, we are also introducing the language of “rough” and “smooth.” Having a lightness of touch, using the two fingers involved with the pincer grip, and having the control to trace the narrow sections of the boards – all help prepare children's muscular control for eventually holding and using a pencil. Ultimately our youngest children begin to refine their tactile sense with the rough and smooth boards.

Are you ready for the teenage years? Here's some concrete support!

Montessori Parenting - are your ready for the teenage years? Montessori Parenting - are your ready for the teenage years? May 26, 2018 - Adolescent , Parenting - By Carine Robin My first born is reaching the doors of the third plane of development, aka "the adolescence". How did that happen? My daughter is 10 and a half and has started to "change". I have to....

Looking for some summer adventure? Check out this family's review of The Lost Book of Adventure.

Montessori Book Club: Summer Adventure Books We are fortunate to live in a beautiful and wild part of the world. One of our absolute favourite things to do is to throw some snacks and art supplies and books in a pack and head out exploring so…

Separation anxiety can come up at bedtime for our little ones. Here's why, how, and what to do.

Separation anxiety and sleep - Well Rested Wee Ones Separation anxiety and sleep. Your baby may start to become clingy or upset at bedtime or nap time as they understand it's time to separate.

Praise comes up a lot in parenting discussions. A Montessori parent shares what praise vs. acknowledgment looks like in their home.

Praise vs. Acknowledgment in a Montessori Home — Montessori in Real Life Praise (or lack thereof) is a topic that often comes up in Montessori discussions, and in my Instagram messages. I do not say much out loud in my videos of D working, which is typically intentional. When she is concentrating, I do not want to interrupt, and especially not with my own judgment of her

MATERIALS SPOTLIGHT: We use washing machines, so why do we have a scrubboard and basin in our toddler and primary classrooms? Often children can’t see the steps involved with automated processes, like how our laundry goes from dirty to clean. After we put laundry in a box and push the buttons, the sequence of soaking, washing, and rinsing is a mysterious unknown. One of the reasons cloth washing in the classroom is a beloved activity is perhaps because children get to experience each set of a relatively elaborate process. Plus, cloth washing is part of a purposeful rhythm in the classroom. When polishing cloths are dirty, they go into a laundry basket. Children can then select some dirty cloths to scrub, rinse, wring, and hang on the drying rack. Later, when they are dry, children can learn different ways to fold the cloths. Sometimes older children even get to iron the clean cloths. Children love this process, and the bonus is that following all the steps helps them develop focus and sequencing skills!

Want to support your two-year-old? Here's a great overview of skills and supports for those on the cusp of turning two!

Montessori Toddler Skills at 23 and 24-Months A look at some of the skills that Montessori toddlers need at 23-months and 24-months in a Montessori home including toys and activities to support

What is the Montessori take on pretend play? Take a look at this thoughtful exploration! https://themontessorinotebook.com/montessori-and-pretend-play

Curious about Montessori graduates? In this interview, Montessori alumnus and Emmy Winner reflects on what shaped her interests.

Montessori Alumnus and Emmy Winner Reflects on What Shaped Her Interests - The Montessori Post Former Montessori student Ellen C***s chats with Montessori Post about her Montessori background, inspiration to pursue animation and future plans. Ellen C***s, a former Montessori student, celebrated a Children’s and Family Emmy Awards nomination and win for Outstanding Individual Achievement in ...

Do you have a picky eater? This short video gives guidelines for setting up our little ones for meal-time success!

The Montessori Approach to Picky Eating In this video, Katie explains the Montessori approach to Picky Eating!Mentioned in this video:Tips from a Certified Children's Nutritionist: https://themonte...

MATERIALS SPOTLIGHT: In the Montessori elementary, we use the grammar boxes to introduce nine parts of speech: articles, adjectives, nouns, pronouns, verbs, adverbs, prepositions, conjunctions, and interjections. Children re-create sentences with cards that are color-coded for the different parts of speech and then they get to act out what they have created! The grammar boxes help children with parsing (breaking a sentence into its component parts of speech) and classification (dividing examples of a part of speech into different categories, such as nouns being categorized as common or proper). This material also prepares children for a deeper understanding of literature: comprehending an author’s intention, delving deeply into characterizations and plots, and extracting fine nuances from words on a printed page. Plus, children love the dramatic and creative aspects of this work!

A new study finds that self-compassion can help teens with depression.

Can Self-Compassion Help Teens With Depression? A new study finds that learning to be more supportive and kind to themselves can protect teens who are struggling.

Curious about assessment in a Montessori classroom? This piece examines two forms of assessment and reminds us how assessment can be a means of enhancing student learning.

Formative and Summative Assessment in the Montessori Classroom Formative assessments help Montessori teachers follow the child; learn about the difference between formative and summative assessments in the classroom.

Although it's probably not in our wheelhouse, there are tremendous benefits to playing with our children. Here are some tips to playing when we don't feel like it!

When Parents Don't Feel Like Playing Parents often feel like they should play with their kids, even when they are sad, worried, or tired. But "shoulds" don't make us more playful.

We can experience a lot of "shoulds" in our lives, yet typically we don't like being told what to do. Here are some strategies for when "shoulds" come your way.

