From Apples, to Pumpkins, to Leaves

It is already November, and we have enjoyed many fall themed activities so far this school year.  We began our time together with many apple-themed lessons in September.  This was followed by pumpkins in October.  Now, we are enjoying the beauty of fall with lessons having to do with this beautiful season.  Some of these themes are captured in the collection of photos from the past two weeks.  As always, it is impossible to document every single activity at any given time, but what a delight to review the pictures and be reminded of how far we have come as a group!

Carefully pouring into two vessels.

Reading the 'October' poem with a friend using items from the Poetry Basket.

Distinguishing rough and smooth textures and refining movement necessary for writing with the Touch Boards.

An "Autumn Tree" with the Pink Tower and Brown Stair.

Matching nuts and bolts by size.

The watercolor tray is in constant use!

Purposefully bringing each cube of the Pink Tower to a work mat to begin use.

Finding items from around the classroom for the Memory Game of Numbers.

Practicing tying bows with the Bow Tying Frame

Mixing primary colors to make secondary colors.

Comparing size and height with the Knobless Cylinders.

Sequencing and number symbol recognition with the Math Step Board.

An engaging extension activity with the Second Color Tablet Box.

Reading practice with puzzle (sight) words.

Transferring with a spoon for fine motor practice.

Measuring the Brown Stair prisms with the smallest one...

...and discovering new ways to build!

Practicing writing numbers on the chalkboard.

Exploring designs and patterns with the Constructive Triangles.

Visual discrimination of size and pincer grasp practice with the Knobbed Cylinders. 

Gross motor fun - tossing the bean bag into the basket and jumping  over the rope to retrieve it.

Working through the 45 Layout.

Seasonal math extension actives are always fun to discover!

Refining the sense of touch - paring fabrics by touch.

Pre-reading - matching pictures to their shadow.

Tweezing corn kernels.

Learning the names of the continents with the Puzzle Map of the World.

Leaf matching.

It Must Be October

Our class is enjoying many October themed activities, and there is notable progress in each child's Montessori lessons.  I love how each week's collection of photos are able to indicate the time of year both through the seasonal activities, as well as the varied Montessori lessons with extension work.

The child has explored the Pink Tower and Brown Stair individually, and is now observing how they relate by working with them together.

Building hand strength through pin pushing.  We vary the shapes available for use - this month is a pumpkin shape.

This Pumpkin Craft has been enjoyed by all!

Counting by tens with the Tens Boards and beads.

Finding the missing beginning sounds with the Large Moveable Alphabet.

Constructing quantities with golden beads while understanding place value thought the use of the color-coded decimal system mat.  The children in the pictures are constructing the number 385.

Design work with the Constructive Triangles.

Practicing writing numbers with the 'Wet, Dry, Try' method.

Understanding teen numbers with the Teen Beads and Boards...

...and using that knowledge to work with the Teen Bead Hanger for variation.

More extension work with the Pink Tower and Brown Stair.

"Five Little Pumpkins" flannel board fun!

Three-part cards for the Life Cycle of a Pumpkin.

Matching the Geometric Solids to their card and reading the name of each shape.

Precision work with the Pink Tower.  Notice the all of the Sensorial work happening in the background as well!

'Jack-o-lantern' pouring - who can resist?!

Sorting images into the categories of Land, Air, and Water.

"Spooky" collage work, and practicing using gluestick.

Writing practice with Rainbow Letters.

Using the Constructive Triangles (Triangular Box) to see how various triangles form equilateral triangles.

The children have also enjoyed learning the following poem, and several volunteers have offered to recite it from memory during circle time.  What is it about children's voices and poetry?  Such a beautiful sound!

October

October's the month

When the smallest breeze

Gives us a shower of autumn leaves.

Bonfires and pumpkins-

Leaves sailing down,

October is red, and golden, and brown.

-Anonymous

Pumpkin Craft

The children have been working on making these adorable pumpkin crafts.  It ended up being a several step process because the doilies needed to be painted prior to gluing.  For the first several days, we set up the white doilies to be painted orange.  Once they were dry, we collected them and set up the second part to the craft, which the children have been completing this week.

First step: Paining the doilies.

Second step:  Gluing the painted doilies onto white paper and adding a stem ,vine, and grass.

A work in progress.

So cheerful...

Our very own pumpkin patch in the hallway!