Montessori Wisdom of the Day

From Montessori's The Absorbent Mind-- "Supposing I said there was a planet without schools or teachers, where study was unknown, and yet the inhabitants -- doing nothing but live and walk about -- came to know all things, to carry in their minds the whole of learning; would you not think I was romancing? Well, just this, which seems so fanciful as to be nothing but the invention of a fertile imagination, is a reality. It is the child's way of learning."

"Line up, friends!"

"Free swim time!"

W just finished our school's summer program.  Each Monday and Friday, the children loaded up on a school bus and rode to the local YMCA for swim lessons.  At first, he didn't seem to enjoy himself.  Over the course of the summer, however, he really came to look forward to it.  He has recently started having "swim class" with his cars.  They load up on Mack the Truck, ride to the Y, unload, and go through the motions of getting ready to swim.  They take off their tires (shoes, of course), shower off, line up, and have the lesson with the teachers (usually Mr. The King or Doc Hudson).  It's a hoot to watch.  You really sense the wheels turning, as well as the enjoyment he got from that experience.

Montessori Wisdom of the Day

"Respect all the reasonable forms of activity in which the child engages and try to understand them."  --Maria Montessori

W adores his cars.  He has dozens of them (I know, that's not very Montessori, but...) and they are his absolute favorite things to play with.  He is in love with the Disney film "Cars" and has lots of the characters.  I figure he would be obsessed with something else, like action figures, or Thomas, or whatever, if it wasn't Cars; at least "Cars" is mildly entertaining and non-violent.  So anyway, he comes up with stories about his cars, and has them "act" out various situations.  There are lots of races, of course, and the occasional disastrous accident (when the fire truck responds), but the best is when he has "circle time" with his cars.  He sets them up for circle just like they have at school, and invites the cars to choose "jobs" for the week.  Sometimes it's sharing day, sometimes they "sing" a song.  It's a wonderful activity to witness; he is so serious about it, and it really shows how much he enjoys the things he does at school.

 

Montessori Wisdom of the Day

“... education is a natural process carried out by the human individual, and is acquired not by listening to words, but by experiences in the environment.” -Maria Montessori

Montessori Wisdom of the Day

“Never help a child with a task at which he feels he can succeed.”  --Maria Montessori