Montesecrets » Curriculum

Happy BeLated Birthday to John Lennon

admin — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 21:57:47 +0000

October 9th marks the birthday of a great legend in history of music. John Lennon, one of the geniuses behind “The Beatles”, inspired thousands, if not millions of people. Take the time to reflect on his work, and continue to spread his legacy of peace.

Enjoy!

The Beatles

Lennon/McCartney

From The Blue Album

Love, love, love, love, love, love, love, love, love.
There's nothing you can do that can't be done.
Nothing you can sing that can't be sung.
Nothing you can say but you can learn how to play the game
It's easy.
There's nothing you can make that can't be made.
No one you can save that can't be saved.
Nothing you can do but you can learn how to be you
in time - It's easy.

All you need is love, all you need is love,
All you need is love, love, love is all you need.
Love, love, love, love, love, love, love, love, love.
All you need is love, all you need is love,
All you need is love, love, love is all you need.
There's nothing you can know that isn't known.
Nothing you can see that isn't shown.
Nowhere you can be that isn't where you're meant to be.
It's easy.
All you need is love, all you need is love,
All you need is love, love, love is all you need.
All you need is love (all together now)
All you need is love (everybody)
All you need is love, love, love is all you need.

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October is here….

admin — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 04:33:01 +0000

October is here and what does that mean? Witches, ghosts, and goblins? Well, not in a Montessori classroom! LOL When I think of October, I think of all the signs of Fall…..brightly colored leaves, cool crisp air, and pumpkin patches.

I love changing the classroom to match the seasons, but I think some teachers go a little too overboard. Putting Pumpkins and Ghosts all over the wall, is not cool! (Believe me, I’ve seen this before!) Remember, Montessori emphasized how important it was for a child to have consistency. You can change some things around (like counters, beans, glasses, ect.) but be carefully not to over do it where your children feel overwhelmed.

In our classroom, we reserved a small place for “BIG WORKS” which we occasionally used for seasonal activities. The bottom picture below was a work that we called, “Pumpkin Scrubbing”.

The children LOVED this work! It was amazing to see them take pride in their work. They really enjoyed cleaning the pumpkin, and were able to follow through with the entire work cycle. If you are looking for interesting and purposeful activities to spice up your classroom, try giving this activity a try. I’d love to hear your comments!

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Just a sneak peek of the “Peaceful Child” Online class

admin — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 01:57:01 +0000

I’m really excited about my upcoming online class. I think that what I have to share will be very valuable and useful. My goal is to help parents become more aware of their role in their child’s life. In my course, I will talk about different ways parents can promote “peace” in their child’s life. There are a lot of ancient practices that have proven to be effective, and I’m going to share one of them with you today!

Click on the links below to REGISTER today!

October 6th 12:00pm EST

October 7th 10:00pm EST

Hand Held Labyrinth:

What is a Labyrinth?

Labyrinth patterns can be found in various ancient cultures throughout the world. While a labyrinth may look like a maze, it actually is quite the opposite, since there is only ONE way to the center. The Labyrinth represents guidance, trust, reflection, and a path to the heart.

The( above) picture represent a Labyrinth based on the design of the Chartres Labyrinth located in France. (below)

Labyrinths have been used as a sacred journey. Labyrinths are a way to connect with the divine for inspiration and guidance. It also helps with finding direction.

How can Labyrinths benefit your child?

Working with Labyrinths brings calmness, peace, and deep relaxation. I’ve witnessed the miracles of Labyrinths,and can attest that even the most hyper child can benefit from tracing the path of the Labyrinth. I did some research on the web, and found that many parents with ADHD children have had positive results with Labyrinths. It helps a child remain focus, and centers them.

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It’s been a while…..

admin — Sat, 08 Aug 2009 04:00:17 +0000

Hello guys. Yes, I know. I’ve been a very bad blogger. I blame life. You know, things happen. A lot of things happen! It’s been a long bumpy ride the last few months, but I’m happy to say that I’ve completed my AMS Early Childhood course and am anxiously waiting to receive my diploma in the mail. Receiving my college diploma wasn’t this exciting! I really worked hard and I am super excited to see my efforts documented by a piece of paper. I know that is so not “Montesssori”, but I grew up in the traditional system, and am conditioned to like “rewards”. (I’m working on it!)

How do you transform your classroom into the perfect environment? I underestimated the amount of work teachers go through when organizing their rooms. I know teachers who have spent 2 entire days solely on Practical Life. If you weren’t anal before you took the Montessori training, chances are you’ll become obsessive compulsive by the time everything is over. I remember when I set up my first classroom, I switched around small glass containers, changed beans, trays, utensils just about 100 times…..

I’m going to try to free up some time so I can document my experiences teacher. I’m sure a lot of people are in the same boat, and if I can offer any tips, that would be cool.

Tip #1

When setting up your classroom, allocate a good chunk of time towards Practical Life. Don’t underestimate it’s simplicity. The Practical Life area is CRUCIAL to the child’s success in the other areas of the class. With that said, it’s important to concentrate on tiny details to make sure that you provide your students with the best possible environment.

