It must be December!

The shelves are looking so festive and fun, and the children have been enjoying the December shelves.  Our assistant, who is currently completing her Montessori training and internship, was instrumental in creating the lessons currently on the shelves.  It is always so refreshing to have new ideas and variations of lessons available to the children.

Wet transfer fine motor activities for the Practical Life shelves.

Dry transfer fine motor lessons.

Threading and bead work - making necklaces and bracelets.

This art activity invites the children to make paper poinsettias.  They always turn out so beautifully, we usually have this activity out each year.  THIS post goes into more detail about how the children complete the lesson.  

We have also begun learning our 'Christmas Wreaths' poem, which is always a pleasure as the children begin to memorize and recite poetry.  It has been quite a cheerful room with all of these activities, and the children have been both intrigued and delighted with these festive additions.  We are certainly looking forward to watching their continued growth and enthusiasm as we approach the end of the calendar year and greet a new one!

'Guesstimation Jar'

Our classroom assistant assembled this activity as part of her ongoing Montessori training.  Added to the Math area of the classroom is this 'Guesstimation Jar.'

The children have a look to see how many spiders they think are in the jar and write down their 'guesstimate' on a slip of paper.  These papers are collected in the orange bowl on the right side of the tray.  Very soon, we will gather the children, read the guesstimates, and then count how many spiders are actually in the jar.  Our plan is to vary the contents according to seasons or holidays.  What a fun way to get the children making estimates and writing numbers!  

Site Visit

One of our assistants is currently completing her internship through the Center for Guided Montessori Studies.  A requirement of completion includes several site visits from a field consultant over the course of the year.  This week, we had the privilege of one such consultant visiting our classroom.  Not only was the visit successful for our intern, but the consultant was sure to share with me how lovely our classroom was.  She mentioned how, "beautiful and lovely" our school was and how the children were "functioning so well."  She further exclaimed, "I can hardly believe you've only been in school for such a short while, the children are doing so well.  The tone you have set has definitely come through, and it has been a lovely visit."
What a valuable experience to have another set of eyes to observe the classroom, and receive such positive feedback.  Well done, everyone!

Tactile experience with number writing using Sandpaper Numerals.

Precision work with the Pink Tower.

Pairing primary colors with the First Color Tablet Box.

Counting the decimal system with the golden bead material.

Understanding quantity with introduction to the Montessori color system of the math materials  with the Short Bead Stair.

Building concentration, coordination, independence and order through the Practical Life Leather Polishing activity.

Letter writing practice with Rainbow Letters.

Action photo:  Switching vessels during a transfer lesson, and weaving ribbons.

Practicing number order with quantity using the Cards and Counters. 

An extension lesson with numbers 1-10.

Pre-reading material:  Matching cards.

Building independence by practicing snaps.

Introducing quantity with the Number Rods.

Carefully walking on the line, promoting gross-motor control.

Comparison of size with the Knobless Cylinders.  Notice the child in the background with hands behind her back - we encourage the children to 'watch with their eyes' and not to touch each lessons.  

Stretching out words and writing them with the Moveable Alphabet.

An extension of the Short Bead Stair - the Short Bead Hanger.

Carefully filling each cup with the dropper.

An Opening/Closing extension lesson - Practicing with lunch containers.

Understanding quantity and place value of teen numbers with the Teen Bead Hanger.

Using rhythm shakers to follow a steady beat with a seasonal chant about apples and apple trees.

Learning how to use a paintbrush.

Polishing Metal

Learning the names of the Parts of the Flower.

Peace Day matching.

Understanding the concept of zero with the Spindle Box lesson.

Experiencing how various triangles form new shapes when placed together with the Constructive Triangles.

Rock Painting - our classroom's ever-popular pre-writing activity.

Coloring the continents of the world - I especially like how this child has set up the booklet and globe to complete the activity!

Making a 'Sound Stamp Booklet.'  It's hard to see, but the child has stamped  'monkey,' 'milk,' and 'magnet ' for their 'm' sound booklet.

