Lovely Learning Blogs

(Note: I originally published this at Green Moon Rising.)

1.  Besides a terrific blog, Playful Learning, Mariah Bruehl offers workshops, e-courses, a book (which is awesome), and numerous other resources.  I fell in love when I first saw the number jars activity.  In fact, the entire Learning Experiences section is amazing.
2.  Play at Home Mom is written by "a group of moms who have a firm belief in positive parenting and play based learning."  I love submersible science and Bubble Boy.

3.  Pink and Green Mama is written by a friend from college, MaryLea, who loves color and kids and putting the two together.  You can't help but feel happy when reading this blog!  I especially like the colored glue and watercolor leaves and milk carton weaving.

4.  Before she was Sew Liberated, Meg McElwee was Montessori by Hand.  The blog documents Meg's experience teaching in a Montessori classroom in Mexico.  The photos of her early childhood students in their environment are inspiration for making your own Montessori environment a thing of beauty and peace. 

5.  A Reggio Emilia colleague first told me about Julianne Wurm.  Sadly, Julianne hasn't updated her blog since March, but she has a resource page with templates for tracking projects and observations.  These would be handy for a classroom teacher, homeschool teacher, or if you just want to geek out and formally observe your own kid.

6.  Filth Wizardry features art and craft activities for children that encourage freedom, exploration, and mess.  I like the DIY sand art lightbox, giant reclaimed wooden blocks, and the music wall.

7.  The North American Montessori Center has a blog with lots of helpful info for Montessori teaching and homeschooling.  Of course, I'm a bit biased because I have written for them in the past. 

8.  Another Reggio Emilia inspiration, Bambini Creativi showcases some pretty cool stuff.  Watch Life as a Superhero! right now.  You will want to grab the kids in your life and do your own version of this precious, precious activity.  I had to scroll back an entire year (and a couple months) on a friend's Facebook wall to find this link.  It's that good.

9.  For Small Hands sells child-size items, toys, books, and Montessori resources.  For example, you could purchase a child-size wooden drying rack for clothes or rags, a book about tidying up, or a peg loom.  It's worth it to check out their partner site, Montessori Services, as well.  You can register to receive merchandise rewards for your school based on a percentage of purchases made by parents and others.  I use their products as ideas for things that I could be keeping an eye out for at thrift stores, dollar stores, etc.  (When I Googled "small hands" to make sure I had the correct link and information, "small hands smell like cabbage" was automatically generated in the search box.  Wha?!?)

10.  Pinterest.  Seriously, get on there.  It's a wonderful way to catalog all of the ideas you find on blogs and websites that you want to remember for later and browsing Pinterest itself can provide tons of ideas and inspiration for parents and teachers alike.  (When you do get on there, let me know and we can find each other.)


Please excuse the lack of photos.  I had picked out beautiful photos from each of the sites and then realized I should really get permission first.  That's the courtesy I would appreciate it if it were my photo.  I'll be contacting each of the blog or site owners and hopefully will be adding photos later.