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Cards and Counters

admin — Mon, 18 May 2009 03:26:30 +0000

Materials:

The numerals 1-10

A box of 55 red chips

Presentation:

1. Invite the child to a presentation

2. Lay out the numbers starting at the upper left hand corner of the rug.

3. Point to the number “1″, trace it, and say, “This says one”

4. Take one red chip from the box and place it under the numeral saying, “This is one”.

5. Point to the number “2″, trace it, and say, “This says two”.

6. Take two red chips from the box and place them side by side to make a pair. (See picture above)

7. Continue in the same way for the numbers 3-10. Make sure that you put the odd red chip on the “left” side.

Aims:

1. Introducing the Concept of Odd and Even

2. Reinforce Sequencing

3. Reinforce association of quantity and symbol

Indirect:

1. Preparation for understanding grouping of numbers into multiples.

2. Development of Concentration.

**This activity is very easy to make. If you don’t have the wooden numerals 1-10, you can always use paper numerals instead.

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1-10 Sorting

admin — Thu, 14 May 2009 02:10:16 +0000

This is a fun sorting activity that we have in our Math area. In my personal experience, I would say this activity is great for a 3 1/2 year old. But your best bet is to “Follow the Child”, as my girl Maria Montessori would always say! You might have a child in your class who is way younger, but has shown signs that they are ready to go on to this activity. As the teacher, it is up to you to observe the child, and follow your instinct.

Get a box and divide it into 10 compartments. Label it 1 to 10. Mix a variety of similiar objects and place them in a basket. (ie. erasers as pictured above) The object of this activity is two-fold

A) Sort each of the objects into separate groups

and

B) Match the quantity with the symbol

In our classroom we use different tiny erasers as our objects. I would of preferred to use natural materials. Montessori believed that children were more attracted to natural objects because they were more aesthetically pleasing then man-made objects. I think the activity above would be beautiful if the objects were switched up with Crystals and Gemstones! How attractive would that be????

For example, you could get a basket of the following:

1 piece of Malachite

2 pieces of Tigers Eye

3 pieces of Citrine

4 pieces of Amethyst

5 pieces of Kyanite

6 pieces of Clear Crystal Quartz

7 pieces of Turquoise

8 pieces of Moonstone

9 pieces of Hematite

10 pieces of Rose Quartz

Can you think of any other natural objects children can sort out? I’d love to hear you r ideas! I hope you enjoyed this activity!

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Punching Shapes!

admin — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 20:21:03 +0000

This activity helps a child develop fine motor skills by stregnthening their coordination and concentration.

All you need is some construction paper with various shapes outlined in black. In our class, we use a small piece of carpet to put underneath the paper. The child uses a large pushpin to carefully punch out the shapes! Voila! A fun and exciting activity!

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Global Art

admin — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 17:06:39 +0000

“All children are artists. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up.”

-Pablo Picasso

I have to admit, I am a bit disappointed with the current art section in my classroom. It’s just soooooo plain. We have 2 shelves filled with various activities, but not ONE work offers the child a deeper look into Art and Art History. What’s funny is that the afternoon Lead Directress is an ART MAJOR, and I honestly expected so much more from someone with that type of background. (She’s been there for over 25 years, so I think she lost her “Montessori Modjo”.)

Art is great and we need more of it in our classrooms! Keep in mind, that when I use the term “art”, I mean projects beyond markers and crayons. We can use Art to teach our children about the world around them.

One of my classmates recommend us to purchase the book: GLOBAL ART: Activities, Projects, and Inventions from around the world.

It’s a book filled with a bunch of art projects and ideas from various countries. Each chapter is organized by continents, and teaches the child world art history.

When a child learns about art, they learn to appreciate beauty!

If you want to bring more culture into your child’s life…check this book out!

Above: A picture of a colorful Zambian basket.

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Land, Water, and Air

admin — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 03:13:34 +0000

Ok…can someone really please remind me to NEVER procrastinate again? The heat is on! I have two more days until my final Institute, and still have tons of work to do! Arghhh! I feel like I haven’t blogged in ages! (which means 5 days in the blog world!)

Anyways, I’m taking a quick break from studying and thought I’d post a real fun and quick activity you might want to try with your children!

Land, Water, and Air

AIMS:

Expose the child to the basic elements of land, water, and air
Expose the child to the concrete and abstract representations of these elements
Preparation for cartography and geography
To stimulate discussion

Materials:

3 empty clear glass baby food jars
water (preferably colored blue)
soil
3 labels-land, water, and air

An example of a presentation:

“We live on planet Earth. The planet earth is made up of three things: land, water, and air.”

Unscrew the lid from the land jar and scoop a bit of the soil into it and say–>”This is land”

Unscrew the lid from the water jar and add water.–>”This is water”.

Unscrew the lid from the air jar and explain that area is all around us and invisible. –>”This is air”

Depending on the child, you can introduce the labels and match them accordingly.

A fun extension: Use old magazines to find different examples of land, water, and air. You can already prepare this for the child, and have them categorize them on their own OR you can let them find the examples themselves. Follow the child!

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Open it up!

admin — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 01:34:19 +0000

Opening Jars and Containers

Direct Aim: Teaching a child how to open up containers

Indirect Aim: Concentration, Fine Motor Movement, Coordination, Control

Get a basket and fill it up with different types of containers.

Lay a mat on the floor or on a table. Take one container and demonstrate how to take the cap off. Let the child feel both pieces. Next demonstrate how to place the cap back on. Allow the child to explore on their own. Only intervene when necessary. Allow the child to make mistakes. Sit back and observe.

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