About Shannon
My Story
Caring for young children has been a pastime of mine ever since I received my first baby doll at 4 years old. Later, at 13 years old, I took a babysitting class through the Red Cross and proceeded to canvass my neighborhood on foot to offer my services to local families. Throughout high school and college, I spent much of my free time babysitting before taking my Montessori training in 2016. Montessori transformed how I saw children, their development, and our role as adults in children’s lives. After my training, I went on to work in Montessori classrooms as a toddler assistant teacher and then lead teacher. I have also worked as nanny for many families while pursuing further training in child development, incorporating philosophies like RIE®, Aware Parenting, and Positive Discipline.
While this work has taught me so much about myself and human development in general, it’s also taught me the value of the respectful, dignified, and attuned care that all humans deserve right from the start. These days, it’s my passion to share the transformative information and practices I have encountered to help enrich our relationships with children and ourselves. I hope you’ll join me. ☻
Trainings + Certifications
❋ 0-to-3 Assistants to Infancy Diploma via Association Montessori Internationale (AMI) ❋ RIE® Nurturing Nanny™ Certification ❋ Positive Discipline Association Parent Educator Certification ❋ Lyndsey Hookway’s Holistic Sleep Coaching Mini Course Certification ❋ AMI 0-3 Refresher Course Certification (Foundations of Personality) ❋ Infant + Child CPR and First Aid Certification ❋
What is Third Way Parenting?
The name Third Way Parenting came about while contemplating two of the prevailing parenting styles common today—authoritarian parenting and permissive parenting. In today’s busy world and without the proverbial village it takes to raise a child, we well-meaning and loving adults can end up vacillating between these two styles, which can lead to confusion, discouragement, and disconnection for the whole family.
But there is a third way!
The third way, referred to as authoritative parenting, acknowledges that children deserve autonomy, dignity, and respect AND that we have an important role in confidently guiding children to help them feel safe in our leadership and to adapt to their time and place. The third way does not place one family member’s needs over others, but values age-appropriate compromise and balance so the entire family ecosystem can thrive.
As I continued to ponder the choices caregivers have to make each day and at critical parenting junctures, I realized that so much of the child-rearing information out there purports that there is right way or wrong way to do things. While we all have certain values that guide our parenting choices, I want to help caregivers see that not every choice is black and white. Taking time for some sensitive observation, we can find creative solutions to any challenges we come up against. When you think the choice is either this or that, there is usually a third way. The third way will look different for each family, but when we slow down and tune in, we can find the spaciousness and creativity to forge a new path that feels right for both parents and children.
