Monday, October 28, 2024

Mixed Ages in the Montessori Classroom


Spontaneous balancing practice at recess

Below is a  a typical scene on many days - several children working on building words or stories with the movable alphabet and writing them into their story journal (in cursive!), while others work on math and other curriculum areas

(More photos below!)

We're back for the 2024-25 school year! A few quick highlights:

- Both Montessori classrooms - Maple & Redbud - are in full swing, and FULL. We have so much interest in our program, our waitlist has more than enough children to fill a third classroom.

- We've been energized by how successful and productive most days feel - so much enthusiasm and engagement with learning, so much kindness and collaboration. Every day we witness dozens of moments where children are spontaneously encouraging and supporting one another. (photos below)

- We're looking for people to partner with us financially to help us make Montessori education be accessible to low-income families, and ALL gifts made before Dec. 31st will be matched (up to $13,000)

Mixed Ages in the Montessori classroom

One of my favorite aspects of the Montessori approach is the mixed ages - every day we are seeing how the children of all ages benefit, academically and socially. 

Sometimes a kindergartner will step into the role of "teacher," showing a younger friend how to do something new or assisting them with a task they are struggling to do independently. They often show incredible sensitivity and skill in these leadership roles:

"/a/ /a/ astronaut!" Sorting pictures by beginning sound requires knowing the vocab of the pictures, hearing the beginning sound, and knowing which letter makes that sound

An introduction to our classroom process for washing dishes

I will also sometimes invite an older child who needs more practice with a skill to help me teach a younger classmate - motivating them to get much-needed repetition while protecting their confidence around an area of struggle. 

Often younger children will spontaneously pause to observe an older friend and learn by watching their role models. (We do lots of practice at the beginning of the year on how to observe someone without disrupting their focus)




Sometimes we invite an older student to help a classmate (such as cleaning up a spill). Other times they notice on their own when someone could use assistance and offer help on their own initiative.



There is also lots of peer collaboration and support, along with independent focused work, taking place in our classrooms each day.


Saturday, May 6, 2023

Spring 2023 update

We are enjoying a beautiful spring and making the most of our last two months of the school year. If you didn't receive our recent photo update by email, you can view it here. (And you can sign up to receive our email updates (a few times a year) and twice-a-year paper mailings







Friday, November 20, 2020

Glimpses of Fall 2020

 A few of the beautiful moments from our in-person school days this fall:

When I first showed Joshua* a cylinder block on his first day of school, he was intrigued, and methodically took all of the cylinders in and out for the next 20 minutes

*All names changed

Marco, one of the youngest students in Redbud, came to school not knowing many letters but ready to learn, and has now mastered the phonetic sounds for the whole alphabet. 

One day I suggested that Aliya, in her second year of preschool, write with the movable alphabet about things she likes to do or things she loves. Her list included movable alphabet, school, family, unicorns, [watering] plants, painting, and South America. (She is just starting to sound out words, so mostly wrote the beginning sound for each syllable.) 

Naim, who had just started working with place value before we went remote in March, now easily regroups for addition with golden beads, exchanging 10 ten bars for a hundred square and 10 hundred squares for a thousand cube. 

For more photos of our school year in action, see our e-newsletter.

Can you support our work to make high quality Montessori education accessible to children from all economic backgrounds? Through the end of 2020, all gifts will be matched - give now to double your impact!

Saturday, August 15, 2020

Summer Enrichment 7 - Bugs!

Learning about bugs - connection videos

Monday - What's an insect? -  Let's begin our exploration of bugs! Some bugs are insects - do you know how we can tell if it is an insect? We'll learn the body parts that all insects have, put it into a song, and then see if you can help me decide which animals are insects or not insects. I am excited to show you what I discovered when I picked up a brick in my backyard! What do you think was there?
Follow-up ideas:

  • Video - All about insects: https://youtu.be/rKQfJFAHW8Q
  • Snack - make Ants on a log
  • Exploration - look under a brick or rock and see what you find! 
Tuesday - Butterflies! - Today our focus is on butterflies. Do you know what hatches out of a butterfly egg? We'll talk about the lifecycle of a butterfly, learn a new poem, and sing the insect song.

The little Caterpillar poem
The little caterpillar curled into a J 
It turned into a chrysalis and slept for many days
While it was sleeeping, it dreamed that it could fly
Later when it woke up, it was a butterfly!

Wednesday - Ladybugs! 

