Day 7: Rest & Reflect

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We’re at the end of the first week of the #30daystoMontessori challenge, so today I want to invite you to relax and reflect on the changes you have or have not made this week.

Appreciate what’s working and troubleshoot what’s not. Not every solution is going to work for every family or classroom, but I truly believe that Montessori is for Everyone.

Today, I wanted to take the opportunity to address the biggest concern that readers have voiced this week.

The First Week of the #30daystoMontessori Challenge - a day to rest and reflect on the previous Montessori challenges: Creating a Montessori Self-Serve Set-up, Encouraging Good Habits at Snack Time, Trusting Children with Real Materials, Setting Up a Practical Life Invitation, & Establishing Order in Your Child's Environment

The Previous Montessori Challenges

Just as a recap, so far we’ve:

  1. Started the Challenge
  2. Created a Self-Serve Montessori Set-up
  3. Enjoyed a Montessori Snack Time
  4. Considered Using Real Materials (& Tools)
  5. Set Up a Practical Life Invitation
  6. (Started)Establishing Order in Your Child’s Environment

I love hearing what people’s reservations are with certain challenges, as it helps me to go back and make the posts more inclusive and clear. A few readers have voiced concerns with their children messing up a Montessori-style self-serve area.

If your child truly cannot handle a self-serve area, there are plenty of alternatives that still achieve the same purpose. For example, Vanessa from Mama’s Happy Hive is participating in the challenge and she has a great set-up with a basket in a kitchen closet! So, an option is to have a basket for you to bring out (or your child to gather) when it comes time to set the table.

I have children aged 1-6 years old in my kitchen every weekday and I will admit, the cups get grabbed, the utensils are sometimes thrown onto the floor — but I think of it as part of the learning process. Whenever a child makes a mess or throws anything, I ask them to pick it up, and if they can’t (or refuse to) do it themselves, I put my hand over their hand and help them, while also saying “we don’t throw cups, cups stay on the table,” etc. Eventually, they figure it out and you realize that it’s been a week since you’ve had to tidy up the area.

Kids don’t magically stop testing limits. A child just doesn’t hit a specific age where they stop wanting to throw things; they have to throw, and they have to have some consequence or correction many times before the behaviour will stop. This is normal and healthy… and frustrating at times.

I really want to encourage you to trust and believe in your children throughout this challenge.

There will be times when your child just completely rejects an activity, but there will also be times when they relish others, and they are all learning opportunities for us as well, in learning what our child’s interests, learning styles, and little quirks are.

The First Week of the #30daystoMontessori Challenge - a day to rest and reflect on the previous Montessori challenges: Creating a Montessori Self-Serve Set-up, Encouraging Good Habits at Snack Time, Trusting Children with Real Materials, Setting Up a Practical Life Invitation, & Establishing Order in Your Child's Environment

So, what have you been excelling with or struggling with this week? Please leave a comment or connect with me on social media. I’d love to hear from you.

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3 Comments

  1. Body shaming is something that I cannot tolerate between people. Words that are considered offensive can have a significant effect on a person’s psyche.
    There are a lot of other options that still accomplish what you want to do, even if your youngster isn’t mature enough to manage a self-service area.

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