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S1 E2 – All about Montessori as a working parent, how to respectfully say goodbye to our child, and lots of ideas for Montessori art

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Season 1, Episode 2

In today’s episode, I speak with Trina from DIY Corporate Mom from The Philippines about how she embraces the Montessori philosophy as a way of parenting as a working mom. We cover so many questions like:

  • if it’s possible to do Montessori at home if you work
  • what about Montessori and Disney? (two things you don’t often see in the same sentence)
  • how we can say goodbye in a respectful way with our child
  • working parents and stay-at-home parents
  • how to guide the carers/grandparents looking after our child
  • using our spaces efficiently
  • lots of Montessori art ideas
  • what it’s like having a nearly 4 year old child and 11 year old child doing Montessori
  • what Montessori is like for a 6-12 year old
  • a beautiful insight into the Maria Montessori Model UN, and
  • how to get your partner on board with Montessori

This week’s listener question

Megan asks: My 14 month old boy is always on the go and although we have glimpses of his intense concentration, much of the Montessori method seems to have no affect on him. Any tips or tricks for implementing Montessori for boys, specifically?

Links

* link goes to my Amazon store

Inspiration from Trina’s insta feed

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The first artwork appreciation we have for our 3 year old is not what you would expect. I have “real” art on her walls; to touch and feel with her hands, to see points of interest that are meaningful to us. From top to bottom: a beautiful hand-painted limited edition native bag by oil artist @martiedatu, a vintage cloth-covered book cover “draw me a square”, and a tiny acrylic Filipino-themed painting found at @kulturafilipino. ?? . I feel real experiences with real art are much more important than the study of pictures of fine paintings in the beginning, a gut feel reinforced by reading @spramani.elaun ‘s books on teaching visual art in a Montessori classroom. ? I’m familiar with great artists’ works, mostly as a result of pop culture growing up. I felt these were topics I needed to know, so it was purely intellectual knowledge. So I didn’t really “get” art until I visited New York when I was 30 years old – I walked the halls of MOMA just wanting a picture with famous paintings for posterity, but I was changed. Real art is sooo different from picture books of art, and many pictures of paintings in art books just do not translate. But right then, when I saw the real thing, I understood why Jackson Pollock was Jackson Pollock. When I had another chance to go on a solo trip back to NYC, I spent entire afternoons just walking slowly in art galleries and museums, filled with much feelings. I wish I could have appreciated beauty and creativity and originality more authentically when I was younger. I wish I knew local artists as much as I do international ones. Suddenly there are more places to visit in Manila! Any galleries to recommend?? #montessoriart #montessorichild #montessoriathome #preparedenvironment #artappreciation #perksofpinas

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Our home library project is done after four months of work!? I’ve followed the Konmari principle of everything in one place for the last three years, so even art paper, activity books and our house files are here as paper category. It has saved a lot of brain cells just having one place to look! I’ll share in stories how this system works for everyone in the home. But the most important update: every book is now catalogued in book buddy app. I whip out my phone to check what we have to make learning from interests more meaningful. Last night we were dancing ballet to the Steven Universe covers on You Tube, and I searched for a ballet book to read later that night. The other day I was at the bookstore and saw a lovely book on sharks, but checked my files and decided what we have was enough. These moments happen in seconds and I think that’s the real value for me. I can’t wait till my kids go digital too. Till then, I’m enjoying this beautiful system at home. ? #homelibrary #weekendhomeorganizing #montessorihome #bookbuddyapp #postkonmaribooks #sparkjoy

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A few stories from our shelves – putting books and related objects together on our picture ledges is my hack for elaborate shelves of unit studies, DIY materials and crafts that need a lesson plan. I just remember the principle of the hand doing something so the mind remembers – most times it’s as simple as holding something in her hand as we read. Even simpler, I don’t have an advanced plan. I prepare these only when I spot a jump off point from her interest, and then that always leads to the learning in such an effortless way. In the last photo she fetched an egg from the fridge as we planned to make a nest and that led to talking about ovoid, ellipsoid and spherical shapes of eggs. And there you have it, our prepared environment was decided for the week back to work. ? . I sometimes get messages fretting about lack of time to DIY. Don’t be fooled by my Instagram name, it’s not time and craftiness you need: it’s eyes on your child and a few hacks up your sleeve ?❤️ #montessoriathome #montessorichild #learningthroughplay #preparedenvironment #workingmomsolutions

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The Montessori Notebook podcast is hosted by Simone Davies. Edited by Luke Davies of Filmprov Media. Podcast art by Hiyoko Imai.