What to do with a ‘Should’ — The Super Journals I’ve finally learned that when I choose mindfully to meet my needs (whatever they are in the moment), the world does not come to an end…

MATERIALS SPOTLIGHT: When we observe young children needing to refine their ability to have two hands working together with different wrist movements, we can use the lock and key material. This is a simple padlock with its key attached by a thin ribbon about nine to ten inches long. When we show how to use the lock and key, we break down each isolated movement, so that children can observe how we grasp the lock and the key, insert the key in the keyhole, turn the key, and so forth. Each step is careful and deliberate, and we emphasize with our expression how delightful it is when the padlock opens! We also show how to close the lock, which requires a great deal of strength for young hands. As children progress, we introduce different-size locks for added challenge.

Parenting moments can take us off guard. Check out this Motherly post for what one mom did when her son wanted to buy pink and purple shoes.

My son chose pink and purple shoes—and I let him buy them Some parenting moments are harder than others. One mom shares a story about shoe shopping with her son where she told him, “pink isn’t just for girls.” Category : Parenting, Motherly Stories

Developing body awareness is key for our young children. Here are 25 fun activities to support this skill.

25 Simple Body Awareness Activities for Kids - Empowered Parents Help your children learn about and develop an awareness of their body in a fun way. Here are 25 easy body awareness activities for kids.

Our children can have a lot of friendship dramas. As parents, it can be hard to know how to handle these situations. These do's and don'ts can help!

Your Child's Friendship Drama: Do's and Don'ts for Parents Help your child navigate the confusing world of friendship drama using these do's and don'ts for parents.

Girls are bombarded with a lot of messages in our society. Here are seven essential body-positive lessons to support the girls in your life. https://www.amightygirl.com/blog?p=25273&

MATERIALS SPOTLIGHT: The cards and counters (sometimes called numerals and counters) are a simple, but foundational, material in our primary classrooms. As children develop their understanding of the relationship between the numerals and their quantities, the cards and counters provide fun ways to reinforce and extend this knowledge. Children learn how to lay out the numeral cards, which helps verify their understanding of the sequence of the numbers one through 10. Then they create the quantities with the counters beneath each numeral card. Because the children learn how to place the counters in columns of two, they also begin to create a visual understanding of even and odd numbers, as the even-numbered columns are "even" across the bottom, while the odd-numbered columns end up with one "odd" counter. We can also start to introduce the concept of divisibility by running a finger up the middle of the even columns, essentially dividing the column in half. The material also gives the impression of multiplication as children see that eight is four pairs of two. While we don't explicitly point these concepts out to the young children enjoying the cards and counters, we know that children of this age absorb this kind of information effortlessly, especially when they have repeated experience using the material!

Mentally healthy kids have parents who do these seven things.

Mentally healthy kids have parents who do these 7 things Half of all lifetime mental illnesses start before age 14. From modeling self-care to teaching emotional regulation, an expert from On Our Sleeves shares how to support kids’ mental health from an early age. Category : Mental Health, Children's Health

A misbehaving child is a discouraged child. Here is how to break the code of misbehavior.

Break the Code of Misbehavior by Jane Nelsen When children are misbehaving, they are speaking to adults in code. A misbehaving child is a discouraged child. The primary goal of all children is to feel a sense of belonging and significance. Too often they form a mistaken belief about how to seek belonging and significance—as ex...

More and more research shows the benefits of practicing gratitude. Here's how to cultivate an attitude of gratitude with our children!

How to Teach Children to Be Grateful How do we, as parents or educators, teach children gratitude, such an abstract skill? Here are 20 Ideas to Cultivate an Attitude of Gratitude in Children.

What are parent-led sleep associations and why can they become problematic? Learn more in this post from Well-Rested Wee Ones!

Parent led sleep associations. why I don't recommend feeding, rocking, or holding your baby to sleep. - Well Rested Wee Ones Parent led sleep associations. Why feeding, rocking, and holding your baby to sleep will lead to multiple wake ups and sleep resistance

Hannukah sameach!

As new parents, it can be helpful to have some guidance. This is a great resource for getting the most out of your pediatric visits. Take a look and be sure to share this resource with friends who have a newborn!

For Parents — Small Moments Big Impact Welcome New ParentsSmall Moments Big Impact (SMBI) is a website with videos of parents talking about their experiences with a new baby. It was made by pediatricians and mothers to encourage you to talk to your baby’s provider about what’s really going on with you. These discussions allow your ba...

In Montessori we focus on cultivating self-discipline. Check out these tips for helping young children develop a sense of responsibility.

Self Discipline Self Discipline

Need some fortitude this holiday season? Listen to this episode of Shelf Help to think about how to prepare your home for the holiday in a Montessori-friendly way.

Shelf Help S3 Ep 6 - Preparing the Environment for a Holiday In this Montessori parenting podcast we discuss how to prepare your home for the holidays. With these practical tips you can cut your stress!

How can families best support their child's Montessori experience? This mom surveyed Montessori teachers and shares an amazing list of ways to help!

How can Parents Best Support Montessori Teachers? How can parents best support Montessori teachers? A resource for parents -- real Montessori teachers give their thoughts on how parents can support their work.

Want a good challenge? Try these 40 must-try tongue twisters for kids!

40 Must-Try Tongue Twisters for Kids Help your students master English pronunciation and become awesome at speaking with our fun tongue twisters for kids.

Check out this great article from the Washington Post about how superheroes and tweens have a lot in common and how we can help our tweens find their superpowers.

How to raise superpowered tweens in turbulent times Here are ways caregivers can help their kids acquire four superpowers they need to embrace their transformation and recover from any setback.

Let's be careful to not pass along any of our math anxiety, especially to our girls! Read more to learn some antidotes.

Parents and Teachers Pass On Math Anxiety to Kids Like a Virus, Especially to Girls Experts offer tips for parents on building girls' confidence in math.