A NAMC Student’s Experience as a Montessori Parent: Autism

Part 4 of 4 – Montessori For My Autistic Sons
The following four-part series includes excerpts from an introductory letter written by a NAMC Lower Elementary diploma program student, Rachel, to her NAMC tutor. A mother of six boys, she was first introduced to Montessori in seeking alternative method of education for her first son. Her first four sons attended public school since kindergarten, with the oldest three beginning their education in Montessori preschool. Rachel’s two youngest boys, aged nine and ten, are autistic and she has chosen to complete her NAMC 6-9 diploma so that she may work with her sons using the Montessori method.

Why do I think the Montessori method will work for my children with Autism?

A NAMC Student’s Experience as a Montessori Parent: Choosing Teacher Training

Part 3 of 4 – Choosing NAMC Montessori Elementary Teacher Training

This four-part series include excerpts from an introductory letter written by a NAMC Lower Elementary diploma program student, Rachel, to her NAMC tutor. A mother of six boys, she was first introduced to Montessori in seeking alternative method of education for her first son. Her first four sons attended public school since kindergarten, with the oldest three beginning their education in Montessori preschool. Rachel’s two youngest boys, aged nine and ten, are autistic and she has chosen to complete her NAMC 6-9 diploma so that she may work with her sons using the Montessori method.

Why I chose the NAMC Montessori Lower Elementary diploma program to help my two youngest sons:

A NAMC Student’s Experience as a Montessori Parent: Follow the Child

Part 2 of 4 - Follow the Child
This four-part series include excerpts from an introductory letter written by a NAMC Lower Elementary diploma program student, Rachel, to her NAMC tutor. A mother of six boys, she was first introduced to Montessori in seeking alternative method of education for her first son. Her first four sons attended public school since kindergarten, with the oldest three beginning their education in Montessori preschool. Rachel’s two youngest boys, aged nine and ten, are autistic and she has chosen to complete her NAMC 6-9 diploma so that she may work with her sons using the Montessori method.

Would trying the Montessori "follow the child" approach benefit my autistic sons?

A NAMC Student’s Experience as a Montessori Parent

Part 1 of 4 – Montessori For My Children
This four-part series include excerpts from an introductory letter written by a NAMC Lower Elementary diploma program student, Rachel, to her NAMC tutor. A mother of six boys, she was first introduced to Montessori in seeking alternative method of education for her first son. Her first four sons attended public school since kindergarten, with the oldest three beginning their education in Montessori preschool. Rachel’s two youngest boys, aged nine and ten, are autistic and she has chosen to complete her NAMC 6-9 diploma so that she may work with her sons using the Montessori method.

Dear Ms. Irinyi,
Thank you for being my tutor. I look forward to working with you as I learn the Montessori method for teaching lower elementary. This is a long introduction, but it will help you understand why I enrolled.

Why did I choose Montessori for my children?

February is Black History Month - Celebrate in the Montessori Classroom

2012 Theme, USA: Black Women in American Culture and History for Montessori Studies

February is Black History Month in Canada and the US, also known as African American History month. It is honored in Great Britain in October. The theme in the US for 2012 is Black Women in American Culture & History, and provides a catalyst for various Montessori classroom activities for all ages. Montessori educators can begin to prepare activities across all subject areas, including cultural and physical geography, history, language arts, art, and more.

NAMC links below provide helpful background information for this occasion, and subsequent links are provided to give you additional selections for topical studies that your Montessori students may choose to delve into, depending on their particular area of interest. As February gets underway, more online information may be available, so be sure to research your own particular area of interest.

Montessori Mixed Age Groups and Ministry Regulations: Why Socialization Matters

On the practical side, our method has, moreover, the advantage of being able to draw together children of very different backgrounds. In our first Children’s Houses there were children of two-and-a-half, still too young for the simplest exercises of the senses, and children over five who, because of their attainments, could have passed after a few months into the third grade. In our schools each child advances and perfects himself according to his own individual ability….As far as the teacher is concerned, she can remain a whole day with children of such different stages of development without exhausting herself… ~Maria Montessori, The Discovery of the Child

The following question posed by a Montessori teacher highlights some of the challenges associated with maintaining mixed age groupings within the mandates of regional jurisdictions. The question also brings to the forefront the importance of the Montessori teacher as role model and guide for students, regardless of varying environmental parameters. Thank you to NAMC faculty alumnus Bree Van Nes for her thoughtful response.

