Transitions aren’t hard… until we make them.
May 12, 2026I’ve been hearing a lot about transitions over the years that I have been in this field and for some reason the question(s) never change. “How do we make them smoother?” “What strategies actually work?” “Why do toddlers struggle so much with transitions?” Those are important questions but in between the noise, the movement, the half-finished play and the “it’s time to clean up!” moments… I keep coming back to something a little uncomfortable: What if it’s not the transition that’s hard… but the way we expect it to happen? I’ve been noticing that transitions don’t usually fall apart at…
Are we supporting regulation… or interrupting it?
When I first started this blog, I wrote a whole series on emotional intelligence, and I found myself returning to self-regulation again and again—how it develops, how we support it, and why it feels so important in the early years.…
My Successful Classroom (Most of The Time): It Starts With How We Show Up
I’ve mentioned before that one of the qualities research highlights in a strong educator is the importance of building trusting relationships—with both children and colleagues. In my previous posts, I’ve spent a lot of time talking about the relationships between…
My Successful Classroom (Most Of The Time): The Strength I Didn’t Understand Yet
In this series I’ve been reflecting on what actually makes a classroom successful — not in theory, but in the everyday reality of working with children and the adults around them. In the last post, I wrote about strong teams.…
My Successful Classroom (Most of the Time): Strong Teams Build Strong Classrooms
In this series, I’ve been reflecting on what actually makes a classroom feel strong — not in theory, but in the messy, everyday reality of working with children and the adults around them. In the last post I wrote about…
My Successful Classroom (Most of the Time): Vision Before Systems
Before I go any further, I should probably explain what I mean by “systems” and “vision,” because I used to think they were almost the same thing. When I say systems, I mean the structure we are trying to implement…
My Successful Classroom (Most of the Time)
What Do We Even Mean by “Successful”? A successful classroom does not happen overnight. If it did, someone would have written a very expensive book about it already and we’d all be following The 3-Step Calm Classroom Method™ while drinking…
Who is this really challenging?
In room meetings, I often hear the words — usually between discussions about interests and upcoming events — “We need to talk about a challenging behaviour.” And almost every time, my first thought is: What challenging behaviour? Not because nothing…
Behind The Crayons the Labels Blur…
In early childhood education, curriculum often sounds like a choice you’re supposed to make once—pick an approach, commit fully, and never look back. Montessori or Reggio. Emergent or structured. Play-based or outcomes-driven. As if learning fits neatly into one box,…
Peace of Mind Curriculum
If you’ve spent some time reading my earlier posts, you may already have a sense of why this blog exists. If not, I thought it might be time to say it out loud. This blog grew out of my practice—years…
My Career Reflection
I didn’t enter early childhood education (ECE) with a five-year plan, a ladder to climb, or a list of titles I wanted to collect. I entered it because I was curious and I cared — about children, about learning, and…
