Questions to Ask your Elementary Student's Teacher at the Beginning of the Year

As parents, it is normal to have a million questions about your child’s learning experience. A quick Google search yields dozens of articles dedicated to this topic alone! Fortunately, as the parent of a Montessori elementary student, many questions can be answered by having a familiarity with the Montessori principles that guide your child’s school and classrooms. However, there are still many more answers to be had, and you can begin to uncover them by asking a few larger questions that open the door for deeper and continued conversations with your child’s teacher.

First Day of School: What to Expect

The first day of any new adventure offer both highs and lows, successes and challenges, and the first day of kindergarten is no different. Even with thorough planning, preparation, and rehearsal, there is no telling how the day will unfold. However, you can mitigate the degree of uncertainty by working together with your child and their new teacher at their Montessori school to learn and review a few basic things you and your child can expect.  

Preschool Stress: Helping your Child Focus in School

Stress is a major reason for preschoolers to have trouble focusing in school. Another common reason is attention disorders such as ADHD. In both cases, the child is unable to keep the desired center of attention and may easily lose interest altogether. This problem is not as pervasive in a Montessori classroom where keeping children active and engaged is at the core of the program, but it is still a problem from time to time. Keep in mind that your child does not have to have an attention disorder to become bored and restless.

Montessori Work Stations

Montessori classrooms use materials chosen specifically to teach various concepts. Each resource, or workstation, is used over and over to learn different concepts. This means that the same resources may be used by different students of various ages for different applications. It can be difficult to separate the materials used by one age group or another.