Who said Friday the 13th was unlucky???! It’s both my 2nd blogiversary and the start of the Ultimate Blog Party 2012!
Last year, I was 2 days late in joining the Ultimate Blog Party, but I’m one minute early and ready to go this year! I love the online friends I’ve made in the last two years, and I always look forward to making new friends. “Make new friends, but keep the old. One is silver, the other is gold” … so true! 🙂
Here’s some info about me and about my blog:
I’m Deb Chitwood, a Montessori educator/writer and mom of two grown children. I was a Montessori teacher and school owner before I homeschooled my kids through high school. My kids now both have college degrees and still have a love of learning (yay!).
My educational background is focused on Montessori education. I have my Montessori certification for teaching children ages 2½-5, and I’m also certified to teach two Montessori-based religious-education programs: Catechesis of the Good Shepherd and Godly Play. My bachelor’s degree has a concentration in Montessori Elementary and Early Childhood Education. I received my MA in Early Childhood Studies from England with my degree work and dissertation centered on Montessori education.
I’m also the author of a 1983 children’s book, The Magic Ring. Within the next few months, I’ll have an eBook coming out on Montessori at Home or School: How to Teach Grace and Courtesy.
At Living Montessori Now, I write about Montessori education, homeschooling, and parenting in general. I love sharing my experiences and encouraging parents and teachers. I also enjoy doing online research and love sharing links to great ideas and blogs I find during my research. You’ll find links to some of my most popular posts in the right sidebar and in my About Montessori page.
Here are some places you can find me online:
- Twitter as @DebChitwood, @RaisingSkaters, and @SpringSnowPub . Through @DebChitwood, I tweet and retweet blog posts, inspiration, and activities I find online. I also publish the Parent/Teacher Daily through Twitter.
- Living Montessori Now Facebook page (links to my posts and lots of posts from around the blogosphere along with a featured Free Printable of the Day). At the Raising Figure Skaters Facebook page, I share an inspirational Quote of the Day and lots of inspirational word art. At the Spring Snow Publications Facebook page, I share writing and blogging posts from some of the world’s top bloggers.
- RSS feed (my blog posts in a reader such as Google Reader)
- Pinterest (lots of Montessori-, holiday-, and theme-related boards)
- Google+ (new this year)
- Living Montessori Now Community where you’ll find all sorts of parenting and education ideas along with a weekly parent/teacher Pinterest pinning party and a Parent/Teacher StumbleUpon group. I also have a thread with all my featured free printables of the day in case you missed any!
- We Teach, including my We Teach Montessori group!
- And don’t forget to sign up for my newsletter in the right-hand sidebar to receive Karen Tyler’s AMS Montessori geography album and the Mom Bloggers Talk Montessori: Favorite Ideas and Activities eBook FREE along with a weekly newsletter containing a note from me with any important reminders and links to my posts from the week!
If you use Montessori materials but didn’t win a prize in my amazing blogiversary giveaway, Montessori Print Shop still has a gift for you! For my readers, Montessori Print Shop is giving a 20% off coupon code for any Montessori Print Shop materials you purchase during the next week! Here’s the code: LMN2BG41312. The coupon code expires at 11:59pm EST on Friday, April 20.
I have lots of online fun planned for the next few days! I’ll have some Montessori-inspired activities using free printables at PreK + K Sharing on Sunday, Montessori Monday activities and link-up on Monday, and a free printable counting book on Tuesday!
Please join me! 🙂
Share your favorite kids’ activities! Link up Montessori-inspired lessons and activities at Montessori Monday! Link up kids’ activities of all types at the Weekly Kids Co-op and Earth Day activities of all types at the Earth Day Blog Hop!
It is some kind of torture to see your last amazing giveaway ended just hours ago! I missed it! I am glad to have found your blog though on the blog party hop! I am also a homeschooling mother! <3 http://www.littlecrunchy.com
Thanks for your comment, Kimberly! I’m so sorry you missed my giveaway … but I’m glad you found my blog. Have a great weekend! 🙂
Hey Happy 2nd blogiversary! your blog is so great. enjoy your life. and I think your AWESOME blogger!
Thanks so much for your kind comment, Carol! Happy weekend! 🙂
Stopping by from the UBP- we have used some Montessori in our homeschooling and we love Godly Play. We used it for years in our church- it’s an amazing program.
Hope you can stop by and visit us too and join us for the GHQ 2012 (a FREE fun event with great prizes)- http://www.onehouseschoolroom.com/2012/04/ultimate-blog-party-2012.html
Thanks so much, Jenn! Godly Play really is amazing, isn’t it?! I’ll be visiting your blog, too! 🙂
We were a Montessori family. Happy Blogiversary!
Stopping by from UBP to say hello.
Have a great weekend!
POSH
Stopping by to party with you! I had no idea that you had a 3rd blog/site 🙂
Thanks so much! I’m lucky my husband writes most of the blog posts for that one … I can’t keep up with everything as it is! 😉
I think I’ve been to this blog before, just dropping by from the UBP12. Have a wonderful weekend!
Thanks, Cascia! I’ll be visiting your blog, too! I hope you also have a wonderful weekend! 🙂
Congrats on your blog- 2 years! I usually join the UBP as well. I forgot about it. Thank you for the reminder!
Jen
Thanks so much, Jen! I’m glad this reminded you … have fun at the party! 🙂
I am homeschooling my 4 year old and love it. Thank you for doing what you do! It is nice to “meet” you. I am visiting from the UBP and so glad to find you. I love printables for homeschool!
Enjoy your weekend and hopping around the UBP.
Thanks for visiting and commenting, LaVonne … it’s great to meet you, too! What a fun age … 4 was always one of my favorite ages to work with! I really have fun finding a free printable of the day to feature at the Living Montessori Now Facebook page … printables definitely make teaching easier! I hope you enjoy your weekend, too! 🙂
Congratz on your 2nd blogiversary! I’ve been following your blog for quite some time now and I must see that’s definitly one of the better ones around. I’ve been homeschooled as well and I’m glad my parents decided to go that way. It still benefits me today as I feel that I’m better at motivating myself than people that went to public schools.
Thanks so much, Rachel! I love hearing about your homeschool background! I found that my kids developed self-motivation, too … which really helped them when they went to college and in their careers afterward. 🙂
I am here as part of the Ultimate Blog Party please come and join our FREE blogger event. We are giving away a Kate Spade Pursehttp://madamedeals.com/ freebloggereventkate/… or come and win an ipad3 http://www.madamedeals.com/contests
Thanks for visiting, Amee! Those are some amazing giveaways … I’m following you! 🙂
I found you through the UBP 12. I actually just did a post on what the research says about Montessori education and would love for you to check it out.
http://parentingwithresearch.blogspot.com/2012/04/learning.html
Thanks, Jessica! Great post on my favorite topic … I love that you enjoy doing research, too! 🙂
Good Afternoon Deb! Stopping by from the UBP12 to say hello! I hope you are having a great time this week during the party!
-Emily, Timedog.com
Thanks for stopping by, Emily! What a very creative business you have! 🙂