The Montessori classroom has many key areas to focus on such as; Exercises of Practical Life, Mathematics, Sensorial, Geography, Science and Language.
Let us look at some of these areas and how they work towards developing knowledge, skills, concepts and values.
Food preparation-The very young children can learn manners while serving and eating their snacks. Children aged 2 can set the table, put food on serving plates, clean up, and wash the plates. Upon completion of the exercise, children practice Grace and Courtesy. E.g. When a child has finished juicing an orange or grating cheese, they offer their peers. In a Montessori set up children are able to prepare their own snacks from start to finish using the skills they have developed. These Practical Life exercises help them develop fine motor control and improve concentration. What's more, food and cooking can reinforce concepts in science, gardening, health, and nutrition, as well as math and reading.
The Joy of Geography-One of the many gifts a Montessori education often brings is a life-long enthusiasm for geography. geography helps children to understand how they are placed on the earth. They receive language for rivers, oceans, continents, forests and people. Activities such as the sand paper globe, colored globe and puzzle maps allow children to orient themselves to where they live. These activities also act as further preparation towards understanding that we share the planet with other living beings. Children are presented with activities such as classification of animals and vehicles into land, water and air.
Living things-Pets are a great way to provide a concrete example of the uniqueness and individuality of living things. This is a guaranteed way to excite children about animals and inspire plenty of curiosity. having pets in the environment makes children sensitive to the needs of other living creatures. It allows them to care for the animals and observe in order to discover what the animal needs and how to provide it. This first-hand experience - observing, understanding, and embracing the fundamental needs of an animal provides a natural opportunity to apply and refine Practical Life skills, as well as a chance to care for others.
The Benefits of group work and Cooperation-Montessori believes in cooperation and not competition.
Let us look at some of these areas and how they work towards developing knowledge, skills, concepts and values.
Food preparation-The very young children can learn manners while serving and eating their snacks. Children aged 2 can set the table, put food on serving plates, clean up, and wash the plates. Upon completion of the exercise, children practice Grace and Courtesy. E.g. When a child has finished juicing an orange or grating cheese, they offer their peers. In a Montessori set up children are able to prepare their own snacks from start to finish using the skills they have developed. These Practical Life exercises help them develop fine motor control and improve concentration. What's more, food and cooking can reinforce concepts in science, gardening, health, and nutrition, as well as math and reading.
The Joy of Geography-One of the many gifts a Montessori education often brings is a life-long enthusiasm for geography. geography helps children to understand how they are placed on the earth. They receive language for rivers, oceans, continents, forests and people. Activities such as the sand paper globe, colored globe and puzzle maps allow children to orient themselves to where they live. These activities also act as further preparation towards understanding that we share the planet with other living beings. Children are presented with activities such as classification of animals and vehicles into land, water and air.
Living things-Pets are a great way to provide a concrete example of the uniqueness and individuality of living things. This is a guaranteed way to excite children about animals and inspire plenty of curiosity. having pets in the environment makes children sensitive to the needs of other living creatures. It allows them to care for the animals and observe in order to discover what the animal needs and how to provide it. This first-hand experience - observing, understanding, and embracing the fundamental needs of an animal provides a natural opportunity to apply and refine Practical Life skills, as well as a chance to care for others.
Fostering love for books-We create cozy, comfortable reading corners for children to develop a liking towards books. Our library books are changed periodically, adding new ones based on the interests of the children and the current curriculum we are presenting. We read aloud to children often. Hearing the correct pronunciation of new words and appreciating the expressions of the teacher's voice are part of the magic of sharing a wonderful story. The stories read stimulate the imagination and facilitate vocabulary development with its rich language.
Puzzles- Puzzles develop hand-eye coordination, fine motor skills and visual perceptual skills. While working with puzzles children need to focus, problem solve and they feel a sense of accomplishment on completion. Puzzles are a great way of enhancing language skills and a conceptual understanding could be facilitated through a puzzle.
Scissors Skills for Children-We all know how young children love cutting with scissors, sometimes even cutting hair, clothing, and other important items. That's one of the reasons why, in the Montessori primary classroom, we acquaint young children with the proper use of scissors and help them develop basic cutting skills. Many of the cut pieces are recycled, put into a basket for craft work. As children develop coordination and skill with scissors, they will experience the satisfaction of mastering an important life skill. They can then take pleasure in being able to use their scissors skills for artistic expression.
Puzzles- Puzzles develop hand-eye coordination, fine motor skills and visual perceptual skills. While working with puzzles children need to focus, problem solve and they feel a sense of accomplishment on completion. Puzzles are a great way of enhancing language skills and a conceptual understanding could be facilitated through a puzzle.
It is hard to maintain positive feelings about someone who is trying to make you lose. Competition makes it difficult to share our skills, experiences and resources because each person is separately involved in his or her exclusive goal. Most competitive situations are highly stressful; the possibility of failure creates agitation if not outright anxiety. The fear or anger generated from being eliminated or losing often causes embarrassment, tension and hostility. In cooperative play, challenge, discovery and success are shared. Emphasis is on participation, acceptance and the “joy of play.”Cooperative activities are non-threatening and non-judgmental. As a result, this creates an atmosphere for relaxation and well–being–the foundation for more genuine, healthy and playful fun.
Sensorial Games and Variations-Each material isolates one quality, such as color, shape, roughness, or length, and then varies just that one quality. We challenge a child who has mastered the basic presentations of the Sensorial apparatus by showing games such as matching from memory, grading from memory, and then adding complexity by grading from any point in the series. The more complex exercises and variations are intended to spark interest in the child to continue to work with and explore the materials. Dr. Maria
Montessori stressed that children will spontaneously experiment with and create many combinations and patterns with the Sensorial materials.
Education is a natural process carried out by the human individual, and is acquired not by listening to words, but by experiences in the environment- Maria Montessori
Thank you,
Team Casa Vista.
Thank you,
Team Casa Vista.