Shape identification and tracing, preparing the hand for writing.

More comparisons of size and height with the Knobless Cylinders.

Phonetic reading practice with labels and objects.

Practicing pouring from one container to another.

After reviewing the photos I was able to take over the past couple of weeks, we have definitely had a productive time in our classroom.

Dreamland

A few days ago, I found the Montessori factory store in St. Petersburg - it was like walking in a dreamland!  Other than visiting vendors at various national Montessori conferences, I have never experienced a 'commercial' Montessori store - it was like being in the proverbial candy shop!

Imagine walking down the street and seeing this in a window!  Geometric Solids, the Pink Tower (at least part of it…), Knobless Cylinders, Sandpaper Letters…

Shelves full of glorious materials.

I couldn't resist purchasing some aprons and this small wash board - I have visions of a new  polish cloth/laundry lesson...

These Montessori-themed magnets will make lovely souvenirs.

These divided trays and metal inset papers box will make nice additions to my classroom.

This mesmerizing 'singing cup' will be a welcome addition in our music area.

I am so glad to have found the store - and it turns out that it is walking distance from our apartment in St. Petersburg.  I have a feeling it won't be the last visit, and wouldn't it be spectacular to visit the actual factory?!  

Ready to Start!

Where did the summer go?  I usually have the to opportunity to post periodically throughout the summer, but in all honestly, the time just got away from me…  I have been spending a great deal of time and attention getting our classroom ready for the new school year - we are ready to start another year in just a few days!

So far, this year is turning out to be quite different from years past.  Some of my readers may recall that my family is getting ready for an extended period of international travel beginning in January of 2015.  Preparation for this endeavor has enabled me to hire another Montessori teacher beginning at the start of this school year.   For the first time, I will have another Montessori trained teacher working with me.  This is something I very much look forward to as sharing ideas and learning new information from one another will be invaluable both for  our own professional growth as well as for the children in our care. Our four months together in the classroom prior to my departure will allow for a smoother transition in the classroom come January when I will be leaving.

Another difference this school year is the fact that our incoming class is very young and new.  For a variety of reasons, we do not have the regular proportion of new students and returning students and I have been mentally preparing myself for a what will seem to be an entirely brand new class.  While we will not have as many returning students this year, I am pleased that we have a very full class and we will focus on establishing strong foundational beginnings - both in practice in the classroom as well as with parent education.

Most years, I have an overarching (general) theme which is carried throughout the school year and throughout the curriculum areas.  The last couple of years, this theme has had to do with geography and the continents of the world.  Beginning this year, we will be highlighting a Montessori math material called the Short Bead Stair.

Numbers 1-9 with the Short Bead Stair.   Click HERE for an example of how this lesson is used in the Montessori classroom.

Our plan is to focus on the color and number correspondence to guide us in creating lessons in the other areas of the classroom.  For example, as we prepared the classroom for the beginning of this year, we have chosen the color red (and the number one) for our Practical Life shelves and some of the art materials.

Here are some examples from around the classroom:

Practical Life shelves:  basic transferring lessons on the left (spooning, tonging, dry pouring);  basic water transferring lessons on the right (we will be using colored water - there is no water in the vessels in the photo).  Also, the large vase on the top shelf is filled with red carnations - right now they are for decoration as the Flower Arranging lesson is not out yet.

The corresponding number with Sandpaper Letters...

…and the Sandpaper Number (next to a print of one of our group art projects last year).

I feel it is important to have these items on display throughout the environment as the children are getting to know our classroom and the Montessori materials.  Also, because the class will be very new, we are only planning to change the shelves ever other month or so.  If all goes according to plan, we will only get through number five (light blue) by the end of this year.  So, this is really a two year plan which is especially critical given that I will not be here for part of this year…  (There is also a part of me that does not want to miss out when we get to the number ten whose corresponding color is gold!!!).  In any case, this general theme allows us to have a plan in place even when I will be out of the classroom this year.

There are many other activities that have been prepared and I will be sure to share them with you as we get our school year started, so stayed posted!