philosophy 

little miss workbench encourages children to embark on a journey and experience the world by inviting them to be curious, think deeply, work together, and solve problems. 

As an educator and a mom founder, Michele Chiaramonte, has seen how play develops these skills for all children. The learning tools that LMW creates are designed to actively engage children. Each wooden piece is intended to spark the imagination. They are open-ended and limitless; a beautiful way to teach our children to live. 

about

Founder, Michele Chiaramonte, holds both her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and her Master of Science in Teaching from Fordham University. Michele is a current member of the Committee for Pre-School Special Education for school districts on Long Island. She is a former New York City public school teacher. She has participated in numerous committees for arts and education including: Lincoln Center Institute for the Performing Arts, Teachers College Reading and Writing Project, NYC Architecture for Children. Thoughtful and inclusive play were the foundation of the classroom experience.

In 2015, Michele took her love of teaching and woodworking and formed little miss workbench, inc. The handmade collection continues her educational mission by inviting children to be curious about the world around them.

In 2018, little miss workbench expanded to include woodworking and design classes for children, teens and adults. Younger students work with prefabricated and unassembled wood items to sand, assemble, and finish. Older students complete the project from raw wood planks to assembled finished pieces. little miss workbench workshops instill the importance of focus, problem-solving, resilience, determination, and responsibility through the art of woodworking. 

giving back

We believe in giving back to the local and global community. We are a sponsor and workshop contributor to the Boys and Girls Club of the Bellport area and also support, Four Girls for Families, a locally formed charity that brings clean water to communities in Cambodia. (Please visit their sites for more information.) 

“Community is much more than belonging to something; it’s about doing something together that makes belonging matter” – Brian Solis

Thank you Troop Leader Helen for hosting this Girl Scout Journey - “think like an engineer.” I love that the girls chose this journey because they wanted to challenge themselves to try something new. It was a great team building experienc
Woodshop Wednesday at @brookhavenfreelibrary. Spring is in the air. Tonight we made serving trays. The crew learned a fun trick - how to use glue in place of a clamp. When the workshop finished, a patron thanked me for giving her courage to try new t
Woodworking Wednesday’s @brookhavenfreelibrary what an awesome crew to be building with. This week we made Finch birdhouses. This project was more complex than the previous because we needed to create a hinged door. Great work making a sweet li
We kicked off May with Woodworking Wednesday’s at @brookhavenfreelibrary. I love this kind and caring community. We all worked together to create these beautiful hanging shelves. Can’t wait to see where they will live. We are already two