International Montessori Institute, The Netherlands

30/05/2026

Wij zijn klaar voor het jaarlijkse montessori inspiratie weekend! Het belooft een prachtige dag te worden met fantastische lezingen door enorm ervaren monressori AMI trainers: Carla Foster (6-12) uit Noorwegen, Phillipa Romig (3-6) uit Zwitserland en Patricia Wallner (12-18).

16/05/2026

16/05/2026

“How do you have sewing out for toddlers?”

In my training this is in the albums to have out in the room just like bead stringing/lacing is! The way to do it is laid out, it’s been taught from trainer to student for YEARS. This is nothing revolutionary that I did in the environment.

How can you make it safe? By having the needle in its own case, by having a latch on the box that holds all the supplies and mostly, by filling the need for the younger children!
When they have materials that are filling their development needs they are less likely to be drawn to this. And if they are…I simply turned it into a language lesson for them or showed them one simple step of the process such as how to safely remove the needle, put it in the pincushion, and replace it in the needle case again!

08/05/2026

The young child needs plants. In Montessori, we invite curiosity about plants to help the child develop an affection for and love of the natural world.

In botany, we offer keys to understanding the natural world. At first, the illustrated flower has less meaning than an actual flower, which has less meaning than a flower they have collected in the context of nature.

If you haven't set up vials to observe the roots of plants yet this year, there's still time. At the training center, AMI 3-6 Trainer Caroline Clark shows us how one could set this out for children.

The themes of biology help a child understand their unique responsibilities in the world:
Gratitude;
Reverence;
Care and Respect.

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MINT is enrolling now for the 3-6 Diploma Course, which starts June 1, as well as for the short 3-6 Orientation Course, which runs from June 15-26.

06/05/2026

On May 6, Montessorians mark the anniversary of Dr. Maria Montessori’s death in 1952.

Her grave in Noordwijk, the Netherlands, bears the inscription:

“I ask the dear children, who are capable of all things, to join me in building peace in humanity and in the world.”

“Io prego i cari bambini, che possono tutto, di unirsi a me per la costruzione della pace negli uomini e nel mondo.”

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Photo: Graf van Maria Montessori, Noordwijk, Netherlands; Source: noordwijk.info

06/05/2026

Building a strong language area takes an extraordinary amount of time. Finding clear, realistic images, formatting them, printing them, cutting them, laminating them, cutting them again, and rounding every corner is a huge amount of work.

At this age, children can absorb dozens of new words every week through the absorbent mind, which is amazing. There is a natural drive to gain language and vocabulary, and the variety we offer matters.

Practical takeaway:
Build your language area deep and wide with a large collection of cards that can continue to grow vocabulary over time.

This is one of the reasons I created my language card shop. The cards are laminated in thick 10 mil and arrive ready to open and place directly on the shelf. I’ve had many guides share how much it supported their practice simply to have this work already prepared for them