Summer Montessori

"The greatest gifts we can give our children are the roots of responsibility and the wings of independence." -Dr. Maria Montessori

It's time to shift gears once again and transition to summer. After the kind of spring we have had, we are probably all ready to close this chapter, and find our new summer rhythm. Some of us will stay put, while others may travel. Many camps have been cancelled and that is a huge disappointment. But, as parks, playgrounds, pools, and recreation centers open up, I am sure many of us will be heading there. Over the last few months, we all found a routine and schedule that worked for our individual families. The same will happen this summer. For our children, consistency and knowing what to expect each day, remains important. 

For starters, I plan to give my children (and myself!) a week off. A week to breath, and rest, and play, and enjoy. To not worry about school and assignments. I encourage everyone to take a break from "teaching" and celebrate all that you accomplished and supported the last few months. As a teacher, I thank you, and as a mother, I validate you. We will then have a family meeting where we sit around the table and discuss what each of us hopes to get out of the summer. Its important for each family member to be heard...even if what they dream about is a vacation to Disney World (kids) or the spa (me), for example. (haha!) You can use your spring schedule as a model and set shorter, smaller increments of time to do various activities. I would like to see my children, and my students, reading, writing, and working on some math over the summer. We will have a time each day to work independently and a time to come together. And of course, we will have lots of opportunities to get outside. 

We have floated the idea of setting up a 1-2 hour work cycle each day and that's it. Keeping a journal is a great way to get in summer writing. Helping make grocery lists, counting various objects, telling time, or reading a book together, and then watching the movie if one exists. Maybe you decide as a family to each research one topic during the week and present it to one another at the end. Maybe you learn about an artist, or a country, or a type of food. Maybe you select an children's author and embark on an author's study by comparing different books written by them. Maybe you decide to make a meal together and take the week to learn how to prepare one part each. There are so many opportunities for learning and growing over the summer. And even when you can't see it, our children are growing, connections are being made. Even in the smallest, most unexpected places, a flower can bloom.  

Look to the Child

"The child is both a hope and a promise for mankind." -Dr. Maria Montessori

In a week where there is a lot of heaviness, I am thinking about what Maria Montessori would do if she was still alive. My gut tells me she would remind us to look to the child. Not necessarily back or forward, but to the present child sitting before you. Children center us and they pull us into the right here and right now. Their needs are timely and often stop us in our tracks, or even mid-sentence. Children are innocent and unbiased. Loving and open by nature. My own children have helped me to focus on what matters this week. My students, too. To be hopeful and grateful. To be soft and forgiving. To be optimistic that our children are our future.

"Peace is what every human being is craving for. And it can be brought about by humanity through the child." -Dr. Maria Montessori

Patterning

"Children display a universal love of mathematics, which is par excellence the science of precision, order, and intelligence." -Dr. Maria Montessori

We are almost at the finish line. T-minus two weeks left of school. We have been supporting distance learning in a variety of ways and homeschooling our children for three months now. Wow. We have set up new routines and structures. New patterns. Some of these have worked and some have not. And that is okay. Our students have had to learn in a whole new way to learn, and for part of it, we have had to sit back and let them navigate it on their own. As a parent, I can attest, that this has been quite hard at times. For the children and for us. But it is also something I am beyond words proud of to have been a part of. To have this unexpected, precious time with all three of my children and to be able to observe their minds at work. To watch them grow and evolve before my very eyes. As a teacher, it has been incredible to witness my students' resiliency and flexibility. They have taught me so much about the importance of not looking back, or fretting about something down the road, but rather, to be in the present moment. I am grateful to each and every one of them.

At this point in the school year, whether we are in the classroom or at home in quarantine, the feelings are the same. A mix of sadness for the school year ending and the thought of missing our friends and teachers over the summer. But it is also exciting to look forward to summer adventures and what the next school year will be like. At my home, we are still keeping up with our morning and afternoon work cycle, but our extra activities have become more creative and free form. One thing we have been doing is patterning. This fosters math and spatial reasoning skills. It also encourages creativity and mindfulness. Patterns are all around us. Some patterns are more obvious such as in blocks or Legos, while some take an outside-the-box thinking such as in food, crayons, or items found in the laundry. And of course, there are some incredible patterns out there in nature- in flowers, rocks, leaves, sticks, or even clouds. 

Encourage your children to find or build some patterns. You might even find yourself joining in the fun! It is both relaxing and satisfying. And when they show you their work, ask them to tell you about it. Listen to what patterns they see or create. Hear their connections and observations. That is enough. And, IF a child wants to do more with their patterning, of course, they can draw or write about it. Some may want to create a story or play. Great! Anything goes. No expectations. No pushing them to do more. Just letting the patterns (and our children) come and be. 

Creativity

"Never underestimate the creative intelligence of a child." -Dr. Maria Montessori

Children are so good about using their imaginations. In their play, in the story-telling, in their Lego building, and in their writing. If left to it, they create their own games and often their own, little worlds. Their uninhibited nature leads to so many wonderful things, in and outside of the classroom. Dr. Montessori believed children are able to teach themselves, if given the right environment. Yes, this means Montessori materials and classrooms full of multi-aged children. But there is more to it. Children mostly need some space to breath and the freedom to explore. Its okay for parents to send kids off to play or work, without much direction. But, sometimes they need help from us to find this independence. Montessori teachers and parents alike, encourage children to make choices for themselves. Children don't all know how to ask with words, but will relish in this independence once it has been found. 

