Coaching Parents
Coaching can be scheduled regularly or offered on an as-needed basis, depending on your family's preferences and goals. My aim is to empower parents with tools and confidence to support learning in a way that feels accessible and enjoyable for the whole family.
I support parents in finding meaningful and productive ways to engage with their kindergarten-fifth grade children in educational experiences at home. My coaching services range from offering simple activity ideas and home routines to providing personalized strategies for supporting your child’s academic development.
I offer guidance on how to effectively engage with your child during learning activities, particularly in areas such as reading fluency, comprehension, sight word recognition, and spelling. I also provide suggestions for games and family activities that make learning—especially in mathematics—fun, collaborative, and interactive. This includes support for building math fact fluency as well as helping your child develop a conceptual understanding of big mathematical ideas, such as number sense, operations, and patterns.
Coaching for Montessori Teachers
Whether you’re a new elementary Montessori teacher seeking support with foundational practices or a seasoned guide looking to refresh your approach, I tailor coaching to meet your needs. Sessions can be scheduled individually or as part of an ongoing professional development plan.
I offer coaching for Montessori educators focused on strengthening lesson planning, deepening math instruction, and enhancing assessment and record-keeping practices. While I provide support in lesson planning for all subject areas, I specialize in helping teachers design and implement math instruction that fosters conceptual understanding and student engagement.
In our work together, we’ll explore how to design and deliver math lessons that move beyond rote procedures and foster engagement with big mathematical ideas. I guide teachers in using strategies that help students not only perform mathematical operations but understand the "why" behind the math—connecting ideas logically and building a strong conceptual foundation. We’ll focus on creating lessons that promote mathematical thinking, reasoning, and problem-solving, encouraging students to explain and justify their methods using appropriate vocabulary, models, and representations.
A key component of my coaching is helping teachers support students in developing the ability to prove and articulate their thinking, use logic to connect concepts, and approach problems flexibly. Through this, students build confidence and a deeper appreciation for mathematics as a creative, meaningful, and interconnected discipline.
I also support teachers in streamlining their record-keeping and assessment practices, helping them track student growth, set meaningful goals, and use observations and data to inform instruction. Together, we can build systems that work for you and reflect each child’s progress in an authentic, manageable way.
“As someone who had the great fortune of teaching in Montessori education for over 10 years, I was among a group of dedicated teachers who facilitated the social, emotional, and academic growth of a wide body of students. Francesca Tappi stood out among our colleagues as someone who saw teaching as both an art and a science. She understands deeply that learners are living beings who grow and change. With this foundation, Francesca is constantly assessing the tools she has for efficacy and gathering more tools to reach all learners. Francesca understands that education is a dynamic engagement. Students learn best in environments that encourage risk, conversation, trial and error, examination, and collaboration. Francesca creates a space of acceptance where critical thinking and a growth mindset drive each lesson.”
“Francesca recommended a fun and engaging math game for my 5-year-old that really boosted his number and pattern recognition skills. Her thoughtful book suggestions and effective learning strategies have been invaluable in helping me guide my son and teach him the fundamentals he needs to thrive as he transitions from kindergarten to first grade.”
“One of Francesca’s subtle gifts as an educator is that she is nonjudgmental. With a sense of calm and curiosity, she walks side-by-side with students and adults as they learn. Her toolbox as a teacher is vast, and she shares it generously, bringing insight and compassion to all of her work.”