About Lisa Nolan

Lisa and her son at his elementary school, standing by a tree, and smiling


I'm 3 to 6 and 6 to 9 Montessori trained with over 30 years of experience. I began teaching Montessori in the San Francisco Bay Area in the 1980s. I took my Montessori primary training in 1986 at The Maria Montessori School of the Golden Gate in San Francisco with the late headmistress, Ursula Thrush. I took my Montessori elementary (6-9) training in 1988 at The Maria Montessori School of the Golden Gate in San Francisco through the University Extension, University of California Berkeley. I received an MA from San Francisco State University in English Literature and Creative Writing. I spent eight years in theater, including children's theater, and award-winning underground comedy (also in San Francisco). I found the time to fall in love and get married (in 2002) and in 2004 we became proud parents of a very savvy child with Down syndrome (now a very savvy teenager).

I began my online Montessori journey in 1999 when there was only one Montessori album online. I became the second Montessori educator to begin putting my albums online at Montessori for the Earth. And what a journey it's been!

Along the way, I became an indie publisher (Monkey Star Press). My anthologies include Motherhood May Cause Drowsiness and Mom for the Holidays, and my picture book includes Backyard Play with Mummy.

What's next for Lisa Nolan? Hmmm, great question! I will work with special needs children and adults in public classrooms while getting my Teacher's Assistant Certificate in 2025 and 2026. Wish me luck!


Want to stay updated on my adventures? Follow me on Facebook!

~Lisa Nolan
 
A young Lisa Nolan, in a black turtleneck, holding her son when he was a tot.

My Free E-books @

Kindergarten, First, Second, Third, Homeschooler - TeachersPayTeachers.com

And now for my top posts!

How to Talk so Kids Will Listen and Listen So Kids Will Talk by Simone Davies of The Montessori Notebook

How to talk with children is a lesson we all seem to need. Even as infants they learn from how and what we say to them. We are thrilled to have Simone Davies back with us to walk us through the How2Talk2Kids method of communicating with our children. It ’ s a pleasure to be back guest blogging here. I love the energy of this group and your passion and interest in incorporating Montessori into your homes. I ’ m exactly the same. When my children were born  (already 12 and 13 years ago!), I wanted to learn a different way to be with them. I didn’t want to force learning on them; I wanted to discover and explore the world together and guide them along the way. But I found my communication skills lacking. A repertoire of “good girl/good boy,” “what a great job,” or “don’t worry, it’s just a scratch” came flowing out of my mouth in the same way we had been raised by our parents. The words I used just didn’t seem to be consistent with the way I wanted to raise my kids, for them to t

Montessori & the benefits of the geoboard!

The geoboard is one of the most beneficial materials in a Montessori classroom and at home. It is both a Practical Life activity and a Sensorial activity, depending on how you use it (present it to the child). Practical Life "All the practical life activities, in addition to improving hand-eye coordination and muscle control, are designed to increase the child's ability to concentrate [and to also go from left to right, and from top to bottom]." Montessori on a Limited Budget by Elvira Farrow and Carol Hill Practical Life Introduction from my Montessori training manual: "Exercises in Practical Life are given the greatest importance. Exercises in Practical Life help the child mainly in his efforts to adapt to his limited space, and his group, and to achieve independence. They answer his need expressed by "Let me do it by myself." They are excellent for the toddler old who is struggling to bring his psychic needs in accord with his physical development by de

Child Screams and Runs Around the Classroom When Asked to Put Montessori Activities Away

I have a child in the class who just turned three. Very smart. His parents are bilingual. Repeats words, phrases, or sentences you say in the third person. He can sit down and do work but when he is done he would start screaming or running around the room wall to wall. Then would have a hard time going back to work. He has a fascination with fans and makes fans out of most of the materials. Recently he has been pulling hair in random no apparent reason and no show of emotions toward the child. Are these signs of something about the child or just simply a child lacking communication skills that will come soon. Thank s. "When he is done he would start screaming or running around the room wall to wall..." I suspect he gets away with not putting his belongings away at home, too, and uses tantrums to get his way. Ask for a good time to talk with the parents over the phone (try not to talk in front of the child) and find out what their child does when he is asked to put s

Montessori Sewing Works by Aimee Fagan, author of Sewing in the Montessori Classroom: a practical life curriculum

If I had to pick just one type of work to stock my practical life shelves with, it would be sewing. I am NOT an accomplished sewer. Actually, I think it has been over a year since I pulled out my sewing machine, and then I prefer to make clothing with elasticized waists. But, when it comes to the classroom, I think nothing beats handwork. Maria Montessori stated that the activities of practical life should be meaningful, looking around my classroom, I wanted to find activities that still had meaning for today’s children. Polishing is great, but how many children really see their parents polishing the silver place settings? Spooning, tonging, pouring, and the like are quickly mastered when we leave the lessons simple and isolated on the tray. What materials could we use that would appeal to the 3-year-old and remain enticing through age 6 or beyond? Sewing. A child’s engagement with practical life materials is what prepares him for later success in the classroom. These handwork acti

