Category Archives: Montessori

Three Reasons We Love Montessori Education

Leave a reply

We just love Montessori at our house. And by we, I mean—I. I just love Montessori. I do much at home with the girls that is rooted in Montessorian philosophy and play. Nora also attends a Montessori school a few days a week. Here’s why:

Reason #1: Multiage Groupings

Nora is in class right now with other children ages three through five. She refers to the kids as little, like she is, or big. On the days she gets dropped off in the car line, an older student, usually a safety patrol, holds her hand and walks her in the school to her classroom. She loves this. It is one of the highlights of her day. I love that she gets to observe and participate in the diverse academic lessons geared to her older peers. She’s also exposed to various leadership roles and different developmental stages of older classmates.

Reason #2: Independence and Freedom

Since our girl has been getting herself dressed and choosing her own outfits since she was two (most days I have to hold my tongue to discourage myself from commenting on her mismatched choices or suggesting something else entirely), and insisting, like most children her age, that she can do EVERYTHING by herself, she fits right in in a classroom where young people are encouraged to choose their own “work” and move about the space as they please. The bathroom is down the hall, not in the classroom, and she can go when she needs to. Just last week she told me she was chosen by her teacher to walk with a classmate from the second floor, where her room is, down to the lobby to give a note to the secretary. She and the friend had to navigate through two hallways, heavy doors, and a stairwell, and back again. How empowering! I love imagining the little people coming and going places in the school all day long.

I've tried several times to interpret this map, to no avail. Should part of it be viewed reflectively through a mirror? Is there some sort of hemispherical thing I am missing? In any case, it seems about right that this is how our girl would decide to dictate the lay of the land. Her terms entirely.

I’ve tried several times to interpret this map, to no avail. Should part of it be viewed reflectively through a mirror? Is there some sort of hemispherical thing I am missing? In any case, it seems about right that this is how our girl would decide to dictate the lay of the land. Her terms entirely.

Reason #3: Uninterrupted Blocks of Work Time

I work in a public school in an urban district. The pace of the day is hectic. Students move from one subject of learning to the next. It often feels like there is no time for depth or mastery, investigation or application. It is one of my greatest frustrations as a teacher. So, when I hear frequent reports from Nora that she has done work with puzzles, cutting fruit, or tracing sandpaper letters—her three favorite, recurring activities—I am pleased that she is allowed (encouraged!) to work on the same things, over and over, that pique her interest and give her confidence in her abilities to solve problems, and practice and master new skills and concepts.

Working on a tractor puzzle.

Working on a tractor puzzle (her teacher sent the picture). This girl loves her some puzzles. She will sit and work on a challenging puzzle at home, without help, for long periods of time, trying and re-trying pieces with little frustration. Focus and perseverance will help her as she grows and faces more challenges both inside the classroom and out.

Also noteworthy this week:

Nora came home and told me she sang Happy Birthday in school. When I asked her whose birthday it was, she said “Martin Lufer King!”

She told us she has a cousin Oscar, who lives in Europe (completely made up, but note the continent knowledge!).

Now, if only we could figure out a way to afford to send her next year as well, we’d be all set. Her sister, on the other hand, may have no chance at attending in another year, since sending two kids at the same time seems like it will put us in financial ruin. Sorry, Franny!

Writing Center

Leave a reply

My maternal grandmother was a devoted letter-writer. The buffet in her dining room was always stocked with pens and pencils, stationery and stamps, stickers, notepads and other odds and ends, like sparkly celebratory confetti, which she’d thoughtfully sprinkle inside an envelope to mark a special occasion. She wrote to her children, her grandchildren, her dear friends and other close relatives. Although she is no longer with us, I remember this about her fondly.

4th grade students at my school were recently asked to read a piece of text about a postage stamp that commemorated a famous person’s life. The students struggled to understand the text because they had no background knowledge about postage stamps. In the current digital age of electronic communication, old-fashioned letter writing is becoming a thing of the past.

When I saw this great idea for a writing center on one of my favorite blogs, I sought to create something like it we could use in our house for our oldest daughter, Nora.

The writing center.

Our writing center.

Writing letters to family and friends has become one of Nora’s favorite activities. I keep the writing bin on a shelf where she can reach for it whenever she’s so inclined. In it we keep cards and envelopes, fun writing pens and pencils, and a small three-ring binder which holds pre-printed address labels, stamps and stickers. I just bought some really cute personalized labels from Etsy for Nora to use as a return address label. She loves that she can read and recognize her name on the sticker.

Using the model to correctly place the stamp and labels.

I put a stamp and some address labels on a spare envelope and taped it to the inside cover of the writing binder so Nora could use it as a model for how and where to place her stickers. I bought some pages with pockets in which to hold the address labels. Since she can’t yet read the labels, we taped photos of friends and family on the front of the sleeves so she can identify the labels. We just updated our photos by repurposing this year’s holiday cards. The cut-out faces of our favorite friends now line the pages of our book. She’s able to choose a person by photo, select the appropriate label, affix the stickers on the envelope, and stuff and seal the envelope herself. The only thing she can’t do on her own is write the message.

Getting a stamp.

Getting a stamp from the stamp page.

When it comes time to write the actual letter, Nora tells me what she would like to say and I simply scribe for her. This evening she wrote the following letter to my friend’s daughter, Mira, who lives in Boston (my friend also happens to be my husband’s cousin, so Mira is technically family).

Dear Mira,  

I hope you come to my house soon when the snow is still here. I hope you have fun in the snow when you’re not at my house. I wish I could come to your house. Can I come to your house when it’s snowing? I really want to.

Your cousin, Nora

Nora insists on signing her own name to each letter. She also watches me to make sure her words don’t run too long. It’s a must that I leave some blank space on the inside of the card for her to draw a picture. I love that she is learning a craft that her great-grandmother cherished. Writing is also a great way for her to connect and keep in touch with family and friends we don’t get to see often. Lastly, it teaches her to be courteous (we send lots of thank you notes!) and encourages her to be thoughtful.

Our little Frances is proving to be just as chatty as her big sister—although not nearly as intelligible as Nora was at her age—so I’m sure this center is going to get lots of use at our house in the years to come.