Q: How would you feel about changing the age groups in a Montessori environment? Our four year olds cannot be in the same classroom as the five year olds due to Ministry regulations, which leaves us in a predicament. Our school principal wants to group the five year olds with grade one and two students. Do you think the five years olds are better alone (this is working fine) or should the age groups be redefined?
~ A confused Montessori teacher.

Chinese New Year – Montessori Curriculum Activities

Chinese New Year is a 15-day cultural celebration that follows the lunisolar calendar. This year Chinese New Year begins with the full moon on January 23 and 2012 is considered the Year of the Water Dragon. It will end with the full moon 15 days later on February 7.

The following website is informative and provides several links that offer a springboard for student activities across a number of subject areas. Find out about the 15-day celebration of the Chinese New Year, the Chinese calendar, traditions of Chinese New Year, including traditional foods prepared for Chinese New Year, to name a few.

There are many ways your students can create and participate in their own Chinese New Year cultural celebration. Here are few ideas to get you started:

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service in the Montessori Classroom

"If you want to be important, wonderful.
If you want to be recognized, wonderful.
If you want to be great, Wonderful!
But recognize that he who is greatest among you is your servant. That’s the new definition of greatness. This morning, what I like about it is that by giving it the definition of greatness it means everybody can be great because everyone can serve. You don’t have to have a college degree to serve. You don’t have to make your subject and your verb agree to serve. You don’t have to know about Plato and Aristotle to serve. You don’t have to know about Einstein’s Theory of Relativity to serve. You don’t have to know the Second Theory of Thermodynamics in Physics to serve! You only need a heart full of grace.
(A) soul generated by love. You can be that servant."

- Excerpt from Dr Martin Luther King Junior’s Speech “The Drum Major Instinct”

Celebrate Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service in the Montessori Classroom

This year, January 16 marks the Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service in the US. Montessori teachers everywhere, not just the US, have the opportunity to help students honor his legacy of service toward peace through activities that span every subject area of the Montessori curriculum.
Following are some web links for Montessori teachers to prepare and provide a rich selection of research and practical activities for their young students.

About Martin Luther King, Jr. and the MLK Jr. Day of Service:

• http://mlkday.gov/
• http://www.serve.gov/
• http://www.thekingcenter.org/history/about-dr-king/
• http://www.mlkonline.net/speeches.html
• http://www.infoplease.com/spot/mlkjrday1.html

Activity Ideas:

• http://www.scholastic.com/MLKDay/
• http://holidays.kaboose.com/martin-luther-king-jr-day.html

Related NAMC blogs:

• Montessori Students and Community Service
• Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day – January 18
• Montessori Peace Education: Martin Luther King Jr.

As much as possible, NAMC’s web blog reflects the Montessori curriculum as provided in its teacher training programs. We realize and respect that Montessori schools are unique and may vary their schedules and offerings in accordance with the needs of their individual communities. We hope that our readers will find our articles useful and inspiring as a contribution to the global Montessori community.

Montessori Elementary Math Curriculum Tips – Follow the Child

Children show a great attachment to the abstract subjects when they arrive at them through manual activity. They proceed to fields of knowledge hitherto held inaccessible to them, such as grammar and mathematics. I wonder how the theory arose that in order to work with the hand one must have an uncultivated mind, or that a cultivated mind consorted with manual helplessness! Must a man be classified either as a worker with his head or with his hands, instead of being allowed to function with his whole personality? Where is the logic in the view that one-sided development can be beneficial to the whole? ~ Maria Montessori, To Educate the Human Potential

The following question posed by a NAMC student gives us pause to reflect on the Montessori philosophy that reminds us to follow the child. It highlights an issue that some parents new to the Montessori method raise at the beginning of their child’s elementary educational journey. It also provides Montessori educators with the opportunity to communicate and demonstrate the important philosophy that lies behind the method, and engage Montessori parents in the wondrous experience of their child’s individual development.

Q: I have a question about multiplication facts. My Montessori first grade students are practicing multiplication and they are doing well with using the Montessori learning materials. However, they still cannot memorize the multiplication facts and parents ask why their children are practicing multiplication but cannot memorize their multiplication facts. At this point, what can I do?