About Montessori Hut

Hi, I'm Eva, founder of Montessori Hut and an AMI-trained Montessori teacher in London. I design and make Montessori language cards by hand, and I curate the classic Montessori materials I use and love, for families and schools.

My story

I studied engineering at Cambridge and then worked in investment banking at Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley, in London and Hong Kong. After my son was born I discovered the Montessori method and fell in love with it.

I went on to train with the Maria Montessori Institute in London, where I gained:

  • the AMI 0–3 Diploma
  • the AMI 3–6 Diploma (the full training for lead teachers)
  • the AMI 6–12 Assistant Teacher certificate

I've also worked as a supporting teacher in a lovely Montessori 3–6 classroom in north London. I'm a mum of three.

📰 As featured in the Montessori Society AMI (UK) Direction magazine (Issue 5, Summer 2025): From UK to Mexico: A Montessori Journey of Transition, my article on taking our family to a Montessori school in Oaxaca, Mexico.

☘️ Visiting the AMI headquarters in Amsterdam and paying tribute in Maria Montessori's study

Eva visiting the AMI headquarters in Amsterdam, in Maria Montessori's study

☘️ Visiting Heutink in the Netherlands, parent company of Nienhuis, the company Maria Montessori worked with to create many of her materials

Eva visiting Heutink, maker of Nienhuis Montessori materials, in the Netherlands

☘️ The AMI 3–6 Diploma course at the Maria Montessori Institute

AMI 3-6 Diploma training at the Maria Montessori Institute in LondonMontessori materials in the AMI 3-6 training room

☘️ Collecting leaves of all different shapes as part of the AMI 3–6 Diploma

Leaves of different shapes collected for the AMI 3-6 Diploma botany work

☘️ The AMI 0–3 course requires 250 hours of observing children from birth to 3 – about 7 hours a week for the year between the two summer modules! Here my daughter was "volunteering" to be observed in a nido when she was 1…

Eva's daughter, aged 1, in a Montessori nido

☘️ …and again in an Infant Community when she was about 2.

Eva's daughter, aged about 2, in a Montessori Infant Community

☘️ My son visiting and working in the Maria Montessori Institute 3–6 training room, where we practise with all the materials.

Eva's son working with Montessori materials in the 3-6 training room

Why I started Montessori Hut

When I moved back to London to start my training, with a 3-year-old and a 1-year-old, I wanted a Montessori home. My training showed me how much you can do at home without breaking the bank, but I struggled to find tools made for children's hands: simple, good quality and actually working. I know how frustrating it is when a child who loves sewing can't cut the thread because the scissors aren't made for small hands.

So in April 2022 – five months pregnant with my third child, who arrived that October – I started Montessori Hut: a small shop of essential, well-loved Montessori materials that support children's learning and independence.

Our handmade cards

The heart of the shop is the language cards I design and make myself in London: 3 part cards, vocabulary and fact cards, and matching sets with real objects and figures. Every set follows what I learned in my AMI training:

  • Real photographs, one object on a plain background, so children learn what things really look like
  • Accurate names (a dachshund, not just a dog) in lowercase print for early readers
  • Built to last: professionally printed on 240gsm photo card paper, matt-laminated on both sides, in a pouch and A6 box
  • Any language at no extra cost – just ask

They're used by families, nurseries and Montessori schools in the UK and abroad.

For schools

I know how much it takes, in money and effort, to create a beautiful classroom. We're an authorised distributor of the full Nienhuis range of Montessori materials (made by Heutink in the Netherlands), and we offer school discounts on our cards. See our school orders page or email me.

Giving back

10% of our profits go to Little Village, a London charity that runs baby banks, passing on donated clothes, toys and equipment to families with children under 5.

Quick facts

  • Founder: Eva Cheng, AMI-trained Montessori teacher (0–3, 3–6 and 6–12 assistant), Maria Montessori Institute, London
  • Founded: April 2022, in London
  • Featured in: Montessori Society AMI (UK) Direction magazine, Issue 5, Summer 2025 (read the article)
  • What we sell: handmade Montessori 3 part cards, vocabulary cards and matching sets; Nienhuis Montessori materials
  • Based in: London, UK. Handmade cards ship from London; Nienhuis materials ship from the Netherlands
  • UK delivery: £2.90, free over £40
  • Charity: 10% of profits to Little Village
  • Contact: eva@montessorihut.com · WhatsApp +44 7904 072643 (messages, answered within 24 hours on weekdays)