While living in Tucson, we saw rainbows all the time. We were talking about rainbows and how they form. We looked at pictures, read some books and watched a couple videos to help us understand. My idea was to draw or paint them. But, my middle child, who is very tactile, asked if she could make a rainbow. I asked for some ideas and she ran around the house "thinking". When she came back she asked if she could use food. Sure, why not, I replied. And we looked around the kitchen for supplies. She decided she could bring her rainbow to life using mostly fruit, and some marshmallows. What a great opportunity I had in front of me. To allow my child to use her imagination- and with very little assistance needed. We reviewed how to hold the knife when cutting, and off she went. She was focused, and happy, and satisfied with her efforts. Her idea brought to life. It was tangible. It was concrete. And, it was delicious! But it also allowed her creativity to come through. Her personality. Her spirit. And that is worth its weight in gold. 

Hiking the Mountain

"If we compare our ability as adults to that of the child, it would require us sixty years of hard work to achieve what a child has achieved in (their) first three years." -Dr. Maria Montessori

In addition to being a mother and a Montessori teacher, I am an avid hiker. Being outdoors, surrounded by nature, truly feeds my soul. And if I can hike near an actual mountain, even better. Lately, I have been thinking about mountains and hiking and what I love about them so much. Hiking is peaceful, active, and a physical reminder to put your phone down and to be present. To smell the trees and dirt, to hear the sound of the birds chirping or the wind rustling through the leaves, and to feel the spray of water from a river or fall spread across your skin. Hiking alone or with my family of five- there is nothing more centering. At the same time, hiking can be hard, strenuous, and tiring. There are points at which you want to give up or turn around, and yet, you push yourself. You keep going. And the thrill of completing the hike, that sense of satisfaction and pride, makes it all worth it.

For me, there is a juxtaposition between hiking a big mountain and where we are right now. We have been home for 8 weeks- homeschooling, working, raising our families, keeping up with friends and extended family, all while trying to follow the social distancing recommendations. In essence, we have been on a long, strenuous hike. And if you are anything like me, there have certainly been moments when you have felt like the climb was difficult and exhausting. The learning curve has been steep. But, just like that, we are more than half way. We got to the top of our mountain, are finding our rhythm and making it work. We are better than making it work. The children are growing and developing, and we are ALL learning and evolving as human beings. We have started to descend now and I hope it is all downhill from here.

Trusting the Process

"Education cannot be effective unless it helps a child open up himself to life."  

-Dr. Maria Montessori

One of the wonders of Montessori education is the time given to the process. The freedom and flexibility to follow the student over the schedule. This translates to the time given to the formation of the child. Montessori children have a three year cycle to receive lessons, practice with the materials, and internalize new skills. And one could argue most Montessori children, in essence, have even more than three years seeing as Guides have countless lessons to provide scaffolding or additional challenge when needed. Its all about what is observed within the individual.

This concept of allowing the child time is not always easy to accept. Parents and teachers want their children and students to possess all the academic and social skills. And we want them to have these NOW. Am I right? Its easy to lose sight of whose path it truly is. But we must always bring it back to the child. We have to trust the process and know that young people learn on their own schedules, on their own time, and in their own ways. They will learn to read, become more proficient with their math facts, and build their writing skills. But if we push a child before they are ready, we create frustration. If we teach something too simplistic, we create indifference. Its only when we can allow the child to lead, to show us when they are ready to learn, that our goal can be accomplished.

Children want to take in all life has to offer. And they do! It's theirs for the taking, after all. By nature, children are open and ready to learn. Every day is something new. They want to know what new things are out there waiting for them to explore, to see and touch, to taste and smell. Sponges ready to absorb and soak in the world around them. Why? They trust the process.

Role of the Guide

"An adult can shape the environment, but it is the child that perfects his own being." 

-Dr. Maria Montessori

The role of the Guide in a Montessori classroom is different than that of a Teacher in a traditional classroom. A Teacher is at the center, where as Guide is there to observe. A Teacher makes plans based on curriculum standards and timetables first. A Guide has her albums ready, but pays attention to what lessons a child is truly ready for. A Teacher follows a schedule, while a Guide follows the child.

 Our job as Guides is to bring the child to the door, so close they might be able to peek in through the key hole, but then we are to leave them there. And when are ready, the child will open the door for themselves. This is the opposite of what mainstream education is built upon. When I was a traditional classroom teacher, I delivered information. But now as a Montessorian, I know it's not just about disseminating curriculum. Guides are trained to present impressionistic lessons, often through storytelling, to entice the child to want to go deeper into a topic of interest and learn more. The child is our teacher, Maria Montessori believed.

Its easy to feel overwhelmed by the amount of resources, suggestions, and advice on how to home school. But what our children are saying, and what they are displaying, should be most important. The children are still themselves. Laughing, playing, creating, imagining, learning. They have their moments of upset, frustration, and boredom. Sure. And all of these patterns and emotions are telling us good information. Helping us to understand what our children need next. The Guides are working tirelessly to help bring Montessori to your homes. But our answers can often be found within the children themselves. If they are happy, leave them be. If they are stressed, back up a little bit and let them breath. If children are asking for help, by all means sit with them. Like Guides, parents should not do the work for them. Most parents are not teachers and needn't pressure themselves to juggle this additional job. No. The child more often than not just longs to know we are there, supporting and encouraging them. Believing in them. A Guide has been trained to step out of the way of the child.  The child is wired to work and persevere. To try and fail and try again. The child is carving the path right now, and it is important that we, as parents, follow their lead.