What is the Liebster Award?
The Liebster award is a wonderful way to increase awareness of new blogs like this. It’s also a way to pay it forward by raising awareness of and supporting other new blogs that you love and that your readers might find helpful and interesting.
The 11 questions that Planting Peas asked were:
1. What is the target audience of your blog? Who are you writing for?
Hmm, interesting question! I don't know who my target audience is really! I just put posts up from time to time! One of the main reasons is to showcase to my friends and family what we are doing, but I like to think that over time, we can be useful to other people looking to homeschool (we call it home educate in the UK) using Montessori too!
2. Where do you look for Montessori, parenting or homeschooling help and inspiration? Facebook? Pinterest? Twitter? Or do you have a list of favorite blogs?
2. Where do you look for Montessori, parenting or homeschooling help and inspiration? Facebook? Pinterest? Twitter? Or do you have a list of favorite blogs?
A mix really. One of my favourite places for inspiration is the discussion forum on Keys of the Universe (also includes a 3-6 space). I love Jessica's guidance that people get on there, and how the community help each other. I like to read posts in various Facebook groups, and I look to Pinterest for inspiration for ME... I say 'me' in capitals, because I often pin things that I like under my Montessori boards but they do come with a disclaimer - they are definitely not all Montessori activities. They are there to inspire me if I need it, or contain ideas I think will work with my children, or ideas I might like to pursue. A lot of them are not actually Montessori.. just have to say that!
3. What do you do for fun in your spare time? What does your me-time look like?
This made me chuckle... I don't feel like I get enough time to do the stuff I have to do, let alone have 'me-time'! However, I have started going swimming before the kids get up in the mornings, leaving my husband to get them up and dressed, which he did anyway (because with hair like mine it needs washing and drying each and every day, which takes time!). I am loving the swimming, but it is over all too quickly!
4. How would your ideal weekend with your children look like?
At the beach, for the whole weekend (apart from church on Sunday mornings), relaxing and getting some vitamin D into our systems!
5. What’s important to you in your life?
My kids and doing the best for them. I have post-natal depression, so feeling supported is also important at the moment, because without support, homeschooling is a very daunting task!
6. What makes you feel important and respected?
Someone who is thoughtful and supportive, and provides solutions with a smile.
7. What makes you fall in love with a blog? What keeps you going back?
I have a favourite blog at the moment. It is Montessori School At Home. I just love it! (I love other blogs too by the way!). I love how Abbie is integrating the Keys of the World and Keys of the Universe albums, and I love seeing how she does things and how her children learn. She has the homeschool I wish I will have. She blogs with loads of photos twice a week most weeks, and I love it...
In general, I would say lots of photos, and I love printables too! Or how-tos etc...
8. What annoys or frustrates you about Montessori and/or homeschooling?
I get annoyed at the vast amount of 'Montessori-inspired' stuff out there that leads so many homeschooling parents, mostly mums, to think that every week they have to provide 30 different trays with new activities on. I love the Keys approach, and having trained in Montessori 3-6, it is a great way that is so right for homeschooling.
What frustrates me about my own homeschooling is not having the time to prepare what I feel I need to have prepared, and that our house is normally chaotic and messy, which is not the right environment for Montessori really. We used to have a dedicated classroom which was my peaceful place, but we hardly ever used it, so we brought it downstairs, mainly into our dining room, which is the walk through to our kitchen too, so is always getting messy. I really want to try to address that asap!
What frustrates me about my own homeschooling is not having the time to prepare what I feel I need to have prepared, and that our house is normally chaotic and messy, which is not the right environment for Montessori really. We used to have a dedicated classroom which was my peaceful place, but we hardly ever used it, so we brought it downstairs, mainly into our dining room, which is the walk through to our kitchen too, so is always getting messy. I really want to try to address that asap!
Also, the kids are not early sleepers, but even if they were, come 8pm and I am shattered and need to sleep myself, so evenings are not great for preparing work!
9. How do you determine what you write about for each blog post?
At the moment, I just waffle on about whatever I have in my head. I have photos of all the things we have been doing, but I don't have time to update the kids' records with them let alone blog about it!
10. What are you insecure about? What are you proud of?
My weight. I am proud of my children.
11. As a parent and/or a homeschooler, what are your worries?
That I will not do a good enough job of home educating my children.
1. I am a Mormon.
2. I am Montessori trained for 3-6, 6-9 and currently undertaking a 9-12 course.
3. I am half Austrian.
4. I used to be really into doing the lighting and sound for theatre productions!
5. I hate the winter.
6. I wish I loved the winter!
7. I am the mother of 5, but 3 of my babies live in Heaven.
8. I dislike most animals, but love studying zoology!
9. I used to be really anti homeschooling! But now I think it is the only way... well, see point 10!
10. I love the idea of homeschooling, but actually, if there was a top quality Montessori elementary school (or even better, all-through to 18) school nearby, I would more than likely want my kids to go there.
11. I live in a place that is near the beach, the countryside, the forest and the town. But I have found that I rarely go out to these places, but I am determined to now do so!
10. Fierce Learning
1. What is your favourite blog post you have posted?
2. What is your favourite educational blog at the moment and why?
3. How do you plan your homeschooling?
4. What brought you to Montessori (or Waldorf, or Charlotte Mason)?
5. How do you choose what to blog about and do you plan posts in advance?
6. What different kinds of blogs do you follow?
7. What is the most important thing for you to teach your children?
8. If you homeschool, what made you choose that as opposed to sending your child to school?
9. What kind of posts or educational subjects do you feel are being missed on the popular homeschool/Montessori blogs out there?
10. Why have you chosen your 11 blogs to nominate?
11. What do you think your children will grow up to be?
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