Why Childhood Shouldn’t Be Rushed: A Montessori Perspective

Every rock is a gem, a form of currency, a scientific discovery or a mystery to be solved.

A Teacher at Heart

I’ve always known I was meant to be a teacher. It’s in my blood.

And for much of my life, I’ve been a Montessorian.

I began my career teaching high school, but what drew me into Montessori was the deep respect for the child—and for who they are becoming.

I was drawn to the prepared environment—how it nurtures independence, invites self-expression, and makes space for mistakes as part of learning. It creates a place where children feel safe to take risks, to try, to fail, and to try again.

What Montessori Makes Possible

As a parent, those values became even more meaningful.

My husband and I have often reflected on our Montessori experience with our own children, and two things stand out. Our children developed a strong sense of self—and they always acted their age.

When Carly’s birthday came around each June, she would say, “But I really like being five.”
Then, “Six is so great.” “I love being seven.”

She fully appreciated the moment she was in — exactly where she was meant to be.

It wasn’t unusual for our boys to be invited to birthday parties for children years younger.
“We’re friends,” they would say. And they were.

They didn’t need to act older, cooler, or braver than they were.

There Was No Rush

There was no rush.

That’s what I love most about this work.

What problems might we begin to solve if we allowed children to play a little longer?

What if we gave them more time to dig in the dirt, climb trees, push a friend on a swing, read in a hammock, sit in the shade, plant a seed…
and simply take it all in?

Imagining a 9-Year-Old Mind

Since we have been open for 9 years, I’ve been thinking about Lupine as a 9-year-old.

We’d be in Miss Ashley’s Upper Elementary environment—curious, collaborative, and drawn to big work. The kind of work that matters. The kind that sparks imagination, invites deep thinking, and brings people together.

And like many 9-year-olds, we’re not interested in small ideas.

We’re interested in meaningful ones.

At Lupine, that spirit shows up in how we learn, how we plan, and how we grow together as a community. Because Montessori doesn’t just shape children—it shapes how we see the world alongside them.

Designing a Feeling

We’re not just thinking about what children need to learn.

We’re thinking about how they feel.

Because what we’re really trying to create isn’t just a space.

It’s a feeling.

The kind of childhood that stays with you.

The Childhood That Stays With You

Do you remember being nine?

Riding your bike a little too fast,
the smell of fresh-cut grass,
jumping over a mud puddle—but missing on purpose,
or looking up at a sky full of stars…

That sense that the world was wide open.

That’s what we hope to protect—and create—for every child.

An environment that invites them to explore, imagine, take risks, and grow.
A place where they can be fully themselves.
A childhood they will carry with them for the rest of their lives.

Because when we give children the time and space to simply be, we give them the gift of a lifetime.