Choice |
Choice allows for children to follow internal drives leading them to work that meets their developmental and/or social needs. It insures work is done out of interest, which best supports and promotes true learning. Depending on the age and developmental stage of the child, they may be interesed in snakes during one period and then how colors mix together another. |
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| Cultural & Science |
Children learn about people and cultures in other countries with an attitude of respect and admiration. Through familiarity, children come to feel connected to the global human family. Lessons and experiences with nature inspire a reverence for all life. Science activities encourage curiosity and exploration of their world. Art and music programs give children opportunities to enjoy a variety of creative activities, as well as gain knowledge of the great masters. |
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| Environment |
A space (and if possible outdoor area) designed to meet the developmental needs of children by stage of development: 0-3, 3-6, and 6-12 years of age. The spaces created for children offer appropriate challenge and are designed according to details of the Montessori philiosphy. Certified and trained teachers prepare the environment and guide the children to purposeful and enjoyable work/activities. |
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| Language |
Communication with one another is vital to human development. The Montessori environment is rich in oral and written language activities. The sandpaper letters help children learn the sound of each letter to prepare for reading. Many of the materials in practical life help prepare the child's hand for writing, as do language works such as the metal insets. Also included are activities that encourage listening skills. The ability to listen to others is critical to teaching children to work together and promote collaboration. |
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| Materials |
In the Montessori classroom, materials are arranged invitngly on low open shelves. Children may choose wahtever materials they would like to use and may work for as long as the material holds their interest. when they are finished with each material, they return that work to the shelf from which it came.
The materials themselves invite activity. They are sometimes colorful and create curiosity and exploration. There is also an emphasis on nature; real wood and natural fibers to encourage being in touch with our world.
Most materials in a Montessori classroom isolate one quality. The concept that the child is to discover is isolated. For example, the pink tower is made up of ten pink cubes of varying sizes. The child constructs a tower with the largest cube on the bottom and the smallest on top. This material isolates the concept of size. The cubes are all the same color and texture; the only difference is their size. Other materials isolate different concepts; color tablets for color, geometry materials for form, and so on. As the child's exploration continues, the materials interrelate and build upon each other. |
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| Math |
Activities help children learn and understand the concepts of math by manipulating concrete materials. This work gives children a solid understanding of basic principles, prepares them for later abstract reasoning, and helps to develop problem-solving capabilities. |
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| Normalization |
When a classroom of children is self-motivated, on task and working as if there were no outside influences to distract them. |
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| Observation |
Adult watches the child carefully to discover what the child knows and what they are having problems with. From this careful observation, new idea and materials for inspiration and introduced to the child. the adult does not say, "This child is three so I will teach him this." |
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| Practical Life |
Activities that emphasize care for self, for others, and for the environment. Activities include many of the tasks children see as part of the daily routine in their home, such as preparing food and washing dishes, along with exercises of grace and courtesy such as using good manners. Through these tasks children develop muscular coordination, they learn to work at a task from beginning to end, and finally develop their powers of control and concentration. |
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| Prepared Environment |
The Montessori concept that the child's environment can be designed to facilitate maximum independent learning and exploration by the child.
In the well-prepared environment, there is a variety of activity as well as a great deal of movement. In a preschool classroom, for example, a three-year-old may be washing clothes by hand while a four-year-old is blending sounds together to prepare for reading and a five-year-old is performing multiplication using a specially designed set of beads. |
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| Sensitive Periods |
Montessori believed that human beings experience a series of developmental leaps in learning during the preschool years. Drawing on the work of Dutch geneticist Hugo de Vries, she attributed these behaviors to the development of specific areas of the human brain, which she called nebulae. Montessori observed several overlapping periods during which the child is particularly sensitive to certain types of stimuli or interactions. |
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| Sensorial |
Help children build cognitive skills and learn to order and classify their world by touching, seeing, smelling, tasting, listening, and exploring the physical properties of their environment. |
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| 3 Period Lesson |
For many presentations a 3 step process is used. This is called the "3 period lesson." the adult would begin this lesson using only one or two items, depending on the concept being explored.
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Period 1 |
Provide child with the name of material. If you were introducing the geometric shapes the teacher would say, "This is a sphere." If you were giving a sound lesson on the letter 'c' the adult would say, "This makes the 'cuh' sound." If you were learning about colors you could say: "This is yellow."
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Period 2 |
Help the child recognize the different objects. Some things the teacher might say are, "Point to the sphere." or "Give me the 'cuh'," or "Can you show me yellow?"
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Period 3 |
Check to see if the child not only recognizes the name of the material but is able to tell you what it is. The teacher will point to the "c" sandpaper letter and ask the student, "What is this?" If the child replies with, "cuh" then we know they understand.
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Be flexible with this 3 period lesson and remember that some days you may just try the first step. Another day, when the child seems ready, you can attempt step two or three. Observe the child to see what it is they are ready for. |
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| Work |
The child's purposeful activity, which is undertaken with joy and interest. The child attends to the work through choice. When a child works, one will notice concentration, independence, and focus in the child. The teacher prepares appropriate work choices to inspires the child's work In younger children, work can be seen as "purposeful play" that aids in development. |
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