The time with Michelle has been amazing for our 2 year old son Ekansh, and we will miss her and her family a lot when we move away. Since the location was flexible, we requested to bring Ekansh to her place (so that ours would be quiet for working from home), which worked well. The settling process was easy - Ekansh was happy immediately, and after two playdates we started to bring him for half days Mo-Fri, and soon also for a couple of full days every week. At the end of every day, Michelle sends us a note with the day’s activities, new words, nap duration, meals and snacks, nappy changes, any other noteworthy details, and often photos. We feel at peace and happy for Ekansh to be there, as Michelle and her family are exemplary: mindful, kind, empathetic, as well as intellectual and academic.

Michelle is loving and joyful and offers lots of interesting activities, and Ekansh is also very happy to have Elias’ company: Elias is relaxed and generous about sharing all his toys and his space, so they happily play together, learn from each other and share the daily adventures. They started to walk around holding hands, bring each other toys and snacks, and wave each other goodbye at the end of the day. Ekansh often asks for Michelle and Elias on weekends, or even in the evening after just coming home from her place.

Michelle is very well-organised and reliable, which gives Ekansh (and us as parents) a feeling of comfort and trust. The home and playing spaces are neat, attractive, and Montessori-aligned. She is always ready to offer well-prepared and thought-through outings, games, songs, and crafts, but also never rushes and leaves as much time for free play as the children wish.

Ekansh absolutely loves the daily visits to playgroups, parks, and attractions like the science museum, and Michelle finds a good balance of these trips with rest times and smaller walks. She maintains a structured daily routine, and going through it together with Elias has helped Ekansh to understand and enjoy the small and big processes of daily life. He has learned many life skills that he can now apply with minimal supervision, from good manners at meal and snack times, to safely crossing a road using the traffic light.

Michelle and her husband are intellectual and educated, and emphasize these values at home. Elias reflects this as he is exceptionally advanced with his language development and concepts like counting, ABC, and colours. In Michelle’s care and by immitating Elias, Ekansh’s learning has benefitted immensely. Since we ourselves speak several languages (German, Hindi, English) at home, we also love that the communication is bilingual, both English and German, and Ekansh has learned many new words and full sentences in both.

Another aspect that we really appreciate are Michelle’s knowledge and dedication to continuously refining her pedagogical methods. She is always gentle and relaxed, but manages to maintain rules and guidance based on well-conceived principles and careful observation of the children. Whenever we needed advice regarding toddler tantrums or other challenges, Michelle has been happy to support us with helpful strategies and has put in extra thought for finding teaching methods and rules that work for Ekansh and our family.

Besides the rich variety of fun and beautiful experiences Ekansh has had, Michelle’s support has made made a lasting difference for our family in finding ways to learn and develop together, and we are very pleased with the progress that Ekansh is making with challenges like sharing, waiting, and asking politely for things. Learning these concepts positively has helped him to become even more happy and confident, and will be an excellent foundation for starting nursery in our next place of residence.

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