Creativity and Wonder: Every teacher can foster creativity, regardless of artistic experience

My name is Robin Norgren, M.A. and I am here to help make Montessori philosophy more relevant in the classroom. My projects include: Josey's Art School, The Gifted Learner, Creativity and Wonder and A Montessori Way of Seeing. I found my way into educational spaces as a mother of Creative children yet I am not an art teacher. This information is important because my style empowers teachers who are shy about teaching art but looking for products that promote expression over technical perfection.

The Classroom Is Never Finished

There is a moment many teachers are working toward.

The moment when the classroom is finally ready.

Shelves are set.
Materials are in place.
Everything looks the way it is supposed to look.

And then the children arrive.

What I have come to understand is this:

That moment never really comes.

Not in the way we expect it to.

Because the classroom is not something you complete.

It is something you enter into.

At the beginning of the year, you prepare as best you can.

You set out what you believe will meet the children.

You organize the space with care.

You think through the flow.

But the real work begins after that.

When the children start showing you who they are.

What they reach for.
What they ignore.
What they struggle with.
What they repeat again and again.

And slowly, the classroom begins to change.

Are you needing some support with how to structure your classroom? As a Montessori teacher, I understand that feeling of overwhelm! I have created a detailed lesson plan to 'hold your hand' through each day. These lesson plans can either be used to jump start how to create the rhythm of the classroom (monthly) or I have a full year plan that can then be used for a 3 year cycle.

Montessori Daily Lesson Plans

Montessori INSPIRED Lesson Plans

LOOKING FOR ART LESSONS FEATURING DIFFERENT ARTISTS?

Link to my FREEBIES

Montessori Teacher Reset: Book Haul, Rainbow Writing & A Real Monday

A real week in my Montessori classroom — choosing authentic books, rolling out rainbow letters, managing busy Mondays, and trying to protect work-life balance as a teacher.

In this vlog, I share:

• How I choose books for the classroom (and why we avoid cartoon-style characters)

• A simple rainbow letter & number writing activity

• Bringing back cutting work & the Montessori ellipse • Honest reflections about tech-wired Mondays

• A little teacher life reset (concert plans, reading, coffee, bowling night)

• The book that’s reminding me why storytelling matters

Teaching 19 children while training a new assistant and working four-day weeks has stretched me — but I’m learning to focus on the lives right in front of me. If you're a Montessori teacher, preschool educator, or just someone trying to balance meaningful work with real life — you’re not alone.✨

I’ve also started writing weekly long-form posts on Substack about Montessori life and mentorship. It’s free — link below if you'd like to read along.

Thanks for spending the weekend with me.

Montessori Daily Lesson Plans

Montessori INSPIRED Lesson Plans

LOOKING FOR ART LESSONS FEATURING DIFFERENT ARTISTS?

Link to my FREEBIES

Ask a Montessori Teacher: Holding Boundaries Without Breaking Curiosity

One of the hardest tensions in Montessori is this:
we carefully prepare environments to attract children — and then we ask them to wait.

We design materials to be beautiful, purposeful, and inviting. And then we are surprised when a child reaches for something they haven’t yet been shown how to use, or uses a material in a way that wasn’t intended.

This moment — right here — is where Montessori is often misunderstood.

When a child takes a material without a presentation, it isn’t usually defiance. It’s interest. Curiosity. Readiness brushing up against structure.

In mixed-age classrooms, this tension often resolves itself. Second- and third-year children model the rhythm of the room. They remind younger children what is available and what comes next. The community begins to hold itself.

But not every classroom has that balance every year.

And when it doesn’t, the adult must step in — not to control, but to guide.

Sometimes that guidance sounds like:
You haven’t had a lesson on that yet.

READ MORE

Montessori Daily Lesson Plans

Montessori INSPIRED Lesson Plans

LOOKING FOR ART LESSONS FEATURING DIFFERENT ARTISTS?

Link to my FREEBIES

Weekend Reset as a Montessori Teacher | Asian-Inspired Nachos, Yoga, Kindness Week & Resell Wins

In this vlog, I’m sharing a little bit of everything — real life as a Montessori teacher, small business owner, and mom.

🍜 Trying a new E-Meals recipe: Asian-inspired nachos (with pork, wontons, edamame, carrots & sesame!)

🧘‍♀️ Finally making it to yoga after weeks of resistance

🎨 Painting clay figurines + talking about creative blocks

📚 Planning lessons: Living vs. Non-Living (with three-part cards + objects)

🎀 Our school’s Kindness Week ribbon project

🎂 February classroom plans (Celebration of Life, Chinese New Year, conferences)

📦 Poshmark vs. eBay reselling strategy + why patience matters

📖 Library refresh for the classroom

This video is about rhythms — food, work, creativity, self-care, parenting a 20-year-old, and running a classroom at a startup Montessori school.

I also share: How I structure kindness recognition in the classroom Why intentional self-care takes effort What I’m learning about business strategy through reselling Why sometimes cake for breakfast is allowed.

If you’re a teacher trying to build balance, a Montessori educator, a creative navigating resistance, or someone building side income while working full-time — you’re in the right place.

✨ I’ve also started writing weekly long-form posts on Substack about Montessori life and mentorship. It’s free — link below if you'd like to read along.

Thanks for spending the weekend with me.

Montessori Daily Lesson Plans

Montessori INSPIRED Lesson Plans

LOOKING FOR ART LESSONS FEATURING DIFFERENT ARTISTS?

Link to my FREEBIES

The Classroom Is Never Finished

Montessori Teacher Reset: Book Haul, Rainbow Writing & A Real Monday

Ask a Montessori Teacher: Holding Boundaries Without Breaking Curiosity

Weekend Reset as a Montessori Teacher | Asian-Inspired Nachos, Yoga, Kindness Week & Resell Wins

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