Let's get practical: What is Practical Life in the Montessori classroom

At first, Dr. Montessori saw the need to help the poor children she was working with in Rome to practice good hygiene. But before long, she realized that children were naturally captivated by all kinds of typical “grown-up” and household activities and engaged in these activities gleefully, as if propelled by an inner drive. Often, they would engage in these activities tirelessly and with authentic tenacity and focus. Dr. Montessori quickly noticed that through this constant repetition of motions with both small and larger muscle groups, children were perfecting their coordination, building pre-writing skills (like their pincer grip) and gaining confidence in--and fulfillment from--a particular task.

As you may have noticed in your own home, imitation is one of the child’s strongest urges during the early years. So, too, is the cry of: “I want to do it. Let me do it.” Using the child’s natural inclinations as a point of departure, the Practical Life curriculum (coupled with the proper modeling provided through teacher-led lessons) was developed.  This set of classroom activities comprises work in:

§  Control of movement or “dexterity” (small & large muscles)

§  Care of self

§  Care of the environment

§  Grace & courtesy

§  Basic art skills

and is a good link between the classroom and the home. In a Montessori classroom, materials are child-sized, attractive, and real. Lessons are brief and succinct as children will watch and imitate, putting their own personal expression into the activity.

           

Practical life is a practical, enjoyable and effective launch pad for the rest of the Montessori curriculum and helps kindle a life long journey of joyful learning.

Our hands feed the mind: a look at the "sensorial" area of the Montessori classroom

Dr. Montessori was a scientific observer. 

According to Montessori, a child between two to six years passes through the "sensitive period for the refinement of senses". Children during this time are particularly drawn to certain types of activities. She further discovered that through exploration, repetition, and the introduction to language, children learn to refine their senses and their understanding of the world around them. She took each of the senses and developed materials that would support children in using and refining their skills of classification, ordering, and pairing. 

Here you see one of our young Montessorians deeply concentrating as she works with the Pink Tower-- an iconic Montessori material.These cubes develop visual discrimination of size in three dimensions. As with all Montessori materials, there is always a purpose in addition to inherent beauty. Working with this material prepares the child to understand mathematical concepts in the decimal system, geometry, and volume.(The cubes increase progressively in the algebraic series of the third power. Therefore, the second cube equals 8 of the first; the third cube equals 27 of the first etc…)

The hands, Dr. Montessori, put forth, feed the mind[i]—where the hands represent the physical way in which we take in information through our senses, from visual to stereognostic. As we classify the things around us, we begin to organize our intelligence.

Do you know the name of the other work pictured here? Share your responses or ask your children to tell you about this "colorful" work pictured on the right!

Happy Montessori Education Week!

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[i] The hands are the instruments of man's intelligence." (Maria Montessori, The Absorbent Mind, p. 25).

What do these people have in common?

The foundation of a Montessori education.

Flash forward a year from now, a decade from now…what will the children pictured here have in common with today’s most remarkable innovators, such as the Google co-founders and the creator of Amazon.com? The foundation of a Montessori education.

Starting February 28 through March 5, 2016, we celebrate the 109th anniversary of Montessori Education during Montessori Education Week. Dr. Maria Montessori believed that each child learns at his own pace and in his own unique way.  This innovative thinking shaped a new type of learning environment designed to kindle the individual interests of each learner. When asked by Barbara Walters in a television interview what they felt was a major factor in their success, Google co-founders credited their early childhood Montessori education: “We both went to Montessori school,” Mr. Larry Page said, “and I think it was part of that training of …being self-motivated, questioning what’s going on in the world, doing things a little bit differently.”

As articulated by these alumni, the Montessori Method fosters independence and critical thinking skills in young children—skills that ultimately enable them to respond creatively to new challenges, resolve conflicts effectively, and understand and relate to others.

On March 19th at 10AM, we welcome the community to help us celebrate children and learning. Join us at our Open House Social at 10AM (at the Westmont Montessori School, 577 Rt. 24 in Mendham (908)879-6355). Children–come ready to have some fun!

Montessori Education Week: Celebrating the groundbreaking achievements of Dr. Montessori

Dr. Montessori was truly a woman ahead of her time. She saw the potential in every child. As a physician and a scientist, she used observation and a brilliant understanding of child development to figure out how to best support learning for life. We thank Dr. Montessori for the great school we have today and we relish working with your children. Please join us in celebration:  visit our foyer exhibits, borrow one of our books on Montessori philosophy, check out our website, LIKE us on Facebook, read Montessori Compass  and, if you can, visit our classrooms so you can see it all first-hand.

Learn More about Dr. Montessori's Amazing Life here.

Seeing the World through the Eyes of a Pre-schooler

In a couple of days, we will begin celebrating Montessori Education Week. Dr. Montessori was a physician, a scientist and a child advocate. She remarked how, to the young child, the world is wondrous place, filled with an endless collection of mysteries. The child is life’s little scientist, constantly sleuthing to make sense of the natural world around him.

Over 100 years after Dr. Montessori, yet another child-development specialist stresses the importance of observing children. "Adults often have trouble understanding young children’s needs and inner lives—but paying closer attention to the way they experience the world can be valuable." Read more about what we can learn from and about young children in this article.

Montessori at Home (Taken from American Montessori Society)

Have you marveled at the remarkable order of the Montessori classroom? Has your toddler told you that at school she pours her own juice? Does your teenager hang or put away all her clothes—without being asked?

 Encouraging order, independence, and self-motivation are fundamental to the Montessori approach. Carefully designed classrooms allow students to develop competence in caring for themselves and their surroundings. And from the sense of pride that “I did it myself!” blooms the confidence to take on the world.

Bringing Montessori principles into your home can be a valuable bridge to what your child learns at school. Here are some ways to build that connection.

Celebrating and nurturing each child’s intrinsic desire to learn

This past weekend we came together at The Westmont Montessori School to learn about what makes the “K” year particularly impactful in the Montessori classroom. Our Head of School, Colette Cross, our teachers, and our Curriculum Coordinator shared some of the milestones of the K year.  

Five and six-year olds are going through a period of tremendous brain development--a period when they are developing and honing their reasoning skills. Affording them this year of continued discovery where they have ample opportunity to problem solve as they move from the concrete learning materials to more abstract thinking helps them to really crystallize so many concepts that they have been exposed to in the Early Childhood classroom.

In addition to the academic progress that occurs in the K year, children benefit from continued physical, social, emotional, and spiritual growth. During this “pivotal” year, Kindergarteners take on a real leadership role in the classroom and even the school, serving as role models and helping younger friends in their classroom community.

To learn more about what makes Montessori education the most widely used pedagogy in the world, read more about the Montessori approach. Or just ask one of our Kindergarten alumni!