explore childhood, explore the world

About Us

Founded by Susan Shea and her team in 2015, Phonetic Planet has grown into a hub of child-centered educational resources that champions purposeful and culturally conscious learning.

Susan’s love for purposeful, life long, learning, alongside her wide spanning career in Montessori education, has supported the creation of material such as the Phonetic Planet readers, Kestrel and Robin, the written interview and travel series ‘In Conversation + On Location’, and the many resources available on childhood and child development.

Phonetic Planet’s work is complemented by the Small Hands Project, and Susan’s external engagements as a featured speaker at educational and parenting conferences both in-person and online.

To see what Susan and Phonetic Planet are up to in real time, check out Instagram and LinkedIn.

Meet Susan and the team

Now available on our website……..a look inside The Sixth Montessori School in Amsterdam, named after former student Anne Frank, with photos for the article kindly supplied by Martine Lammerts @montessorinederland . Link in bio. ✨

In addition to hosting the headquarters for the Association Montessori Internationale in Amsterdam (pictured), the Netherlands is home to over two hundred Montessori schools, all of which are publicly funded. Check our website later today for a new article about one of Amsterdam’s most well-known schools, and one of its former students.

Quick question! Can you, or someone you know, help me? If you are fluent in either Ukrainian, Punjabi, Pashto or Dari and would like to donate your translation skills to our ongoing work at @small.hands.project I would love to make contact with you! We are preparing a comprehensive database of practical activities for young children under the age of six years that can help them to develop their fine motor skills, powers of concentration and their overall self-confidence….all before they begin traditional schooling! This program will be free of charge and seeks to meet the needs of children everywhere; hence, our upcoming website will be multilingual and filled with inspiration for parents, educators and caregivers. Please DM me if you would like more information.

Time flies! Our final newsletter of 2024 will be coming your way soon and if you are not yet on our mailing list, you can sign up on the homepage of our Phonetic Planet website. We’ll be sharing a couple of our favorite holiday recipes from Austria as well as some exciting plans for 2025!

The evening is coming, The sun sinks to rest, The birds are all flying straight home to their nests, “Caw, caw,” says the crow as he flies overhead, It’s time little children were going to bed. Here comes the pony, His work is all done, Down through the meadow, he takes a good run, Up go his heels and down goes his head, It’s time little children were going to bed. - Anonymous

And the seasons, they go round and round And the painted ponies go up and down….

Children notice so many things! #montessori #montessorieducation #childdevelopment #toddlers #earlychildhood #howchildrenlearn #lookclosely #learningeveryday