News

Julia is honored to be returning to the extraordinary Montessorians in South Carolina to offer the keynote at their annual conference. South Carolina has done heroic work in bringing Montessori to its public schools and making private Montessori strong statewide. 

Come learn more about their work and delve into their conference theme of Courtesy and Cognition. Julia will be speaking about the connections between social behavior and learning as part of her keynote. 

We've updated our paper catalog to gather our offerings into a great little book full of information about our products and how best to use them. Our new catalog gives you a great way to view our offerings by topic. Or, choose the drop-down menu above and browse products by topic (that's how I like to do it) or see a snapshot of all of our offerings on our Catalog & Products page.

You can see all of our products by browsing through the website or, download this PDF and read it with a mug of tea in a sunny armchair. Enjoy!

You've wanted it and now you can get it. The perfect, color-coordinated cloth pouches for your Word Study and Grammar: Function of Words sets! Imagine all of your function of words/grammar activities or Word Study activities in one, color-coded basket! Just think of what you can do with all the shelf space you'll save. Find these sets plus all of our pouch sizes and colors on our Cloth Pouches page. 

Join Gretchen Hall, AMI Primary Trainer at MTCNE, for a Saturday of wisdom and camaraderie in historic Winchester, MA.

Saturday, March 18, 2017 9:00AM- 3:00PM

Children’s Own School 86 Main St. Winchester, MA 01890

"The role of the adult in Montessori environments is not an easy one and it is often a challenge to balance the many responsibilities associated with it. While focusing on the development of our children, we often forget to focus on our own development as practitioners. In this workshop, we will spend the day looking inward at our own practice as a means to renew our commitment to serve and to refresh our spirits. In addition, you will gain practical strategies for achieving balance in your life, both inside and outside of the classroom."

Click here to register.

We have been working on these for over a year. We based them on the AMI training, created a draft, spoke with AMI trainers, completely revised the draft, had it reviewed by AMI trainers and Montessori guides, and then refined the results. It was a massive effort!

We hope you like the result: our Complete Word Study Collection. Use these with children who are just moving past phonetic reading and puzzle words, about the same time you introduce function of words work.

• When: Tuesday, January 17th from 6:00 to 7:30 pm
• Where: Children's Own Montessori School, 86 Main St., Winchester, MA
• What: Details about the course and the M. Ed. option available through the University of Hartford

The print edition of Montessori Public is out and it features an article on Accommodations by Maitri Learning's Founder, Julia Volkman. This topic is near and dear to Ms. Volkman. In November, she presented research behind the concept of Variability vs. Disability at Seton Montessori Institute. You can see a selection of Ms. Volkman's publications in our Learning Center.

I am just giddy to announce that the most wonderful scientific tool has finally been released by the National Center for Montessori in the Public Sector (NCMPS). They have studied exactly what we can witness in thriving Montessori classrooms and connected those behaviors to the domains of executive functions. Now, when you are in a classroom that is struggling, you will have a clear, objective way to identify exactly what the challenges are. I believe this will be incredibly beneficial for staff development because it provides objective, non-judgmental, and formative assessment for Montessori guides. It is a starting point for looking at the living, breathing Montessori environment with clear vision.

This new validated, scientific tool is called the Developmental Environmental Rating Scale (DERS). Because it is a scientific tool, anyone who uses it must receive training before they will be able to use it optimally. You can find out more at the NCMPS website. 

I want to express my deep gratitude to my friends and colleagues at NCMPS, especially Jackie Cossentino and Elizabeth Slade, for this seminal work. May all beings benefit!

• The Neuroscience of Normalization (Saturday morning)
• Variability vs. Disability: Respecting the Spectrum of Neurodevelopment (Saturday afternoon)
• Working with Adults: A Session for Montessori Leaders (Sunday morning)

Hundreds of Montessorians are expected for this exciting event so be sure to reserve your space early! And, if you'd like to learn more about these topics, check out the Stuff By Julia page in our learning center.