July 5, 2010 9:24 PM
Montessori and preschool language enrichment at home
Rerunning this from a few years ago. I know a lot of homeschool families take the summer off, except Mom is busy planning and preparing materials. Here's something you might want to prepare for lessons next year:
Little children absorb language the way a sponge absorbs water. Would you be surprised to know they can learn the names of birds and fish and reptiles easily at three and four years old? They can, as any Montessori teacher could tell you: it's part of the everyday curriculum in Montessori schools.You can make the most of your child's ability to absorb language at home too. For example, you can find images on the Internet to construct a set of cards for backyard birds found in the area of the country where you live:
Or any other subject which lends itself to vocabulary enrichment: including the five classifications of animals, flowers, trees, even things like baseball teams and the Washington D. C. monuments.
How to use the cards a la Montessori:
Make two sets.
Leave one set as is.
Cut the other set into two parts: picture and name.
Laminate if possible (a laminator is one of the best investments a mom can make. Ask for one for Mothers Day, Christmas, or your birthday :)The cards can be used in several ways.
1) For language enrichment, use the set without the names and teach three at a time, using the three period lesson approach (you can find this in Mommy, Teach Me to Read! or online here.)
2) You can also use the cards for matching. Show your child how to place the labeled set of cards in a vertical column (on a table for small cards, on the floor for larger ones).
Now scatter the second set on the right (when I say scatter, I don't mean to handle them carelessly, but to place them carefully in a random group).
Point to the top card in the row: "Let's find the bird that is the same."
When your child finds it, show him how to place it to the right of the first card.
Now go down to the next card, look for the match, and place it.
Continue until all are matched.
If your child already has the vocabulary, use it.
This matching activity develops eye-hand coordination and reinforces the left-right top-bottom skills for later reading and writing. Very important.
3) Early reading exercise. Assuming your child has learned the names of the birds (or whatever vocabulary cards you are using), you can give him the divided set to read and label. Show him how to create a vertical column with the pictures, leaving space for the labels under each. Then he can read the labels one by one and place them under the correct bird. Finally, he can use the set with names attached as a control to see if his answers were correct.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I am not one to lay burdens on mothers. When I share how I was taught to do these things as a Montessori teacher, it does not mean that you can't be flexible and adapt them to your situation at home. But I want to do my best to explain why the presentation is so precise. Maria Montessori had carefully observed how children learn. She was dedicated to building the best foundation for them so that they would learn with ease - making learning a joyful activity they would want to engage in for the rest of their lives.
As a result, these exercises - so simple on the outside - are packed with attention to detail that will make their their future learning much easier. The attention to the left-right eye hand coordination is an example.
Once you learn the principles, you can apply them to anything you do with your child. Even a puzzle with knobs can be set up in Montessori fashion: by carefully removing each piece (rather than dumping the puzzle upside down) and placing them to the left so that the child will be moving left to right to put them back in. Another Montessori technique would be to show your child how to hold the knobbed piece in his left hand while using two fingers of his right hand to trace the outline of the puzzle piece and then the cutout where it will go before placing it in its place. This evokes concentration and prepares the hand for later writing skills.
Oh, my goodness! I set out just to tell you about the matching cards, and here I am - going on about so much more. This is why I ended up writing two books on how to use Montessori principles and techniques at home to help your child become a better learner.
Many of you have already ordered my new books [Mommy, Teach Me! and Mommy, Teach Me to Read!]. I want you to know that I respect that each of us mothers is unique and that what works in one family situation might not work in another. There will be moms who love and want to incorporate the whole program I've presented in the books. And there will be others who will glean a few things that will help bring more order and harmony to their lives with their children.
But I'm confident that there is something of use in these books for every mother. Do not, under any circumstances, think that you must do everything in them to succeed. You are already a success in God's eyes. We're all on this journey together and we all have one goal in mind: to help our children reach their potential.
As long as that's our goal, God will be helping us reach our potential too!
Posted in Homeschooling, Montessori, Preschoolers | Permalink
Comments
My six year-old recently impressed visitors to the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History with his vast knowledge of different types of birds. I have to admit, I was impressed too! He attends a Montessori school and has been learning bird names since he was three.
Posted by: Molly | July 5, 2010 10:40 PM
