February/March 2015 Volume 2, Issue 2 Though Maria Montessori is best known for her work in the field of educaon and child development, she was also famous for her work towards peace; indeed she was twice nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize, in1949 and 1950. this strand of her work became increasingly prominent from the 1930’s onwards, when she began lecturing at interna- onal peace conferences throughout Europe. Montessori’s commitment to the development of a peaceful world was, to be honest, implicit in her educaonal insights. Montessori saw humans as inherently sociable, com- passionate beings: We naturally exist in social groups, communicang and expressing our thoughts and feelings, capable of both feeling concern and empathy for others, able to imagine their circumstances and problems, capable of giving help and finding soluons,. Yet these potenals, Montessori saw, frequently did not develop; instead we could be violent and uncaring, selfish and reacve. Montessori’s key insight was to see that these ansocial qualies were not integral to the human character, but distorons caused by a person’s developmental condions; in her parlance, they were “deviaons” from the proper course of development. Creang a developmentally appropriate environment for children meant more to Mon- tessori therefore than the construcon of academic knowledge. She saw the right envi- ronment would enable children to develop into adults who were good cizens of our while world. This belief was not based on naïve hopefulness. It was based on her obser- vaons of children at different age levels. In parcular, Montessori saw that the child engaged in meaningful construcve work became centered and peaceful. Feeling fulfill- ment, the child began to move away from the state of boredom, need, and frustraon that led to conflict with others. This plaorm of stability, “normalizaon”, became the basis for the child’s development as a social, altruisc being. Through further experienc- es, the child would come to see how they were connected to other people, indeed to all organisms, on our planet (the “cosmic educaon” of elementary). Through daily interac- on in a classroom based on individual choices, the child would discover how his or her desires and interests would need to be tempered by the needs of others in order for the classroom to funcon (the “social contract”). Clearly then, Montessori saw peace as more than diplomac arrangements or the cessa- on of war. Humanity in a deviated state would naturally topple towards conflict. The evidence for this stared Montessori in the face throughout the Thires and Fores. The angst and aggression of inter war Europe led quickly to their polical expression in the brutal regimes of Fascist Italy, Nazi Germany, and Soviet Russia. Montessori herself suffered their wrath as she was exiled from Italy and saw the Montessori schools she had helped create wiped out. Montessori realized peace could only flourish through the change of human nature, or rather the unfurling of the hidden qualies latent in each human. This is a long term view of peacemaking, indeed an intergeneraonal one. But we see, hopefully, a kernel of future peace when we visit environments that engender respect, compassion, self-restraint, and self-fulfillment, such as a Montessori classroom. Inside this Issue: Tips on Praccing Praccal Life Curriculum at Home By Linda Adams 2 Aucon Informaon 2 February Calendar 3 March Calendar 4 Carrying on Montessori at Home by Racheal 5 Cont. of Carrying on Montes- sori at Home 6 "Within the child lies the fate of the future” ‘Maria Montessori’ Montessori Background By Russell Carpenter
Transcript
February/March 2015 Volume 2, Issue 2
Though Maria Montessori is best known for her work in the field of education and child development, she was also famous for her work towards peace; indeed she was twice nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize, in1949 and 1950. this strand of her work became increasingly prominent from the 1930’s onwards, when she began lecturing at interna-tional peace conferences throughout Europe. Montessori’s commitment to the development of a peaceful world was, to be honest, implicit in her educational insights. Montessori saw humans as inherently sociable, com-passionate beings: We naturally exist in social groups, communicating and expressing our thoughts and feelings, capable of both feeling concern and empathy for others, able to imagine their circumstances and problems, capable of giving help and finding solutions,. Yet these potentials, Montessori saw, frequently did not develop; instead we could be violent and uncaring, selfish and reactive. Montessori’s key insight was to see that these antisocial qualities were not integral to the human character, but distortions caused by a person’s developmental conditions; in her parlance, they were “deviations” from the proper course of development. Creating a developmentally appropriate environment for children meant more to Mon-tessori therefore than the construction of academic knowledge. She saw the right envi-ronment would enable children to develop into adults who were good citizens of our while world. This belief was not based on naïve hopefulness. It was based on her obser-vations of children at different age levels. In particular, Montessori saw that the child engaged in meaningful constructive work became centered and peaceful. Feeling fulfill-ment, the child began to move away from the state of boredom, need, and frustration that led to conflict with others. This platform of stability, “normalization”, became the basis for the child’s development as a social, altruistic being. Through further experienc-es, the child would come to see how they were connected to other people, indeed to all organisms, on our planet (the “cosmic education” of elementary). Through daily interac-tion in a classroom based on individual choices, the child would discover how his or her desires and interests would need to be tempered by the needs of others in order for the classroom to function (the “social contract”).