Word of the day: Metamorphosis! Ladybugs go through metamorphosis, as do butterflies and many other insects. Do you know what ladybugs do that is helpful to plants and people?
Follow-up ideas:


Thursday - Bees! I went to visit some very important insects - you can see their hive behind me. Also a hint for finding ladybugs on your outdoor explorations. Some video links below will show you what is happening inside the hive and how bees are so important to people: 

Books: 
Mindfulness: "Bee breath"

Friday - a few more bugs! We finished our week learning about insects and other bugs with a special invertebrate that is not an insect. It has a long, soft body and turns compost into "food for the earth" - do you know what they are? Also an easy activity you can do inside or outside to make your own insect. Just make sure it has a head, thorax, and abdomen! Don't forget the 6 legs coming out of the thorax or the 2 antennae on its head!

Exploration

Make a bug catcher (container & cardboard)  

This let’s kids transfer bugs from inside back out to their natural habitat :-)

Make your own bug!
Can you make a bug out of playdough? Legos? Leaves and sticks?

Movement

Can you move like an insect?
- hop like a grasshopper
- fly like a bee
- crawl like a caterpillar
- scurry like an ant

Act out the Butterfly life stages: (curl up like an egg, crawl like a caterpillar, hold still and rigid like a chrysalis, fly like a butterfly!

Online Read-alouds 

Eric Carle books:

Monday, August 10, 2020

Summer Enrichment 6: Africa


 I enjoyed all the new things I learned about the regions of Africa for this week's theme. 

Introduction to Africa 

Monday connection video - after the continents song, we'll start our exploration of AFRICA! We look at the biomes on the Africa biome mat (from Waseca Biomes). 

Suggested read-aloud is one of our class' favorite books - "Give up, Gecko" A Ugandan Folktale with a theme of perseverance. 

Here's a beautiful 2 minute video tour of Africa

Do you know how to play Mancala? This game has been around for thousands of years and is easy to learn. You can make your own game from an egg carton!

Southern Africa

Tuesday connection video - Today we visit Southern Africa! We'll start with the continents AND oceans song, make sure we can find Africa on the globe and the oceans around it. What are the biomes are in Southern Africa? Let's see a piece of art, a song ("Siyahamba" - our much loved "We are marching" song we sung when walking to the park for recess), and a preview of today's read aloud (link below). 

Activity - hand trimming grass!

And since we're learning about grasslands... need an activity to keep your child occupied outside for a bit? Invite them to trim the grass with scissors! 

Song: Siyahamba (In Zulu, English, and Spanish)

Song/dance: Bicycle Song (from South Africa) - see if you can learn the dance!

Today's Read-aloud: Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters

 Mufaro's beatiful daughters


A video about Zimbabwe (lots of animals around minute 8, the incredible stone work of the City of Zimbabwe (in the read aloud) around minute 14)

East Africa

Wednesday connection video - In Eastern Africa, let's explore the savannah (the Serengeti) and mountains of Ethiopia - animals that live in each place and a little about the people groups there too. 

Read aloud: "Masai and I

Movement: Let’s move like animals on the savannah - elephant (stomp, trunk), cheetah (fast), lion (tip toe/stalk), gazelle (leap!) - What other ideas do you have?

Cooking with kids: Feeling adventurous? Try making chapati, a Kenyan flat bread (all you need is flour, salt, water, and oil) How-to chapati video

Videos
National Geographic Kids has many videos about animals that live in Africa (mostly savannah, a few mountain or forest - Giraffes, Gorillas, Lion, Hippos, Secretary Bird, Cheetah, African Elephants, Big-headed mole rat, black rhino)

Bible story: this week's story is about someone from Ethiopia - watch the video: Philip and the Ethiopian

North Africa 

  • Thursday connection video: We continue our exploration of Africa today with the desert of Northern Africa and a focus on Egypt. 
  • Video (National Geographic Kids)  - Join two kids exploring the Nile river   
  • Video (Lonely Planet Travel Video) - Learn about the Berber people of Moroccan desert
  • Song: "Go down, Moses" - a spiritual sung by Louis Armstrong
  • Today's suggested read-aloud (From East Africa) - Waangari's Trees of Peace: A true story from Africa

West Africa

Friday connection video: We conclude our week of exploring the continent of Africa with West Africa. Do you know all of the continents and oceans now? Interested in exploring more? Here are some follow-up videos: 

West African folk tales: 

Anansi and the Sky Kingdom (animated story)

Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People’s Ears (read aloud) 

Compare the sound of the tabla drum (from Egypt) with the West African djembe 

Find something to use as your own drum and dance and play along with this song

Video: Tropical forest animals


Sunday, August 2, 2020

Summer Enrichment 5: Birds!

Mourning Doves
This week you can help your child notice the birds around you. Encourage curiosity and exploration - what are the birds doing? How can you tell it's a bird? What else do you notice about it?
The connection videos will introduce some common backyard birds and some related activities

Monday - We'll introduce some common backyard birds, a poem about birds, and what you can do with an empty toilet paper roll!
Cardinals
Tuesday - the Little Bird poem. How many of these backyard birds can you name? What are the things that all birds have in common? 

