What Is It Like to Be a Raintree Substitute (and also a Raintree Parent)?

2023-06-10T16:41:20-05:00December 18th, 2022|Categories: Early Childhood, Elementary, Montessori, Raintree|Tags: , , , |

Some names in the story have been changed. After making my way down to the Lower Far East toddler community, I find the children gathered around the tables joined by a few parents and/or guardians, having a cookie exchange. It’s the penultimate day before winter break and although the children may not have a full grasp of how much their routines are about to alter for the foreseeable future, they can certainly grasp the growing buzz around campus as the holiday spirit begins to take [...]

Siblings: Your Child’s First Friendships

2021-04-14T16:36:16-05:00March 14th, 2021|Categories: Montessori, Parenting|Tags: , |

By Jennifer Baker Powers, M.Ed. A Montessori classroom is by design an extension of the home and family environment. Just as the child learns developmentally appropriate practical life skills at school, the Montessori classroom also provides ample opportunity for learning social skills and relationship navigation. The mixed-aged classroom, a unique hallmark of any Montessori environment, may in many respects mimic the dynamics of siblings in a household. If this is true, you may ask, then why does my child behave so differently at school with [...]

How to Help Kids Learn to Love Giving

2019-12-05T15:50:00-06:00December 5th, 2019|Categories: Parenting|Tags: , , |

by Jason Marsh During the holidays, opportunities abound to help kids understand why and how to help people in need, with food drives proliferating and countless organizations making pitches for end-of-year donations. And there’s scientific evidence that kids should be receptive to those messages: Research suggests that they have a deeply rooted instinct to share and to help others, from the time they’re very young—one study even found that toddlers enjoy giving to others more than they like getting treats for themselves. Kids, it seems, have a strong, natural drive [...]

The One Question Every Parent Should Quit Asking

2018-06-28T12:42:48-05:00June 28th, 2018|Categories: Parenting|Tags: , |

By Scott Dannemiller “It’s like she’s not even practicing.” Audrey’s piano teacher was standing in front of me, giving her honest assessment. Her eyes were kind, and her voice soft, but my parental guilt turned her statement into a question. One I couldn’t answer. So I just faked a diarrhea attack and ran to the restroom. Once we got home, I was determined to show Miss Amanda that my daughter could be the next Liberace, only more bedazzled than the original. So we opened her [...]

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