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When it’s time to look for a good kindergarten, many parents are attracted to those that are Montessori based. Why?

- The teaching method has proved effective.
- It’s been around for awhile and has built credibility.
- Many are familiar with the term ‘Montessori‘. Because of it’s familiarity and popularity, people trust it and are comfortable with it.

However, Montessori is not just a type of school you send your child to. It is not a method but rather an approach. It encapsulates your view of your child and how they develop. In the book Montessori Read and Write: A Parent’s Guide to Literacy for Children, it says:

“It is quite possible to do without specialized Montessori material and still have a Montessori approach; it is also possible to have all the specialized Montessori materials in the world and the wrong approach!”

Therefore, if you really believe enough in the Montessori way to put your child in a Montessori school, it only makes sense to extend that approach to your own home. Do you parent the Montessori way?

Here are a few tips on how you can bring Montessori into your home.

1. Teach them living skills by letting them work in the home. Don’t do everything for them. Teach them that they must care for the home. Let them observe and participate in house cleaning, cooking, putting away the clothes, making beds etc….

My 3 year old son likes to fold the handkerchiefs when I’m folding the clothes. It is a no-brainer for us adults and takes less than a second to do. Watching him trying to figure it out, I knew that we shouldn’t overlook the educational value of such simple tasks. And his look of accomplishment is simply priceless.

2. Let them do things for themselves like learning to pour, dressing themselves, feeding themselves etc…. You may think it’s more troublesome this way because they will take forever and make a mess. But do not be short sighted. It may be difficult in the
beginning, but it is for the better. The extra time and effort has educational value.

One Montessori exercise is to pour rice. Fill a small pitcher with rice and demonstrate how to pour it into a cup. Then pour it back from cup to pitcher. Let them practice until it is perfected. If you are afraid of spills, use a tray. When your child has perfected
pouring rice, let them advance to pouring water. And teach them how to clean up what they spill.

3. Make things easily excessible so they don’t have to constantly ask you to do things for them. For example:

• Put books on a low shelf.
• Have pencils, color pencils, paper, glue, scissors, paint etc…. readily available in a designated area.
• Have a stool for them to reach the sink and toilet.
• Put their eating utensils and their drinking cup in a place where they can reach.
• Put simple hygiene things such as soap, toothpaste, toilet paper in a small container or cabinet where they can reach. When these things are used up, they will know where to get replacements.

4. Teach them how to make choices. Begin by offering choices of two ‘known’ things such as blue pants or red pants? Gradually you can expand their selections. By offering a choice of activity, clothing or food, you not only teach them to make choices but will also cut down the number of confrontations you have with your child.

5. Develop their concentration. Believe it or not, young children already have the ability to concentrate. They just need to practice it to get better. Unfortunately, we adults do them more damage then good. For example, your child is immersed in an activity and we interrupt by talking or demanding their attention. I am guilty of this. Sometimes my baby would be staring at something intently and I would distract him by asking questions like “what are you looking at?” or “what’s the color of the tree?” What I should do is wait until he changes his focus of attention before opening my mouth.

Other things you can do to help develop their concentration is cut down television viewing.

6. Mistakes are an opportunity for learning. This may be a difficult thing to remember. Many times I act like mistakes are an opportunity for me to yell. Hahahah. I’m sure many of you are with me on this. Anyway, Montessori says we should not make our children feel stupid or silly when they make a mistake. We don’t want them to develop a fear of making an error. So if you think you need help remembering, just put a big sign on your wall, “Teach, don’t yell”. Make one for every room in the house if necessary. For example, if your child spills the drink, teach him how to clean it up, teach him how to carry it better or teach him where to place the cup so he doesn’t knock it over again next time.

Okay, this is all for now. Look out for more tips on how to bring Montessori to your home next time. If you have a good tip on how you Montessori at home, feel free to share.