Year End Reflections on Your Montessori Classroom

After spending the year in careful, purposeful observation, the end of the year naturally lends itself to thoughtful reflection. Montessorians find themselves in serious contemplation. What worked well this year? And, more importantly, what didn’t work? In our continuing journey to follow the child, there seems to be constant room for improvement.

The end of the year brings a flurry of emotion. There is the excitement that the year is over and summer is just around the corner. There is the excitement as new Montessori students are rising to our level. There is the excitement that our “graduates” are moving on to the next plane of their development. And there is sadness at those Montessori students whom may be leaving our Montessori family prematurely.

Celebrating the Montessori Community at the End of the Year

A Montessori teacher cannot end the year without celebrating the community. It is as important to bring closure to the year as it was to set the tone when she began the year. There are important rites of passage to recognize and celebrate.

It is important to recognize pre-established traditions if your Montessori school has them. Children are creatures of habit. Ritual and tradition play an important role in their development. If your school does not have any end-of-year traditions, feel free to create your own. Here are some ideas for year end celebrations for your Montessori classroom.

Montessori Curriculum Ideas for Father’s Day Activities

The idea for Father’s Day came from Sonora Smart Dodd of Spokane, Washington after hearing a Mother’s Day sermon in 1909. Having been raised by her father after her mother passed away, she wanted to show her father how special he was to her. Since her father was born in June, she decided to hold the first Father’s Day celebration on June 19th, 1910.

In 1926, a National Father’s Day Committee was formed in 1926 and in 1956, Father’s Day was recognized by a Congress in a Joint Resolution. President Richard Nixon established Father’s Day as a National Holiday in 1972, to be celebrated on the third Sunday in June.

Even though many Montessori schools are out for summer recess, it is still a nice touch to have the children create a Father’s Day present before school is out. Many handcrafted Father’s Day gifts become a special memory, to be treasured for years to come. So, instead of a tie or another box of golf tees, use these great ideas to help your children create a lasting gift of love.

Montessori Classroom - Involving Students at the End of the Year

Something happens after spring break. Palpable and alive, there is a new energy in the Montessori classroom. Whether spoken aloud or not, students and Montessori teachers alike have begun the countdown to the end of the year. As time passes, the energy builds until, before you know it, the end is here.

Just as the amount of preparation in the beginning of the year can seem overwhelming, so, too, can the closing of your Montessori classroom for the year. If you plan ahead and apply proper modeling techniques, your students can help you dismantle your classroom during those last few days of the year. The following is a list of ideas to focus that enthusiastic “school’s out” energy.

Montessori Curriculum Activity Ideas for Memorial Day

In 1866, the United States was recovering from the Civil War. As soldiers began to return home, wounded and down-trodden, Henry Welles, a drugstore owner in Waterloo, New York suggested closing down the shops in town for one day to honor the fallen soldiers buried at Waterloo Cemetery. On May 5, the townspeople placed flowers and wreathes on the graves of fallen northern soldiers. At about the same time Retired Major General Jonathan A. Logan planned another ceremony, this time honoring those who had survived the war. He led veterans through town to the cemetery to decorate the graves of their fallen comrades.

The two ceremonies joined and in 1882 was named Memorial Day, a day designated as a time to honor United States soldiers who had died in all wars. In 1971, President Richard Nixon declared Memorial Day as a Federal Holiday, to be celebrated on the last Monday in May. Today, people honor and remember not only those killed in war, but also the lives of loved ones.
It is a time to talk to young children about what it means to honor loved ones who have passed away. It’s also a time to discuss with older children that though Montessori teaches peace and acceptance, it is right to honor those who have given their lives to serve their country.

Montessori Classroom - Tips for End of the Year Preparation

The end of the year in a Montessori classroom is always a flurry of excitement! We teachers come to realize there just isn't enough time left to do what we want to do in the final weeks of the year. There are always more lessons to give, more research to be done, more books to read, more games to play and more songs to sing. In this busy time, it is important for the Montessori teacher to be as organized (if not more so) than ever before. It’s a time to reflect upon the upcoming school year and what needs to be done over the summer. Here are some ideas to help make the end-of-the-year transition just a bit smoother.

A Guide to Effective Parent Communication for The Montessori Teacher

Parents and Montessori teachers are dedicated to one goal: the best education possible for the child. Parent understanding and participation is critical to student success. It is important to establish and encourage open communication between yourself and the parents in your Montessori classroom. This provides a consistency of school and family which is necessary for the child’s development.

The beginning of a new school year is critical to both parents and students. The tone the Montessori teacher sets even before school starts will be one parents and students remember.

Children Thrive in a Well Prepared Montessori Environment - A Mathematical Example

In the Montessori classroom, children are given the opportunity to set their own goals, manage their own time, and self-evaluate. They are highly motivated to learn because their interest is genuine and they are excited to expand their knowledge. There is no need for external motivation or incentives.

This enthusiasm and self-discipline is not inherent in all children, nor is it something that happens “overnight”. Dr. Maria Montessori said it best: “Free choice is a higher activity: only the child who knows what he needs to exercise and develop his spiritual life can really choose freely. One cannot speak of free choice when every external object calls the child equally, and the child, lacking in directing willpower, follows everything and passes from one thing to another without end.”

Montessori Curriculum Ideas for Mother's Day: Herbal Pillows and Tin Punching

Mother’s Day is a day that children love to celebrate with hugs and kisses and handpicked bouquets of flowers. Children should not feel pressured to buy their mothers store bought gifts, but to give those made by both heart and hand. It was especially joyful to hear one of my own students tell her parent just the other day “I don’t need to go buy Mommie anything. I already made her something.”

And as mothers know, a handmade gift is special and treasured. To this day, my own mother keeps many gifts that were made by my sister and me in her china cabinet, a symbol to all of her “priceless” treasures.