I spent part of my morning today in a Montessori preschool classroom. It was really great to be back in a classroom and to observe the magic taking place. The teacher very graciously allowed me to visit even though today was only the second day of their summer school program and she had about seven brand-new three-year-olds. I took many, many photos, but forgot to ask her for permission to post them, so I don't feel right about doing that without consent. Instead, I will just say that I loved being back in a Montessori classroom. The beauty and serenity of the Montessori prepared environment is just amazing to me. It is as pleasant and inviting as any space for young children that I have ever seen. I am still so very excited that I once again have the privilege of setting up such a space for young children this fall. (I drove up to my school about an hour ago to see if the painting is done...........not quite! I am getting antsy!)
The school I visited has a beautiful outdoor classroom that is accessible from all the other classrooms. It is a very beautiful, well-planned space. I took many pictures of the activities and plantings. I got some great ideas that I would like to do yet this summer with my own boys. When I get those set up and going, I will be sure to post about them.
Tonight I decided to share with you a few books I have purchased recently that I think are really great.
I ordered this book a while back, just after I was hired for the Montessori position. I have looked through it completely and plan to incorporate many of the activities into my classroom this fall. I LOVE how it focuses on the spiritual nature of children and teaches them ways to interact with one another that are respectful and peaceful. This is a MUST HAVE (in my opinion) for any Montessori teacher (or any teacher of young children, for that matter). The ideas in this book could also be implemented in a home setting, but the book is written more for classroom teachers as a target audience. Still, I think it would be really valuable to parents as well.
I just got this yesterday in the mail and I have pretty much read it from cover to cover already. It has really beautiful photographs, and lots of great practical ideas to use at home. I particularly love the Peace Table idea. I would like to try that at home with my boys. At school, I will use a variation of the peace table idea using a Peace Rose (more on that in a future post).
I have referred to Amanda's book in previous posts. I really, really like this book. It has some great, easy ideas for ways to encourage creativity in both children and adults. It has several projects that I want to try including the felted rocks, freezer paper stencils, and family drawing night. Amanda has a great website too with lots of good inspiration. While this is not a Montessori book per se, it definitely reflects Montessori philosophy in that it encourages freedom of expression, independence and creativity.
Finally, I wanted to give a shout out to the Michael Olaf company. When I was up at my school to check out the painting, I grabbed a few more catalogs to bring home. One was from the Michael Olaf company. I had forgotten what a great resource this company is. Way back when I taught Montessori in Iowa City (and before I had my own children), I used to call for a copy of this catalog just to read it. Along with FANTASTIC products that you could not easily find elsewhere, it has lots of great information and text about child development and nurturing your children. I highly recommend that you call the company (1-888-880-9235) and request a catalog. They have 2 versions. One is geared for birth-three year olds, and the other is for 3-12 year olds. Really good stuff.
That's all for tonight. I have received confirmation that my iron-on vinyl has been shipped, so hopefully I will be able to crank out a banana apron in the near future.
Is "Honoring the Light of the Child: Activities to Nurture Peaceful Living Skills in Young Children" still available for purchase? Amazon doesn't have this book. Where did you get yours?
Posted by: Lis | November 18, 2008 at 02:43 PM
I might see if I can get those Montessori books at our local library they look really interesting.
Posted by: Thimbleina | June 04, 2008 at 03:18 PM