When my son, John, was a baby, he slept like a pro (once we got him to sleep through the night, that is). He would sleep for 12 hours and still take one to two naps. The more sleep he got, the less he ...
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What We’ve Learned Blog
Welcome to my blog! Being in business since 2006 and a teacher for ten years before that, I have observed many things change, but one of the constants is children displaying the same type of developmentally appropriate, and sometimes inappropriate, behaviors — and parents asking for guidance on how to encourage them, reduce them, or even if they should do anything at all. (Struggling with potty training? Or getting your child to sleep? Got you covered.)
Then there’s the conundrum of what to do with changing times (which I address as they occur, like in my posts about Covid).
And sometimes I tell personal stories of my son, John, and husband, Rob (which they sometimes cringe over). I hope that sharing what I’ve learned here as a mom, wife, sci fi geek, and owner of Sunrise Montessori will aid you in your parenting journey…or at least give you a good laugh. 😉
Thanks for reading,
Shannon
Why Summer Camp is GREAT for Kids!
Imagine if you could go somewhere with activities designed for you to enjoy, new friends to make, fun places to discover, and time spent outdoors. Sounds like a luxury surprise vacay like Pack Up + ...
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How a Montessori Education Builds Innovators
Montessori Builds Innovators by Andrew McAfee
There are strident disagreements these days over every aspect of American educational policy, except for one. Everyone thinks it would be great if ...
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Tribe of Moms
At Sunrise Montessori, it’s Teacher Appreciation Week and we are hearing almost daily from our enrolled moms how our Teachers are like another family, guiding and truly caring for their children. ...
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Why Do YOU Appreciate Your Child’s Teacher?
Teacher Appreciation Week begins this Monday, so I wanted to dedicate this week’s blog post to all the Teachers out there who make such an impact on us all.
You know who I mean, right? Who is one of ...
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What IS Montessori?
Want a super quick and basic explanation of what Montessori is? Then read this fast cheat sheet and you’ll be “in the know!”
Montessori is a curriculum
That’s the easiest explanation. There ...
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How to Get Your Child to SLEEPzzz…
Ah, sleep. It can be an elusive mistress when you’re a parent, which seems strange because your child is sleeping overall more than you, so you should be getting regular opportunities, right? If ...
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How to Incorporate Montessori at Home
Start with the BasicsWhen our babies are, well, babies, the second they start to move, we child proof EVERYthing, right? It’s likely that things are still set up that way even though you don’t need to ...
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Why Children Bite, What You Can Do After it Happens, and How to Prevent It
One of the most DREADED behaviors my son, John, displayed while a toddler at Sunrise Montessori many moons ago was biting. Argh!?! How I hated hearing that he had bit another child! He did grow out of ...
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How Do We Attract and Retain Our Amazing Team Members?
So what are we doing exactly to attract these high quality people and keep them from leaving?
The Easy Answer -- Pay and Benefits: We value our hard working ladies and we show it where it counts. ...
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Why We Shake Hands with our Students When they Leave for the Day
At Sunrise Montessori, all of our Primary classrooms (ages 3 - 5 years old) participate in a Grace and Courtesy staple called handshaking. When the parent has arrived to pick up their child, the child ...
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How to Prevent Temper Tantrums
Creating a title for this particular blog was difficult...should I call it How to Completely Avoid Temper Tantrums (not possible) or How to Handle Temper Tantrums (why would you want to handle them if ...
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How to Pick the Right Preschool
It can be as easy as 1-2-3!
Back in 2005, my son, John, was one and a half and starting to get bored. My older and wiser sister told me to look for a Montessori preschool, so I toured six child ...
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How to Get your Child to Sleep
For all the obvious reasons, we want our children to sleep. They need it to be healthy, grow, and fight off illnesses. Parents need it to remember where we left our car keys. But it’s not always easy ...
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Successful Potty Training! Part 2: What to Do
The Big Day Has Arrived!
What to do: Talk to your child in advance (at least the day before but preferably for days before starting) about what’s going to happen Saturday morning. Explain that s/he ...
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Successful Potty Training! Part1: Preparation
Preparing! Before you begin, you will need…
To block out the entire weekend, meaning you are not going anywhere that requires you or your child to be away from home.An upbeat attitude. Making a big ...
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