• Technology with Children

    March 17, 2020

    For a podcast of this post, listen here or subscribe on iTunes. Here are links to resources listed in this episode, an interview with parent and educator Mrs. Bauer. Podcasts: brains on! Wow in the →

  • Time for Celebration

    January 22, 2020

    Every spring, families in Primary Montessori programs are making a really big decision: what to do about Kindergarten? Whether this decision is tumultuous with easily identified pros and cons, or whether this decision has been →

  • Competition in Montessori

    December 17, 2019

    For a podcast of this post, listen here or subscribe on iTunes. Montessori values collaboration over competition. A casual glance into the Montessori classroom would convey a peaceful space, children using polite language and manners →

  • Come grow with us.

    December 14, 2019

    We're hiring an AMI trained Primary guide! Whether you've recently completed training, or come with an abundance of experience, one of our driving principles at Baan Dek is that we're all always learning. →

  • Easy and Cheap Travel Heroes

    December 10, 2019

    For a podcast of this post, listen here or subscribe on iTunes. It’s a time of year when many people are traveling. In areas of the world where this time of year is particularly dark →

  • What Montessori Taught Me

    December 2, 2019

    For a podcast of this post, listen here or subscribe on iTunes. This weekend, I had a homeowner adventure. The sink was slow and I didn’t really want to call a plumber. After dinner, I →

  • The No-Stress Conference

    November 1, 2019

    For a podcast of this post, listen here or subscribe on iTunes. As fall turns toward winter, the school year settles in, and we prepare for conferences. Students from preschool through high school have been →

  • Benign Neglect

    October 28, 2019

    We’re hard-wired to help children. We wouldn’t have survived long as a species if we weren’t. We recognize That Cry in the midst of all other noise. A whispered, “Mom?” will wake one from the →

  • Why We Use Sounds in Montessori

    October 24, 2019

    For a podcast of this post, scroll to the bottom of this page or subscribe on iTunes. There’s any number of things that are different about the Montessori philosophy when compared to another early childhood →

  • Spotlight The Male Montessorian

    October 14, 2019

    Q: Can you tell us a little bit about yourself? Your background, your interests, your dreams? My name is Sid Mohandas. I’m a Montessori educator, teacher trainer and the founder of The Male Montessorian (TMM). →

  • 5 Ways to Celebrate Fall

    October 10, 2019

    For a podcast of this post, scroll to the bottom of this page or subscribe on iTunes. Every season is someone’s favorite, and though this one is always a harbinger of winter cold, it’s a →

  • Individualizing Education

    September 30, 2019

    Montessori is known for individualized education. This can be misleading, since we hear this and, of course, make our own assumptions about what this means. Maybe I hated math in school, and the idea that →

  • 5 Questions About Montessori at Home

    September 23, 2019

    For a podcast of this post, scroll to the bottom of this page or subscribe on iTunes. It’s the start of the school year, a time fresh with possibility. When we resume school, or when →

  • What Did You Do Today?

    September 16, 2019

    “What did you do today?” It’s fairly certain every parent since school was started, across time and generations, has asked their child this question a couple times a week. It’s natural. How did you spend →

  • Helping Children Through Trauma

    September 13, 2019

    For a podcast of this post, scroll to the bottom of this page or subscribe on iTunes. We wish we could protect children from every pain. We want to bundle them up and prevent them →

  • Charlotte Snyder Becomes Head of School

    August 24, 2019

    We’re extremely pleased to announce that Charlotte Snyder will become Head of School at Baan Dek. Charlotte started her career as a lead guide at Baan Dek in 2011, after receiving her AMI training in →

  • One Small Change

    August 15, 2019

    For a podcast of this post, scroll to the bottom of this page or subscribe on iTunes. All of a sudden, the school year is right around the corner. There’s something really wonderful about the →

  • Learning Social Skills

    August 5, 2019

    Montessori is founded on an idea that happy children are successful learners. It’s education of the Whole Child; not just focusing on academics but also on internal skills, like tenacity and problem-solving, and interpersonal skills, →

  • Saying “No” With Love

    July 18, 2019

    For a podcast of this post, scroll to the bottom of this page or subscribe on iTunes. We try really hard to avoid saying “no.” It doesn’t feel good to say or to hear. Many →

  • Every Day Matters

    July 16, 2019

    Montessori is unique among many early childhood settings in the emphasis on consistency. Montessori schools often offer, if not require, five days a week, even for very young children. Some schools offer part time, whether →

  • Spotlight Haas Montessori Consulting

    July 11, 2019

    This interview is with Carolyn from Haas Montessori Consulting Q: Can you tell us a little bit about yourself? Your background, your interests, your dreams? Growing up, I often played school with my younger siblings. →

  • Parenting Extremes

    July 8, 2019

    Parenting is full of extremes. No one could possibly feel as much love as I feel for this child in this moment. There’s no way I could feel more love, more pride, more joy, and →

  • When Children Ask “Why?”

    July 4, 2019

    For a podcast of this post, scroll to the bottom of this page or subscribe on iTunes. Children, especially young children, ask a million questions. There are memes and tropes and jokes about the questions →

  • 5 Tips to Bring Montessori Home

    July 1, 2019

    Families want to be supportive of their children’s development. We all get the same 24 hours in the day, so whether our work is unpaid as a primary caregiver or takes us outside the home →