Big Ideas

Chiaravalle faculty continually engage in professional development on issues of education, child development, and brain research. When we find provocative resources that support the Montessori approach or challenge and inspire us, we will share share weblinks, podcasts and other media sources which might be of interest.

Trevor Eissler

Trevor Eissler is father of three Montessori students, a business jet pilot, children’s book author, and international speaker. His book, Montessori Madness! explores how Montessori education best prepares children for the real world. He has recently released this short explanation of what makes Montessori schools different.

Dr. Stephen Hughes

This promotional video for www.MariaMontessori.com — a project from the Montessori Administrators Association — features Dr. Stephen Hughes, neuropsychiatrist, who was our annual guest lecturer in 2009-2010. He addresses the question, "Why Montessori?"
 

Interesting Links:

wikisori.org
Where Montessorians contribute, share, collaborate. The blog is part of a larger wiki whose goal is to facilitate collaboration among Montessorians to allow the creation of the collective sum of all Montessori knowledge in one convenient location, available to the global Montessori community for free.

danesedblog.blogspot.com
Dane Peters is Head of Brooklyn Heights Montessori School in New York (BHMS). An avid writer and educator, Dane posts to his education blog every few days. He characterizes it as ". . . insights on children and parenting and a resource for educators and parents on children, teaching, and learning."

rickackerly.com
Rick Ackerly is author of the book The Genius in Children. He shares his views with parents and educators. “…our number-one job as parents and educators is to notice the children in our care and to delight in them.” — Rick Ackerly, The Genius in Children

kidstalknews.com
Kids Talk is a column dealing with childhood development issues written by Maren Stark Schmidt. Parents may receive Kids Talk e-mail updates directly through a free subscription.

http://open.salon.com/blog/holly_robinson/2011/10/31/how_much_homework_is_too_much
A parent of four children, the youngest of whom went to  Montessori, wrestles with the idea of how much homework is appropriate for students. 

 

Links to recent articles:

Psychology Today

What We Don't Know About Our Students - And Why We Don't Know It
Published on September 2, 2011 by Alfie Kohn in The Homework Myth

The Economist

Now You Know: When should you teach children, and when should you let them explore?
Published from the print edition: May 26, 2011 

Harvard Business Review  

How Do Innovators Think?
By Bronwyn Fryer

Published: September 28, 2009

New York Times on the web 

NY/REGION
With Blocks, Educators Go Back to Basics
By KYLE SPENCER
Published: November 27, 2011
The wooden toys, created in the early 1900s, are making a comeback as some elementary schools focus on unstructured play.  

SCIENCE
Can a Playground Be Too Safe?
By JOHN TIERNEY
Published: July 18, 2011
Efforts to regulate playground equipment to prevent injuries may stunt emotional development, a new study suggests. 

OPINION
David Brooks: More Tools For Thinking
By DAVID BROOKS
Published: March 29, 2011
Science can help us beyond advising what we should believe about the world, our existence, and our health. It increasingly supplies tools for our everyday choices.

YOUR MONEY
Teaching Children to Help Neighbors, With or Without Reward
By ALINA TUGEND
Published: January 28, 2011
Doing chores for the neighbors can help teach a child about the value of work, but sometimes the lesson is when to work free.

BUSINESS DAY
How to Shape the DNA of a Young Company
By ADAM BRYANT
Published: January 22, 2011
Former Montessori student, Jeremy Allaire of Brightcove, says leaders of new businesses must make the right initial hires, as they will set the foundation for growth. He discusses the habits of mind and qualities of an ideal employee.

U.S.
As Bullies Go Digital, Parents Play Catch-Up
By JAN HOFFMAN
Published: December 4, 2010
Parents trying to protect their children from Internet bullying are scrambling to catch up with the technology.

WEEK IN REVIEW
A’s for Good Behavior
By PEG TYRE
Published: November 27, 2010
Should students be rewarded for citizenship, hard work and organization? Or should grades represent only a mastery of the material?

TECHNOLOGY
Growing Up Digital, Wired for Distraction
By MATT RICHTEL
Published: November 21, 2010
The constant stream of stimuli offered by new technology poses a profound new challenge to focusing and learning.

OPINION

Opinion 

The Effort Is the Prize
By PETER ORSZAG
Published: September 9, 2010 
It's the nature and intensity of practice that matters.

Health 
Forget What You Know About Good Study Habits 
By BENEDICT CAREY 
Published: September 6, 2010 
Psychologists have discovered that some of the most hallowed advice on study habits is flat wrong. 

Personal Health
Empathy’s Natural, but Nurturing It Helps
By JANE E. BRODY
Published: February 16, 2010
The capacity for empathy seems to be innate, but parents can encourage it in children by teaching them to relate positively to others and by modeling it themselves.

Health