What Kids Are Reading 2026

How do we kindle a love of reading in our children and then how do we keep the flame going? With screens and other activities competing for children's attention, many parents wonder how to nurture a lasting love of reading. Encouragingly, the

The importance of completing the third year of a 3-year cycle in Montessori

The three-year developmental cycle is at the very heart of the Montessori educational experience.  The curriculum, teaching, classroom design, student mix, progress and assessment all revolve around it.

Quiet time in the classroom

This week in Cooinda, the teachers have introduced a new space for the children.

Encouraging Your Child to Read

Reading one picture book per day gives young children exposure to around 78,000 words a year (Logan, Justice, Yumus, & Chapparro-Moreno, 2019). That’s 78,000 chances to build vocabulary, spark curiosity and grow knowledge. Here are some wa

Stop trying to raise a happy child

Every fortnight, our parent educator, Raji Sivipalan, sits with our parents in the courtyard to discuss parenting challenges that matter to them most. Setting boundaries and saying no while your child is crying, is often the hardest thing a pa

Next Generation Education

The OECD in 2015 set out a criteria for the future of education and skills with a target to achieve these goals worldwide in all educational institutions by 2030/40. So how does Montessori stack up?

Making maths fun with golden beads

One of the most exciting and loved materials in the Montessori Cycle 1 classroom is the Golden Beads.

Is there another way to teach our children?

In conversation with Montessori Under 3 teacher and parent of two Montessori East graduates, Tea Bezos

Groundwork: finding the school for your child

In conversation with Cycle 3 parents - Why they choose Montessori? With parent, Angus Babidge

Montessori: a global community

As part of our Why Montessori series we had a conversation with Montessori East parent, Tom Perry, in Cycle 2 who is taking a sabbatical to Spain with his family this year to enjoy a tri-lingual Montessori experience for their daughter Matilda

Montessori Maths Materials Explained

Montessori materials make learning maths engaging, visual, and accessible for all learning styles. What are they and what are the benefits?

Intergenerational Montessorian

As part of our Why Montessori series we had a conversation with a Montessori pioneer and advocate for children, Margaret Fleming. Grandparent to two children at Montessori East, who together with her community in Canberra set up The Canberra M

In conversation with parents - why they choose Montessori

When parents and carers find their way to Montessori their eyes open to a world of inquiry and discovery for themselves, somthing well beyond choosing a nice school for their children. We step into an in depth conversation with Cycle 1 parents

Why do we choose Montessori for our children?

It is the skills and qualities of independence, critical thinking and creativity that equip our children to adapt, engage and excel both in school and in real-world contexts. So how do we achieve this in a Montessori setting?

Unveiling the Cosmos: How Montessori's Five Great Lessons Ignite Lifelong Curiosity

Why is the sky blue? How big is space? What happened to the dinosaurs?

The academic & lifelong benefits of a Montessori education

Experiential learning, not memorisation Albert Einstein once said, "Learning is experience; everything else is just information."

The Lion, the Witch and the Smartphone

Today's article is inspired by a colourful excerpt from the Minnesota Star Tribune written in 2017 by piano teacher and mother of three, Jill Thomas. Her observation was that smartphones distracts the child so much it stifles their imaginatio

Attention seeking or connection seeking?

Attention seeking can have such a negative connotation when it comes to thinking about children's behaviour. However, if you were to reframe the language to 'connection seeking', what would you conjure in your mind? Community Early Learning Au

Steps to building self-esteem

When a baby is born, they are completely dependent on us for everything—feeding, dressing, and caring for them. While this is crucial in the beginning, it’s equally important to gradually step back and guide them to develop new abilities so th

The story of Mario Montessori

Mario Montessori (pictured left) was born on March 31, 1898, the only child of Maria Montessori (pictured right) and Giuseppe Montesano. At the time, societal pressures were harsh on unmarried parents, so Mario's birth was kept a secret. He wa

The Montessori room as a teacher

A thriving learning environment is one where children are deeply engaged, working independently and with purpose. While in traditional education models, learning often follows a straight line: the teacher directs from the top, and the child fo

Finding the Joy in Parenting

Good Enough Parenting is a concept coined by Dr. Donald Winnicott in the 1950s. Winnicott, a British Paediatrician and psychoanalyst who studied mothers and babies, found that it is good for parents to become somewhat less responsive to their

Montessori's planes of development

Dr Montessori outlined four consecutive planes, or stages, of development from birth to maturity, each plane spanning approximately six-years. At each plane of development children and young people display intellectual powers, social orientati

Exploring the Montessori Difference

Choosing the right educational approach for a child is a significant decision for any parent. Among the various educational philosophies, Montessori education stands out as a transformative method.

Building the habits and attitude of a confident and self-sufficient student

The Montessori primary classroom (Cycles 2 and 3) is a place of independence and freedom – coupled with great responsibility.

Fostering independence in pre-school

Botany in Montessori

This term, the children in Cycle 2 (6-9 years of age) have been examining the parts and functions of plants.

NAPLAN highs

NAPLAN is the national assessment program for literacy and numeracy across each of the states. This year our Year 3 and Year 5 students will sit the exam.

Creative Arts in Montessori

One of our key aspects of the Montessori curriculum is to give equal emphasis to the creative arts.

How we work with parents

What stands us apart from traditional schools is the extend in which we involve parents in their children's education. We believe educating a child is in partnership with the parent and carer.

