Nido: The Most Important Time in Your Child’s Life

“We should not look at newborn infants as small, helpless human beings, but as persons who are small in size, but with an immense mental capacity, and many physical abilities that cannot be witnessed unless the environment assists in the expression of life.”
– Dr. Silvana Montanaro

The Infant Community at Healthy Beginnings Montessori House is affectionately referred to as the Raspberry Room. Like all of HBMH’s classrooms, our Nido environment is rooted in the educational philosophy of Maria Montessori. In fact, the word Nido comes from the Italian word “nest” and is meant to convey the warmth and security of a home.

Through the environment’s simplicity and order, the room is safe, secure, stimulating, and most importantly full of . The preparedness of the teachers allow students to learn at their own pace, using their senses to explore and discover the world.

IMAGINE…

Age appropriate materials and aids that induce concentration, movement, language, and cognitive development

“Open” classroom, absent of inhibiting items such as playpens, “bouncing” seats, activity saucers, swings and walkers

Floor Beds, which permit movement such as slithering from day one; crucial to their development

Gently touched and spoken to softly, as a whole individual, in an environment with low baby-to-teacher ratio

Calmness is nurtured by following your babies natural rhythm of development

Trust is cultivated by understanding how your baby communicates information

We invite those with little ones between the ages of 6 weeks – 18 months to stop by for a tour, and witness the beauty of our Montessori Nido!
P: 972-881-8200
E: carli@healthybeginningsmontessori.com

Becoming a Positive Parent Leader

It’s amazing all of the books and articles available that offer different parenting methods for almost every childhood behavioral issue; it’s almost overwhelming. It seems that there is always a better method out there. As a parent, it’s easy to want to give up during difficult situations, however we need to take another look at ourselves, and see what we can do to help our children, rather than blame them for their misbehavior. It’s important to establish yourself as a leader in your household, one who shows authority and establishes trust from other family members.

This article, provided by the Montessori Teachers Institute for Professional Studies (MTIPS), gives examples of how to establish yourself as a “parent leader”, helping guide your children as “child disciples”.

Your actions should exude 4 attributes:

• You act like you know what you’re doing (You are decisive).

• You act like you know where you’re going (You have a vision that guides your decisions).

• You act like you know what you want your child to do (You are assertively direct: you don’t beat around the bush when it comes to giving instructions).

• You act like you know your child is going to obey and/or live up to your expectations (You are positive, optimistic, self–assured, and inspiring: you bring out the best in people).

And with you as the leader, your child becomes…your disciple. A disciple is someone who subscribes willingly to the authority of his or her teacher, who believes that the teacher speaks the truth, and that by following the teacher, his or her life will be greatly improved. A child-disciple then, is defined by four qualities:

• He knows he can rely on his parents (trust).

• He looks up to his parents (respect).

• He follows their lead (obedience).

• He subscribes to their values (loyalty)

Click to access Parent%20Leadership.pdf

Happy Parenting!