There are a lot of reasons to love Montessori materials in the home: they are beautiful, you can teach using just the essentials (don't necessarily need worksheets--yea!), they are "diagnostic," meaning you can observe a child using the materials and discover what concepts or skills still need to be developed.
Homeschooling with primary Montessori materials is also efficient because many of them can be used with older children (elementary level), too. They may be used in slightly different ways, as this article explains:
Montessori Nuggets: Primary Montessori Materials LIVE in the Elementary Classroom
Cool, eh?
A fifty-something mother of six incorporates Montessori principles into REAL life.
Friday, January 25, 2013
Wednesday, January 23, 2013
The Bells: Listening, Matching and Grading
When I began my Montessori training at Belmont University more than 5 years ago there wasn't a whole lot on the web about Dr. Montessori's philosophy or about how to bring it down to earth (had Pinterest even been invented yet?). At first it seemed there wasn't much out there to add to the rigorous, time-consuming, traditional, hands-on training we got at Belmont, but then I stumbled upon 2 ideas for making Montessori affordable. This work, The Bells, is one of them. (I saw the idea for how to make your own here.)
Update: Just found this video that can add to your arsenal of ideas:
Memory Game
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| The black and white areas correspond to the notes on a piano. Clever, eh? |
You see, before I made them I had been stalking "proper" used bell sets for years and SO wishing I had the space for a REAL set of bells (no way that was going to happen!). Those things cost a gazillion dollars. Here's a good description of the work and it's importance. This idea of taking what is essential from The Bells lesson (part of Sensorial work, auditory) and replicating it is genius. And can I just say that I finished making this set several months ago, I finally presented the work this week, and not only did 3-year-old "Alleluia" love it, but it transformed what was becoming a cruddy, grumpy morning into a pleasant and productive one.
That said, maybe you'd like to make these, too? You just go to Hobby Lobby and buy two sets of the bells (don't forget your coupon!), spray paint one set white, the other set black, and make the felt board (buy foam core, adhesive spray and stiff felt in green, white and black). So worth it!
Although at first not amused, Alleluia stuck with the lesson and then really got into it. The exertion required to ring the bells was decent exercise and definitely a nice way to channel her fidgety self. Also, since we do a lot of language work ("I Spy" and letter sounds), the careful listening required to match and grade the bells was great practice.
Grading
First I had her grade (sort) the white bells by listening to the pitch. Just like on a piano keyboard, the lowest pitch goes in the leftmost spot. I was surprised at how easy this was for her. If your child or student seems frustrated or confused you can start off by giving them the lowest bell yourself, then let him or her find which bell comes next.
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| Notice that my "keyboard" is in two pieces? That's so that it is easy to store on the shelf. |
Matching
Once she had all of the white bells on the "white keys" of the board (with lowest pitched bells on the left, highest pitched bells on the right), I asked her to find the black bell that matched each white bell. This meant she would first ring the white bell and then take black bells out of the basket one-by-one until she found the match. Again, this was surprising easy for her. If your student is getting frustrated you might help by having him or her select a black bell from among just 3.
Checking
When she thought she'd found the match she rang them both at the same time. Very exciting! (apparently!) |
| Once she's found the white and black bells that seem to have the same pitch she rings them together and checks the underside (the color provides the control of error that every Montessori work should have). |
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| Still going strong. And this on a morning when she had been crabby and I was just about to throw in the towel. |
One More Time Now...
When she was all finished she played the whole scale, up and down. Obviously I've thrown in a lot of language ("high," "low," "pitch," "scale"). You don't have to cram all of that into the first lesson, but hey bring it on if the child is absorbing it all. |
| When she was all done she rang the bells, going up the scale and back down. |
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| I don't think it's a big deal whether you put the white bells on the "keyboard" spots and the black bells on the green background or vice versa. |
Other Stuff--More Advanced
You could always play games. For instance, you might sing, "This is C. Find me C." You could also add the flats and sharps, teach intervals, half-steps, whole steps, etc. Or you might ask the child to sing the scale.Update: Just found this video that can add to your arsenal of ideas:
Memory Game
Sunday, January 20, 2013
Silver Polishing: Drama and Suspense in a Bling Bling Package
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| Downton Abbey, eat your heart out. |
While shoe polishing is part of "Care of the Self," silver polishing is part of the "Care of the Environment" works under the Practical Life umbrella. One compelling thing about this work is the satisfaction a child can take in seeing a gross, darkened piece of silver be transformed by their own work into a shiny, reflective piece of bling bling!
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| Be sure to show off the tarnish! |
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| Cotton-tipped swabs can be used instead of cloths for the application if you prefer. |
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| A recent estate sale had several cheap pieces in terrible shape, which made polishing all the more satisfying! |
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| We make a big deal about counting to 10 before wiping off the cream (toddlers love drama and suspense). |
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| I put together a polishing set with baskets from Old Market, color coordinated cloths and an apron, cotton balls and Q-tips for the children who prefer those, and polish (from a Montessori catalog) that is less smelly and harsh than the kind at our local stores. For more on making the cloths, see this post on saving money. |
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| If your digital camera is handy, take "before" and "after" photos of your work. |
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| Maybe throw in a free science lesson to explain the upside-down reflection? |
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| "Ooohing" and "Aahhing" is a critical step in this work. |
To see some presentations on silver polishing, check out these posts.
http://www.wikisori.org/index.php/Silver_Polishing
http://themoveablealphabet.blogspot.com/2012/11/silver-polishing-practical-life-with.html
Tuesday, January 15, 2013
Handwarmers for Toddlers: Re-Using Those Tiny Baby Socks!