Montessori: No Homework

There is no scientific evidence that homework has any positive effects on learning

Journey of Service

Every year the year 6 students complete their 9 years of Montessori education with a week of community service, support and self-reflection. This year, 2023, our graduates partnered with the Dalaigur aboriginal community in Kempsey, NSW.

Simone's tips on how to manage screen time for all the ages

As parents we're all looking for answers on how to best manage our children's screen time. Simone from the Montessori Notebook has an array of very helpful and realistic tips to support parents with children from 6 to 18 years of age.

Second Generation Montessorians

We speak to two Montessori mums who share their memories of their childhood growing up in a Montessori environment and why they never second guessed their choice for a Montessori education for their children.

Introducing our Young Archiebald prize recipient

Introducing Montessori East's Young Archiebald winner, Lev Kahn, whose self-portrait entitled Nature Boy, Earth Boy, won the 5-8 year old category. We love how well Lev handled his first ever press conference at just 5 years old. Unfazed by th

We are family

The KIN team celebrates its one-year anniversary on the Montessori East campus and shares some of their families' stories and their discoveries on 'slow' parenting.

Why it is important to complete a plane in Montessori

This week Montessori East says farewell to its year 6 graduates who have been with us since the wee age of 2-and-half and 3 years of age. These children have completed two cycles and according to Maria Montessori completing a cycle is a major

A covid-safe Montessori East puppet musical - The Coming of Life

The creativity that has sprung out of Covid lockdowns is truly magical. Our children at Montessori East have been busily illustrating, composing, singing, directing and producing an all school original creation - The Coming of Life - puppet mu

Counting with beads

The bead cabinet is one of the hallmarks in Montessori mathematical learning, and it is the most alluring for children with their colours and tactile experience. The main purpose of the bead cabinet is to help develop children's knowledge abo

Parenting tips: When do I introduce household chores to my child?

Often parents ask us, “When is the right age to start getting my child to do chores?” Well, at Montessori, we don’t really call them chores, rather we use the language practical life skills. These are skills that we all need to learn in order

When should my child learn to write?

This can be such a hot topic, even controversial about when a child should learn to write. Underneath the controversy there is often the adult expectation that feels the need to be met rather than following the child’s readiness.  &n

Do schools kill creativity?

Over a decade ago former educator and pioneer in revolutionising education, Sir Ken Robinson, took the world by surprise with his 60 million viewed Tedx Talk on how schools are killing our children’s creativity. He calls it the 'other' climate

Rethinking education: why we choose Montessori?

In this time in society where the world of education has been forced to rethink its approach and move learning online, many parents have been left to ponder what’s best for my child?

Random Acts of Kindness

Do you remember the last time a small act of kindness unexpectedly touched your heart, changed your day? How did it make you feel? A Random Act of Kindness is giving of yourself to others freely. It's simply doing something nice for someone el

How is your wellbeing boat?

Wellbeing is one of the topics of conversation right now as we all juggle our flipped-about lives. We’ve also heard a lot that ‘we’re in this together’ and yes, we might all be in the same storm at sea, but we’re not all in the same kind of bo

How to motivate your child when they want to quit?

We are now coming into our 9th week of lockdown in NSW, Australia and no doubt many of us are feeling the pinch.

Book Week 21-27 August 2021

Welcome to Book Week 2021 where old and new worlds collide and the books on the notables list of CBCA (The Children's Book Council of Australia) are as delightful as they are varie

Home learning - the novelty of printouts and paper

There is nothing quite like it when you watch the joy in a child's eyes when they receive a big pack of fun activities and print outs.

Our indigenous connection: Journey of Service and the Dalaigur Preschool in Kempsey

Montessori East’s Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) states that "we acknowledge that true reconciliation will require building bridges to our larger community." Community and being of service are so important to who we are and what we value at

Getting to know our community

Two young reporters review the teacher's favourite local Meidy's Cafe in Bondi. Atticus and Ondine thought long and hard about what to ask chef Larry.

Learning to Talk - Developing language, 0-6 years

Children have a natural urge and incredible capacity to learn language between the age of birth to six.  They can do this effortlessly and tirelessly, ultimately striving to communicate via the spoken word so they can express their needs

With a new toy comes a lesson on grace and courtesy

With every new addition to the environment, we are mindful of supporting the children in their social skills by giving them an explicit Grace and Courtesy lesson on turn taking and on caring for the toy/object thereby encouraging the children

A look into symbolic and pretend play

Symbolic and dramatic play involves acting out, role-playing and improvisation by children to examine their world.  Acting out roles is a great stepping stone in learning to self regulate, learn social skills, and to be imaginat

Alumni reconnecting through Journey of Service

Alumna, Maya Hendler, 24, travelled to Udon Thani in north east Thailand with principal, Bill Conway, teachers, Mozelle Ediriweera and Amy Goldman and six graduates, Kirrily Bruckner, Mahlia Davidson Nyika, Felix Howard-Griffiths, Hunter Kaye,

Bondi to Cambridge

This is a story of a young girl, 18, who started her love of learning from the first day she walked into Montessori East in 2003, at the age of three.

Parenting tips: Transitioning from nappies to underpants

One of the more common questions in our toddler program is when do I know my child is ready to transition from nappies to underpants?

Learning grace and courtesy at preschool

'Wow!' is what we often hear when visitors come to our preschool.