Baan Dek Summer Camps
February 25, 2013Leap into Summer, with Baan Dek Summer Camps! Put away your backpacks, and get out your sunglasses. This is going to be the most exhilarating Summer Camp that we've ever put on. We're going to →
The Concept of Zero
February 14, 2013There's a really wonderful origin story about the concept of zero. In Architecture as Metaphor, Kojin Karatani, writes: "Zero was invented in India and was originally the name for not moving a bead on an →
Spotlight Anna Lee
February 11, 2013We're extremely pleased to Spotlight Anna Lee, from Meadows Montessori, in Fredrick, Maryland. We first encountered Anna through her lovely talk on TEDx, which we've posted below. From the very start, we felt her contagious →
1 Unit, 1 Ten, 1 Hundred, 1 Thousand
February 8, 2013You've probably heard us say this before, but if there's one way to describe Montessori, it is that the only way to achieve the abstract, is through the concrete. Now, there's a lot at work →
Tender Moments
January 25, 2013We wish we could share all of the tender moments that happen throughout the day. There are so many. Here's one that we managed to capture. As they sit down to work, Ms. Wood prepares →
Intro to Reggio Emilia
January 21, 2013When we stumbled upon this excellent video introduction to the educational philosophy of Reggio Emilia, with Carla Rinaldi, we thought we would take the opportunity to briefly share the history of the Reggio Emilia approach →
An Exercise, by Sarah Sibert
January 14, 2013An exercise: stand up, approach a person near and dear to you, (take a deep breath), look into their eyes and wish them well. The topic, the words you say are yours to choose as →
A Sense of Accomplishment
January 10, 2013We're often asked, how do Montessori students feel a sense of accomplishment, if they're not rewarded with stickers or praise. Which is to say, in Montessori, students initiate activities out of their own volition. They →
Spotlight Aidan McCauley
January 7, 2013We have the great pleasure of introducing you to a wonderful human being, Aidan McCauley. He's also becoming an undeniable force in the Montessori world. As a founding member of the Montessori Madmen, Aidan has →
Hygiene and Montessori
January 3, 2013One of our astute parents started a conversation about hygeine, discussing the relevance and necessity of teaching our children the importance of not only washing their hands but also sanitizing their environment. We thought we →
Movements in Education
January 2, 2013The American Academy of Pediatrics' Council on School Health issued a policy statement in which they expressed the "academic, social and physical benefits for children of all ages", of attending recess. The LA Times wrote →
Happy Holidays
December 22, 2012Happy Holidays from our friends at Baan Dek! We managed to capture a rehearsal of our Winter Celebration on video. Hope everyone enjoys! It's been a wonderful year, and we can't wait for next year! →
Positive Feedback
December 18, 2012No matter how many times we observe a new student engaging with the cylinder blocks for the very first time, we are absolutely overwhelmed. Watch as this student attempts to find the correct hole for →
Montessori Blueprints
December 17, 2012Bringing together the worlds of Montessori & Architecture, Bobby George and Hugh Weber teamed up to create a series of high quality and aesthetically beautiful Montessori blueprints. As many of you know, they successfully funded →
Spotlight Michelle Lane
December 17, 2012When we firsted started Baan Dek, we contacted Michelle Lane for advice. We had followed her pioneering work, and knew she was the type of advocate for education that we wanted to chat with. She →
Finding Montessori
December 13, 2012One of our newest families, who just moved here from Philadelphia, sent us an incredible note. With their permission, we couldn't help but share it here. For us, the letter says so much. We feel →
Helping Each Other
December 6, 2012Our goals aren't always academic in nature. As a matter of fact, and as many of you know, we have a phrase that we use at Baan Dek: social success leads to academic success. Basically, →
The Aesthetics of Montessori
December 4, 2012As many of you know, the aesthetics of the Montessori classroom is vital. We thought we would take this opportunity to explain the reason we display the materials so carefully, in such a neat and →
Individualized Education
November 29, 2012What is individualized education? We want to take this opportunity to explain. In this post, we'll highlight a few principles that will better articulate what exactly it means to offer personal, individualized, one-on-one education. We'll →
A few thoughts on Competition
November 28, 2012Competition is a tricky concept in Montessori. We thought we would take this opportunity to try to elucidate the conditions of competition and offer a few thoughts on competition and why Montessori employs collaboration instead →
The Tedium of Blossoming
November 27, 2012© The Great Discontent The good folks at The Great Discontent, who you should definitely follow, published a wonderfully candid interview with Maria Popova, of whom we are a great admirer. You can read the →
Barnes and Noble Book Signing
November 26, 2012On Saturday, December 1, at 2:00 p.m. we'll be participating in a book signing at Barnes and Noble, here in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. While we're a little embarassed to be signing books (exclamation point!), →
Spotlight Lindsay Dewald
November 16, 2012We had the great pleasure to chat with Lindsay Dewald, from the wonderful blog, Little One Love. We've long been fans of her passions and relished the opportunity to hear her perspective on life, Montessori →
The Origins of Discipline
November 14, 2012Discipline has a very punitive connotation in our society. The origins of the term, however, are much different. Discipline derives from the latin, discipulus, which literally means, "to learn". Disciple, of course, has a very →