One of my New Year's resolutions is to get out and walk in the mornings, but it has been SO COLD and "Alleluia's" 3-year-old hands have been freezing after just 20-25 minutes. So--wish me luck!--tonight I've dug out the teeny, tiny mismatched baby socks and filled them with white rice (we switched to brown rice years ago, so this stuff is old!).
It doesn't take much to fill these. At first I chose some cute socks but they had rubber non-skid markings on the bottom and I was nervous that they would melt in the microwave?!? I tested these out at about 20-30 seconds each and then sewed them up.
I hope that I stitched them well enough that we won't leave a long trail of rice in our wake.
AFTER I made these it occurred to me that I should check and see what's recommended in terms of cooking times, materials to use, etc. These two sites popped up on Pinterest, and the corn kernels would be fun to try some time.
http://practicallyfunctional.net/2012/11/update-diy-pocket-hand-warmers/
I'll try these out tomorrow and update you if I learn anything bizarre or exciting. Wish us luck!
Thursday, January 10, 2013
Pretty, Funny, Happy, Real 20
Pretty
We spent Christmas down on Captiva Island, Florida. I love this photo so much I used it in a recent blog post!
Now that we are back in Tennessee, it's easy to find "pretty" here, too.
This is a shot of the groundskeepers at Cheekwood Botanical Gardens. The man in the background is drilling a series of holes every foot or so, and the woman in the foreground is putting bulbs in the ground, getting ready for spring!
Funny
I've been coming down to Captiva Island almost every Christmas since I was 11. Santa Claus arrives a little differently there. Here Santa is arriving by parasail!
Happy
The moment big brother Tesla came home from college, Alleluia wanted him to open his presents from St. Nick. She made the gift box on the stairs behind them.
Real
I'm planning to write a post on a spontaneous toddler/preschool matching activity called, "Find the Matching Mitten." So I have actual unedited footage of Alleluia scouring our huge tub o' mittens and hats, just to find a blessed pair to wear! She had spent part of that morning's walk crying that her "hands are rotten" because they were so cold!
Tuesday, January 8, 2013
"Become who you are."
"Become who you are." John Paul II said this a number of times in a number of ways: once to the world's youth, once to families. Here's another form of the same idea:
"Do not be afraid to be the Saints of the New Millennium, if you become who you are you will set the whole world on fire" (John Paul II World Youth Day 2000)
What does this have to do with Montessori?
It has EVERYTHING to do with how we approach children--as gifts from heaven created by God (not by us!). We need to ask again and again, "Lord, who is this person sent to me? What is he or she created to become?" What a great prayer in the midst of frustration with a child, or in the quiet classroom, before the day has started. My wonderful mentor taught us to consider going down our rosters each morning and praying for each child. With my own 3-year-old I find myself often asking her guardian angel to help me try a new approach when we've reached an impasse, to give me fresh inspiration when I'm at the end of my rope with her.
Why reflect on this today? This is the 20th anniversary of my entrance into the Nashville Dominicans as a postulant. Yes, I'm married now, with 6 children at home, one in heaven. What gives? After two months spent discerning my vocation--time I remember fondly--the novice mistress and I came to the conclusion that I didn't have a vocation to be a sister. What a wonderful experience! After so much searching, I had clearer vision of my calling, of what God made me to be.
And that brings me back to the title of this blog post: Become who you are. Let's remember that our work with children is to help them to become who their creator meant them to be.
I used to play a silly game with my dad where he would ask me what I wanted to be when I grew up. Sometimes I'd say a steeple climber and sometimes I'd say an artist or whatever. He'd say, "That's okay. You can be that, then," even though I wasn't really sure if there WAS such a thing as a steeple climber! I was very, very lucky to have a father who was just as interested as I was in what I would become.
This excellent article from yesterday's Daily Princetonian points out that many times, in our rush to help young people reach their potential, we actually squash their hearts' desires. Who are we to try to form our students into our image and likeness?
Let's be receptive to the little people in our lives, in our homes, in our classrooms. May they feel our warm acceptance of each of them as a gift, and may we help them on the long road of discerning who they were created to be.
Sunday, January 6, 2013
Happy Feast of the Epiphany!
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| On Epiphany we celebrate the manifestation of Jesus' divine nature. |
Many fans of the Montessori method don't know that the first Casa dei Bambini--started more than 100 years ago--opened its doors on Jan. 6, the Feast of the Epiphany.
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| There were three gifts, loaded with meaning: gold for a king, frankincense for a priest, myrrh for burial. |
Do we sometimes lose the essential message of Dr. Montessori's work, just as we lose the essential message of Christmas and the Epiphany?
I ask myself this question a lot. "Alleluia" has just turned 3 and I am revisiting my album pages from my days training at Belmont University. The big three we'll focus on in the coming months: Language, Sensorial work and Practical Life.
Our children are made in the image and likeness of God. Let's ponder the meaning of that this season and ask for His guidance in our work.
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