Week 1, Term 2 2026
We are delighted to welcome everyone back for Term 2, 2026! It is wonderful to see returning families, and we extend a warm welcome to all our new families joining the community.
Rena and I are thrilled about the growth of our program, as we expand to new locations to reach more families. We are excited to build community and share the insights of the Montessori pedagogy with a wider audience. A big thank you to Kamilla Escombe and Leena Savolainen for joining our team and launching new groups in Lewisham and Lindfield.
Keep an eye out for details on future classes.
Who or what is Montessori?
Maria Montessori, born in Italy in 1870, was a remarkable pioneer. Living through three wars, she developed a deep passion for peace and women's rights, which she championed alongside her groundbreaking work as a qualified doctor, scientist, and anthropologist.
Her medical experience with children revealed their profound innate capacity to learn. She developed her philosophy around the idea that every child is unique, learning at their own pace. Dr. Maria Montessori's core philosophy is based on two key concepts: the absorbent mind and sensitive periods.
The absorbent mind refers to a child's incredible, effortless capacity for learning during the first six years of life—the same natural mechanism that allows them to acquire language.
Montessori also identified that all children are born with inherent needs and inclinations, such as order, communication, problem-solving, repetition, and exploration. Adults can better understand and support the unique needs of a child by recognising these natural tendencies.
Children also pass through specific sensitive periods—intense, temporary phases for developing particular skills, such as order, movement, and language. For your babies, you are currently seeing the sensitive period for movement (rolling, sitting, pulling to stand), communication, and the need for order (consistency) amid the chaos of the world.
Dr Montessori came to this understanding through thousands of hours observing children. Her skills as a doctor, scientist and anthropologist allowed her to build the picture of early childhood development that we use today and which is now backed up by modern science.
The child hasn't changed over the ages but the world around them has so for us as parents to understand how they work allows us to support our individual child and allow them to reach their unique potential.
“The most important period of life is not the age of university studies, but the first one, the period from birth to six”
Dr Maria Montessori
If you want to do further reading these are some suggestions;
The Montessori Baby Book by Simone Davies and Junnifa Uzodike
Montessori Madness!: A parent to parent argument for Montessori education by Trevor Eissler.
The Secret of Childhood by Maria Montessori
Montessori: The Science Behind the Genius by Angeline Lillard
Although not Montessori books as such these last two suggestions give you current understanding of the child's brain and how that affects how you parent.
Parenting from the Inside Out by Dr Dan Siegel
The Whole Brain Child by Dr Dan Siegel and Tina Payne Bryson
Recipe of the week:
Each week we will share a recipe that you might like to try with your family.
You might also like to try the recipe storage app CLOVE: https://clove.kitchen/
It is a free Australian app for keeping your recipes in one place. It also helps to plan your week and make a shopping list all of which is so helpful when you are feeding a family.
Healthy Breakfast Bars
For the base
1 ½ cups rolled oats
½ cup chopped almonds
¼ cup sunflower seeds
¼ cup honey
¼ cup coconut oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
¼ tsp salt
For the topping
1 cup mixed berries, fresh or frozen
2tbsp chia seeds
1 tbsp maple syrup
Method
Preheat the oven to 180c. Line an 8x8 inch baking pan
In a large bowl combine oats, chopped almonds, sunflower seeds, honey, coconut oil, vanilla extract and salt. Mix so everything is coated.
Press mixture into prepared baking tin and make an even layer.
Bake base for 15-20 mins until golden brown. Leave to cool.
In a saucepan mix berries, chia and maple syrup over a medium heat. Stir occasionally until it has a thickened jam like consistency (5-7 mins)
Spread the topping over the base.
Leave to cool completely before cutting into squares.
Store in an airtight container for a week in the fridge.
Enjoy!!
