When I think about The Children’s House, one simple truth comes to mind: this place is me.
I was a Montessori child. Like so many of our students, I had the freedom to move, to ask questions, and to explore things deeply without someone rushing me to the “right” answer. That early experience shaped me in ways I didn’t fully understand until much later.
As an adult, I became a traditional teacher. I stepped into that world because I loved children, but something didn’t feel right. I found myself constantly pushing against the structure. I was rushing children, correcting them, and silencing their curiosity so we could “stay on schedule.” Eventually, I realized that everything I knew about children and how they truly learn, I could not do in that setting.
So I came home to Montessori.
I moved to Traverse City for a position at The Children’s House. I then married a Children’s House alum. And now, our two-year-old daughter is part of the Young Children’s Community.
This place, this philosophy, is in every corner of my life. It’s how I parent. It’s how I teach. It’s how I live. It’s not just a job. It’s my family. It embodies everything I believe about children, about people, about what it means to grow.
This growing journey I’ve experienced as a Montessorian, as a professional, and as a mother, it’s mirrored every day in the classroom. We talk about the children growing, but the adults grow too. We grow together.
Montessori is not about adults pouring knowledge into children like empty vessels. It’s about guiding them as they construct their own understanding, through curiosity, independence, and exploration.
That’s why, when a child builds the Pink Tower out of order, I don’t correct them. I wait. I wait for them to notice it’s wobbling. I wait for the moment the pieces click into place (not just physically, but in their minds). When their eyes light up with that moment of I did it, that’s the magic.
It’s why, when they ask a question I don’t know the answer to, we research together.
It’s why I don’t rush to solve their conflicts. I sit back, I observe, I trust. Because I know they can do it. And when they do, they grow. And so do I.
These intentional practices don’t just stay in the classroom. They change who we are as people.
When I leave school and see a neighbor struggling with groceries, I remember how we show kindness in the classroom, and I offer to help. When I sit down to dinner with family members who see the world differently than I do, I remember how we guide children to navigate disagreement with respect and curiosity…and I try to do the same.
This community doesn't just grow children. It grows people. It grows parents, and teachers, and neighbors, and citizens of the world. It shapes who we are and who we are becoming.
Because of you, we can create environments full of beauty and intention. Because of you, teachers like me are supported to continue growing. Because of you, children are empowered to become thoughtful, compassionate, capable human beings.
From the bottom of my heart, from one Montessori child, teacher, mother, and now a Children’s House parent to another, thank you for growing with us.