Clearly then, Montessori saw peace as more than diplomatic arrangements or the cessa-tion of war. Humanity in a deviated state would naturally topple towards conflict. The evidence for this stared Montessori in the face throughout the Thirties and Forties. The angst and aggression of inter war Europe led quickly to their political expression in the brutal regimes of Fascist Italy, Nazi Germany, and Soviet Russia. Montessori herself suffered their wrath as she was exiled from Italy and saw the Montessori schools she had helped create wiped out. Montessori realized peace could only flourish through the change of human nature, or rather the unfurling of the hidden qualities latent in each human. This is a long term view of peacemaking, indeed an intergenerational one. But we see, hopefully, a kernel of future peace when we visit environments that engender respect, compassion, self-restraint, and self-fulfillment, such as a Montessori classroom.
Inside this Issue:
Tips on Practicing Practical
Life Curriculum at Home
By Linda Adams 2
Auction Information 2
February Calendar 3
March Calendar 4
Carrying on Montessori at
Home by Racheal 5
Cont. of Carrying on Montes-
sori at Home 6
"Within the child lies the fate of the future”
‘Maria Montessori’
Montessori Background
By Russell Carpenter
The Philosophy of raising a Montessori child is a way of life. Parents and school can provide the child with a strong foundation by living and working together to provide the child with a prepared environment at school and home, Montessori doesn’t begin and end at the school door. Providing consistency between school and home focuses on your attitude (what is important), your pace (slowing down to allow the child to participate and keeping routines), your expectations (the child’s behavior) and setting limits (helping the child develop discipline).
Inviting the child to participate in Practical Life activities at home doesn’t require a large monetary investment. You and your child just need some tools that are the right size for the child’s hands. The room where the child spends most of their time should be equipped with low shelves and child-friendly material. Everything in this room should be touchable -- no glass tables that are off limits or adult computer equipment. Have mats for floor work so your child can spread work out on the floor. The mats are about the size of a small throw rug. Have material on these shelves that addresses your child's needs. Based on their development you will have a few quality toys that offer exploration.
The child is drawn to practical life exercises because he recognizes the tools or materi-als used from his home. Families spend a great deal of time in the kitchen preparing food or eating. The kitchen is a wonderful place for you and your child to work to-gether. You can place child size material for many basic movement activities in a low cupboard. Place a child size table in the kitchen or a stool to safely allow the child to work at the counter. Children love to cook. You can set up baking or cooking activi-ties that allow the child to pour and mix. You can create simple picture cards that illustrate the steps of the baking that allow the child to follow along. You will need to slow your pace, name the baking materials, and talk about the baking terms. It may take you twice as long to make the muffins but the love and time you shared has so many benefits. The low cupboard can be for storage of the child’s dinnerware. He can practice many skills carrying the plate and glass to the table. As he grows he will be setting the table for the entire family.
The adults in the child’s life have been talking to the child through many caring rou-tines such as dressing, undressing, feeding, and diapering. As the child develops he will want to be involved in his own care. So slow down your pace and adjust your routines to allow time for the child. Just like cooking, dressing and getting out the door will take twice as long but the child’s need to do for himself is amazing and needs to be respected. Arrange the child’s shoes and coats so they are reachable and provide a chair for sitting. The child can make choices in what to wear by you provid-ing two choices. Bedtime routines can be calming by making a picture book or display of the bedtime routine and being firm. The child can make choices on a snack before bed or what book to read.
Tips on Practicing Practical Life Curriculum at Home
Linda Adams, IC/NIDO (Infant/Toddler) Guide
AUCTION INFORMATION
& WAYS TO SUPPORT
OUR ANNUAL AUCTION
Dress for the
theme—it’s ‘Grease’
this year
The auction will be
March 6, 2015, at the
Bay View Inn
Tickets are $30.00
each
Heavy Apps.—Cash
Bar
Silent & Live Auction
Raffle Drawings
Invite/Bring Family &
Friends
Sell your Raffle Tick-
ets!!
Ask for Donations
Donate to the Auc-
tion
Ask Local Businesses
to Purchase an Ad
and Sponsor the Auc-
tion
If your Family Cannot
Attend Make a Dona-
tion to the Auction
for the Amount of
the Tickets
2
IMPORTANT DATES
Feb 13– No School Grades K
-12
Feb 16– All Program Closed
– Mid-Winter Break
“Imagination does not be-come great until human beings, given the courage and the strength, use it to create.”
