You may have noticed your child's desire to do things for themselves (possibly even repeat the same things over and over and over some more).These moments of opportunity are open windows for learning experiences and for the child to learn "how to" be independent. It's during these times of an open window also referred to as sensitive periods that science has shown the circuitry of the brain is most primed to create new neuro patterns that will aid the child for the rest of their life. If you don't want to take my word for it, check out what Harvard has to say about this topic. This doesn't mean we can never help them again nor does it mean we shouldn't help them to begin with. The opinion here is that the Montessori parent or adult mentoring a child in their self formation should rather guide the child with the appropriate modeling and breaking down of steps so the child can eventually become independent. The tricky part here is resisting the urge to either do it for them or rush...

As a Montessori trained Educator I often hear people say that Montessori is for every child but not for every parent. I really couldn't agree more. For best results for children, parents, and teachers, parents need to know what they're getting into with an authentic Montessori program, because it's way different than a traditional program. Montessori is not for every parent and as a result may not be for every child either. (Which is okay, too!)

• If you prefer standardized testing as a measure of your child's success, you may not be good fit for Montessori.

This doesn't mean teachers or guides don't test your students knowledge on a subject or curriculum area. It just means it's done in a different way then a standardized test.

• If you prefer your child to be with a group of children that are the same age as your child, you may not be a good fit for Montessori.

(There is nothing wrong with wanting your child to be in a group of children the same age.)

 However,...

How many times do we have to set ourselves up for failure with extreme goal setting before we realize it's not actually helping us at all? Sure, you'll get a lot done in a shorter amount of time. The big issue is the tole it takes on all of your loved ones as they try to be in your life as you tackle such extreme goals. I would guess if you're the type of person that sets these kinds of goals you steadfastly set out to conquer them. Think about your quality of life when you do this. You may think it's ok, especially because once you accomplish your goal it will all be better, or you'll have reached the finish line. I've got news for you, there will always be something else after you've accomplished your big goal, the one that was going to free you from all of your stress, and the one that was going to provide you with everything you've been striving for.

Sometimes in our lives we have epiphany's. Those epiphany's lead us into the next steps of our lives. It may be as...