Black-capped Chickadee
Wednesday - In this morning's connection video, we'll continue learning about birds. Get ready to hop like a bird to practice the names of a few more types of birds you might see out your window. I have some real bird nests to show you, and some pictures of some other incredible different kinds of nests birds make. We also take a picture walk to find the birds we know in today's suggested read-aloud - "Feathers for Lunch" by Lois Ehlert. How many of the birds in this book do you know?

Downy Woodpecker
We also suggest you try this fun & active video from Mystery Science about how quail, raccoons, and woodpeckers get their food

Thursday - Look what's growing in our garden! And a peek at what happens inside a bird's egg. 
Have you ever made "egg in a nest" for breakfast? Instructions on the blog

And today's read-aloud - An Egg is Quiet by Dianna Aston

Friday - To finish up our week's focus on birds, this morning's video is near an osprey nest on the 
Osprey
Delaware River. Let's see how much you remember about what makes an animal a bird, and how many of the backyard birds you can name (I'll give some hints!) Do you know how many circles you see when you look through the two tubes of binoculars? I'll show you how you can make your own practice binoculars with two empty toilet paper rolls. 

More Language & Science activities

Catbird
Names of birds 
Some common east coast birds (included in the connection videos) are: Goldfinch, House Finch, House Sparrow, Mourning Dove, cardinal, catbird, kildeer, downy woodpecker, grackle, Baltimore oriole, Black-capped chickadee, blue jay. You can loook them up and hear the sounds they make on allaboutbirds.org. They also have live bird cams!

House finches
Parts of a bird (what makes something a bird?)

Video: All about birds video for kids

Video: Common backyard birds (includes lots; your child will recognize some by the end of the week!)

House sparrow
Poem: Little bird
I saw a little bird come hop, hop, hop
So I said, "Little bird, will you stop, stop, stop?"
I was going to the window
To say "Hi, how are you?"
But she gave her wings a flap, 
And up, up, up she flew

Read-alouds - Bird theme!

Blue Jay
Egg (Kevin Henkes)
Feathers for Lunch (Ehlert) How many birds do you recognize in this book?
An egg is quiet (Dianna Aston) - Birds aren’t the only animals who lay eggs!
Are you my mother? (PD Eastman)


Art Ideas

You can draw birds! teaching video
I show two simple ways to draw birds with half circles, circles, and triangles - something even young children (preschool, kindergarten, elementary age) can practice and do! Also great for adults like me!
Thank you to the Usborne Step-by-Step Drawing Book for the inspiration

Make your own spy glass for birdwatching by coloring/decorating a toilet paper tube - what can you see through it? (Or join 2 tubes together to make binoculars)

Make a pinecone bird feeder (spread peanut butter on a pinecone, roll it in bird seed or crumbs; tie on a string and hang it nearby!)

Movement

Can you move like a bird? Flap your wings! Soar and glide like an eagle! Balance on one leg like a flamingo! What ideas do you have?

What is a bird? action song

Food prep

Cook “Egg in a nest” (photo recipe on blog

Sunday, July 26, 2020

Summer Enrichment 4: Let's Visit South America!

What would it be like to visit South America? 

In our Monday video, we:
-  review our continent (North America) and the biome we live in (temperate forest) 
- sing the continents song and find South America on the globe
- discuss our options for getting there
- look at the biome map to find out what biomes we might see in South America
Language game: Rainforest rhyming & segmenting (5 min)

Video: a virtual tour of South America (5 min)

Read Aloud: Biblio Burro (read by Ms. Kristin!)

Tuesday: People and Cultures of South America

What clothing would you wear if you lived in the tropical rainforest? What if you lived high in the Andes Mountains? 

Along with many other languages, Spanish is spoken in many parts of South America. 
Want to learn some Spanish?
Try learning some new words in Spanish with Spanish school bus

Read Aloud books: 
Maria had a little Llama (variation on Mary had a little lamb)


Wednesday: The Amazon Rainforest 

Let's visit the Amazon rain forest! What does it look like in the rain forest? What are some of the unique and amazing animals that live there? 
If you want to take a quick video tour to see the rain forest and some of its animals, here are two videos to watch:

Read Aloud Book - The Great Kapok Tree by Lynne Cherry

Art activity -  Make a paper chain snake! 

Thursday: The Andes Mountains

This video focuses on the Andes mountains of South America. (and revisits the song "los pollitos" / all the little chicks. 

Video tour of the Andes Mountains
Read aloud book: Up and down the Andes 

Skill challenge: Mountain climbers (Pretend you’re climbing the Andes mountains!)

Friday: Singing in Spanish

We finish up our week on South America learning one more song in Spanish - La aran~a pequinita (The Itsy Bitsy Spider), and introduce the "What's missing" game to try at home