‘‘’Maria Montessori’
3
February 2015 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
8 9 10 11 12 13 14
15 16 17 18 19 20 21
22 23 24 25 26 27 28
No School
Grades K-
12
Mid-Winter
Break– All
Programs
Closed
“If we could say, "We are respectful and courteous in our dealing with children, we treat them as we should like to be treated ourselves," we should have mastered a great educational principle and be setting an example of good education.” ‘Maria Montessori’
Important Dates
March 6– AUCTION
March 10, 12, & 13– Ele-
mentary Parent teacher
Conferences
March 13– No School
Grades K-5
March 27-April 6– Spring
Break, All Programs Closed
Important Days in April
April 7– All Programs Re-
sume
No school grades K-5
4
March 2015
Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
8 9 10 11 12 13 14
15 16 17 18 19 20
21
22 23 24 25 26 27 28
29 30 31
AUCTION
No School
Grades K-12
Parent Teacher
Conferences
K-12 Parent
Teacher Confer-
ences
K-12 Parent
Teacher Con-
ferences
Daylight
Savings
All Programs
Closed– Spring
break Begins
Spring Break
Any child who is self-sufficient, who can tie his shoes, dress or undress himself, reflects in his joy and sense of
achievement the image of human dignity, which is derived from a sense of independence.”
Maria Montessori
Successful people in life are linked to the degree in which they believe they are skilled, as well as independ-
ent. And how does one learn to be skilled and independent? They practice the skills that are necessary until they
no longer need help and can do it themselves. Allowing children to gain independence and self-discipline is the
purpose of the Practical Life activities in the Montessori classroom. It is equally important for children to learn
the Montessori method at home and to allow the students to gain independence and self-discipline, both at
home and in school. What happens when a child is allowed to prepare their own snack, slice their own apples,
pour their own drink, and wash and dry their own dishes in the Montessori classroom, but at home is told, “Oh,
you’re much too young to use a knife. You will spill that if you pour it, let me do it for you”? The mixed message
is clear. If the skills that are being taught at school are not allowed at home, there is a great confusion in the
child’s thinking. Practical Life activities are the traditional works of the family and home. They can be broken
down into four categories:
1. Preliminary activities – carrying a tray, pouring water, spooning grain, walking on the line, etc
2. Care of the environment – cleaning, sweeping, dusting, gardening, raking, polishing, preparing food, and setting the table.
3. Care of self – dressing, toileting, brushing teeth, bathing, combing hair.
4. Grace and courtesy – using table manners, greeting others, saying “please” and “thank you”, learning to control one’s own body.
So, what can be done to extend the Practical Life activities in the home? First off, make sure that the materials
you use are child-size. If you think about it, when you have kitchen appliances and furniture and they are not the
right size to fit your adult body, it’s just not comfortable. It’s the same for the child, having child size tools and
furniture is essential for the child to benefit. Parents need to remember that Practical Life activities are the rou-
tines and rituals that adults perform daily. Here are a few examples of how to invite parents to continue Practical
Life lessons at home:
Preliminary Activities
Pouring and transferring liquids and dry ingredients without spilling
Using scissors
Opening and closing lids
Screwing and unscrewing jar lids
Stirring
Care of the Environment
Wringing a wet cloth
Washing a table or countertop
Sweeping the floor with a broom and dustpan cont. on page 6
Blowing nose and properly throwing away the tissue
Brushing teeth
Combing hair
Trimming fingernails
Running water in the bath
Hanging up towels after use
Dressing oneself (including learning how to button, zip, snap, tie, buckle, Velcro)
Putting on a jacket
Hanging a jacket on a low hook
Putting clean clothes in a drawer
Measuring liquid and dry ingredients
Peeling fruits and vegetables
Using kitchen tools
Spreading (like butter, peanut butter, a mixture)
Grace and Courtesy
How to greet someone
How to answer the telephone
How get up from the table
How to carry a chair
How to open and shut a door quietly
How to interrupt when necessary
How to excuse oneself when passing or bumping into another
Table manners
Carrying objects
Walking indoors
When we remember to present these activities with eagerness and break them down into steps, a child will feel encouraged as he practices them by himself. We must remember, “Adults work to finish a task, but the child works in order to grow and is working to create the adult, the person that is to be.” (Montessori)
“We cannot know the consequences of suppressing
a child's spontaneity when he is just beginning to
be active. We may even suffocate life itself. That
humanity which is revealed in all its intellectual
splendor during the sweet and tender age of child-
hood should be respected with a kind of religious
veneration. It is like the sun which appears at dawn
or a flower just beginning to bloom. Education
cannot be effective unless it helps a child to open