A Montessori Teacher's Thoughts on Waldorf Education

As a Montessori 3-6 and 6-9 trained teacher, I have a lot of respect for Waldorf education, even though I was drawn to (fell in love with!) Montessori at a young age (23). And as a Montessori teacher, I have recommended it for a few children (usually two students per year) who were graduating from our 3-6 classroom, because I (we) felt it was a better choice for those particular children. Their interests, or should I say passions, were not with the Montessori materials, and certainly not academics like phonics and simple math, but instead, they loved arts, crafts, practical life, the outdoors, and botany. One of the attributes I like about Waldorf is its sensitivity to the development of the WHOLE child: mind, body, and spirit. Also, there is a lot of emphasis on fine motor (like weaving, knitting, sewing), nature, cooking, playing, arts and crafts, large motor play, storytelling, poetry, songs, critical thinking, and literature. Speaking of large motor, children really benefit from

Montessori and Potty Training Boys

My son E. is 26 months old and has been wearing underwear for about a week during the day (cloth diapers at night). For the first day or two, he'd make it to the potty about half the time... But after those first few days, any suggestion of the potty upset him very much. So, I stopped mentioning the potty, thinking he was still learning about his body... The past few days he has not attempted to go to the potty at all, just has accidents all day. Should I be doing something else? If so, what? Should I try to get him to help clean up? If so, how? Have I missed his window of opportunity? Oh! The joys of potty training! Boys? Oh boy! Boys (when they potty train or potty learn ) act just as you described! They are fickle! What to do? 1. Don't show emotions when your child has accidents or refuses to try to go in the potty, just be matter-of-fact. 2. Don't expect the child to clean up accidents, you can invite them to help you, but at age 26 months they might not have t

The Arctic: Montessori Activities

In a Montessori environment, the study of a continent (for ages 3 to 6) entails introducing activities in Geography, Zoology, Botany, and Culture, to name a few. Today we are going to look at the continents of Arctica and Antarctica. When we think of these continents at both ends of the world, we think of ice and snow. So the very first day or week of activities to introduce to your home school or classroom environment are Sensorial activities and should include ice (and snow if you live near snow in wintertime). FYI: The links on this page were updated on 12/10/2023... The following are Arctic animals and ice cube and snowflake activities from the My Montessori Journey blog:  Snowflake Matching Cards Snowflake Cut and Paste booklets "Iceberg" Activity Arctic Animals Books Melt an Ice Cube Game Don't live near the snow? Try this "Make your own Fake sensory snow that feels real"  activity. The second day or week  the set of activities to introduce would be  Prac

Montessori FAQs About When to Begin Cursive

I have many questions regarding teaching cursive letters. My three-year-old son is in a Montessori school now. However, the teacher is using print letters for teaching him. I personally want my son to learn cursive letters because I know it has many advantages. I have discussed this with the teacher, but she insists on using print letters. Is my son going to be confused because his teacher is teaching printed letters (ball and stick) while I'm teaching cursive letters? Any disadvantages to my son? Also, how can I start? Developmentally, your three-year-old son might not show any interest in cursive letters, so, be careful. The cursive letters are very abstract, more so than print letters (stick and ball as they are often called). And also, cursive letters are taught for writing. And remember, writing comes BEFORE reading in Montessori. The window to begin writing is age four to five (and is highest usually at age 4 1/2 and is called "The Writing Explosion" in Mont

Pulling Your Child Out of Montessori School

During this recession, I get more and more emails from moms who are faced with the heart-wrenching decision to pull their children out of Montessori school and place them in a local public school for financial reasons... emails like this one: "I have two children almost 7 and 8. They have been in a private Montessori school since the age of 3. I have just taken them out and they actually start public school on Monday. I’m terrified. This was not by choice that I made this decision, but rather by necessity. Private school is really expensive. "My thought is to work with them in the evenings and at some point maybe just pull them out of public school and home school them. My main concern is whether I can do this or not. "We love Montessori, and taking them out of school was one of the hardest decisions I’ve ever had to make. I literally cry when I think about it. I loved what they were learning in class, but I have no concept of how they learned it. "I want to impleme

Can You Give a Toddler a Montessori Lesson?

Want to know the truth? Most toddlers don't really like Montessori three-period lessons: they are still learning how to control their bodies (and bodily functions!). They rebel against help and interference from adults, like diaper changes, getting dressed, sitting at the dinner table, and taking a nap... And they insist on doing everything themselves! The trouble is they (still) need a lot of help! So you are always trying to help while letting them do it themselves! So how does giving a three-period lesson work in a Montessori environment for this age group? It doesn't! (My son's Montessori toddler teacher--with over 30 years of experience, will laugh at you when you pose the question!) If you are working with toddlers, my advice is to hold off on giving those three-period lessons until age three, and put out activities the toddler needs no help with. And you can rotate activities: take out what is too hard or frustrating for her (what she swats off the table, or throws,