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Your child's pre-school and lower elementary experience is the foundation of his or her preparation for life. The purpose of the Montessori method used at LFMA is to make that foundation one of self-control, self-motivation and love of learning. Acquiring these valuable habits during the formative years gives the child a major head start toward personal achievement and satisfaction with life throughout the years ahead. The Montessori classroom is indeed a child's world, geared to the child's size, pace and interests. It is designed to put the child at ease by giving him freedom in an environment prepared with attractive materials. These materials are arranged on low shelves within easy reach of even the smallest youngster. The tables and chairs in the classroom are moveable, permitting a flexible arrangement for many activities. The children also work on small mats on the floor where they are naturally comfortable. The Montessori materials in the classroom can be divided into several main groups as follows: The Practical Life area involves the physical
care of person and environment. The child can easily relate to the materials
used in this area because they have been part of his home experiences since
birth. The materials are arranged in a manner which enhances the development of
the child. For example, the child discovered his hands could be used as tools
before he knew how to use a to The materials have a meaningful purpose and are attractive to the eye, which arouses curiosity in the child. As the child masters these skills he is also lengthening his concentration time, perfecting his coordination and gaining confidence in himself. The child now has prepared himself for working independently and confidently in other areas of the classroom. At the time of birth the child begins to explore his new world through his senses. He uses his eyes to see, his ears to hear environmental sounds as well as voices, his mouth to taste and his nose to smell scents. Dr. Montessori developed sensorial materials which help to further develop these senses. She believed that enabling us to refine our senses will help us to appreciate our world. She used beauty, color and simplicity to call the child to the materials. The child learns discrimination, how to compare, independence, order, concentration, coordination, how to solve problems and observe through the repetitive use of these materials. G. Stanley Hall once said "The mind is handmade". Each of the sensorial materials isolates one defining quality such as size, color, form, sound, texture and smell. Each piece of equipment emphasizes one particular quality by eliminating or minimizing other differences. The materials are sequenced "by degree of ease with which the child performs the exercise " (from Dr. Montessori's Own Handbook). As in other areas the materials progress from large to small, simple to complex, and concrete to abstract. Many of these materials are self-correcting which promotes the process of auto-education. The sensorial area is located near math since the idea of quantity is inherent in all the sensorial materials. It is direct preparation for numeration. When the child has had much practice in this area he begins to make "discoveries" in the world around him. He will be able to see colors, shapes and feel textures which he can relate back to his classroom experiences. Mathematics is defined by Websters dictionary
as the science dealing with quantities, forms etc., and their relationships by
the use of numbers and symbols. The area of mathematics is included in the
Montessori program because in everyday life the child must know how to count,
measure and solve In other educational systems abstraction and memorization techniques are used before the concrete. This only prepares the child for long hours of drudgery and drilling. Many times this sets the child up for failure because he does not concretely understand the concepts he is trying desperately to internalize. Dr. Montessori believed that the young child
has a natural sensitivity for language development. The child has a fascination
for words, both spoken and printed. This fascination often enables him to begin
to read and write before the age at which it is traditionally taught. Through
use of the Montessori materials the directress can take advantage of these
periods of interest. In the classroom we begin to train the child's sense of
hearing through practical life and sensorial activities. These areas help the
child to be able to follow sounds and noises in his environment. He soon learns
to recognize and differentiate between them. He is now ready to receive the
sounds of articulate language. It is very important that The first period is simply naming the object - giving information. The second period is recognition of the object corresponding to the name. The third period is the remembering of the name corresponding to the object. The directress may choose to stay in one period for a while if the child is not ready to go on. When the child reaches the third period he has reached mastery of that skill. When introducing new language activities, as in all other areas of the classroom, correct sequence within the area is pertinent to the child's development. We want to continue to give the concrete before the abstract, use of large objects or cards before small, and present materials beginning at top left progressing to the right and down the rug forming rows or columns. After the child has refined the language skills he possesses a sense of freedom to communicate to others about the world around him. Humanities, Geography, Science Other areas of the Montessori classroom introduce the areas of Humanities, Geography and Science. These activities present facts and nomenclature of physical geography, i.e., the physical characteristics of the earth, and political geography, i.e., the countries and cultures of the world. Subjects introduced include history and appreciation of art and music, nomenclature and classification of zoology, science experiments, history and the study of historical figures. Reading and writing skills are used extensively in these activities. A Montessori teacher is a child advocate in the deepest sense who respects the child's total being. Since Montessori education is based on the inner motivation of the child, it is the teacher's role to work with this motivation in ways that will enhance the child's process of self-creation. The Montessori teacher believes in the powers of the individual child, who wants to do things by himself and act on his own. The child therefore chooses the activity and sets the pace. The teacher knows the developmental needs of children and sets up and maintains the prepared environment with an atmosphere of calm and order, warmth, care awareness and joy. A Montessori teacher never A Montessori teacher wants her students to be successful, yet she knows that for this to happen, she must follow their lead, not make them follow her.
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Lake Fern Montessori
Academy Phone: 321-268-3365 E-mail: lfma@cfl.rr.com. License Number - 070349 Copyright(C) 2000-2001 Lake Fern Montessori
Academy
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and he could manipulate larger items easier than he could small. In relation to
the classroom then, we use the hand before the tool, use oversized pitchers,
sponges, and other items before small. We start with simple tasks involving
minimal steps, and progress to the complex using many.
problems
among other things. This area coincides with the development of the mathematical
mind. That is the part of the mind which orders the environmental experiences
the child has had for future use. Therefore the order of the prepared
environment, the sequential learning arrangement and manipulation of the basic
sensorial materials help develop the mathematical mind. In preparation for the
math area, Dr. Montessori developed the sensorial materials. By using the senses
of sight and touch these materials introduce the concepts of long and short (the
red rods), thick and this (broad stair), and large and small (pink tower). These
materials have a definite relationship to ten-ness (grouping in tens). The red
rods teach units of measure, the broad stair represents the squaring of
numerals, and the pink tower cubes concretely define volume. Through repeated
use of the sensorial materials the child begins to master skills which now lead
him to investigate other areas such as math. Through use of the math materials
he will master concepts of numeration, the base ten system, linear counting, the
four operations and eventually these will lead to abstraction and memorization.
All the materials are sequenced from large to small and concrete to abstract as
they have been in other curriculum areas.
the
directress speak clearly and accurately to the child so the child will learn to
speak correctly. We begin to build on the basic language skills the child has by
offering him proper names for objects in his environment. Size, shapes and
colors of these objects are given emphasis and repeated many times until the
child is confident in knowing them. A three period lesson is used to determine
whether or not the child truly understands the concepts which have been
introduced. This lesson involves three steps or periods which may or may not be
used in one sitting.
unnecessarily
interferes or corrects. After she has presented the material, she invites the
child to use it as she has done. If the child shows by his responses that he is
able to use the material, the teacher knows she has presented it at the right
time. If the child shows the teacher has misjudged the moment of introduction,
she suggests they put the material away for another day. There is no correcting
or scorn. A child is never made to feel "stupid" or "dumb."