Tracey asked a question which relates to discussions friends and I have had over and over this year. She noted the plethora of (Montessori) resources available and inquired where I find the least expensive of these. Indeed there are sites overflowing with resources today. This is in stark contrast to to what was available when I was teaching my first preschooler in the late 80s. At the time, and for quite some time after, I was hungry for resources. When they began trickling out I grabbed all the freebies I could and was suprised to find that they did not appreciably improve our lot.

While we were short on resources at the beginning we were rich with theory. There were books by old school Montessorians and Montessori herself in every library. I couldn’t put my hands on knobless cylinders to save my life but I could tell you what their purpose was and make pretty good substitute activities to fill in for those then-elusive materials. In retrospect that was great good fortune. I was forced to read, read, and read some more. If we wanted the method it was ours even if the materials were not available. We knew the principles. The rest was just a means to the ends.

Today the situation is quite the reverse. Materials are readily available in all price ranges. You can acquire both original apparatus and a multitude of “Montessori-inspired” works. Since the term is not copyrighted it can and has been applied to just about any manipulative based learning materials. This muddies the picture considerably. The emphasis is on the trappings versus the theory. This is why you see many homes chock full of hands-on learning tools and yet very few that enjoy the peace and order commonly connected with the method. The stuff itself cannot produce those things. Worse, an abundance of poorly produced materials encourages the polar opposite of what Montessori was striving for. Instead of respect, they invite carelessness. Instead of clarity there is chaos. I know this because we have fallen prey to this as well.

There is no shortage of inspiration in cyber world. The concern is that too many people are satisfied with the outward appearance and are lax to really dissect down to the heart of any given method – Montessori or otherwise. Hence there are blocks and gnomes and printables and you name it cluttering schoolrooms and adding more stress to teacher/moms who have no idea what the big picture is nor where all that stuff fits in, literally or figuratively. There are resources offered that carry a particular label which don’t actually reflect the method they are linked with. That isn’t helpful and it doesn’t bring you closer to a Montessori (nor any other) environment. In fact one would be far closer to realizing the promise of Montessori with a very small number of materials and a good grasp of the overall goals. Once you have that you can improvise nicely and are need very little.

So be wise. Have a good idea what you are looking for and what you plan to do with a given resource before diving in. Don’t introduce it to your children until you are prepared to maintain it. (my dear friend Karen has graciously bitten her tongue and not called me on my disaster of a resource room from this summer when we were not vigilant. Wait til you see the after pics Karen! We are getting there!)

We started with Elizabeth Hainstock’s books Teaching Montessori in the Home (preschool and school age). They remain my favorite resources because you can cover the lion’s share of practical life, sensorial, language and math topics through mid-elementary school with these two little books. They should be used after reading Montessori’s original books. I also LOVE the summaries written by Dorothy Canfield Fisher. They are hard to come by but they articulate the method so very well to an audience who had next to no authentic resources at their disposal. A new title by Montessori leader Tim Seldin is How to Raise an Amazing Child. It is a layperson’s guide to the method and how to apply the principles at home. Lots of gorgeous photography.

For more indepth, step by step instructions for original materials David Gettman’s book is an incredible buy. If you refer to Montessori World’s online albums with pictures it is a great help. This is the same material found in the teacher albums for far more.

Montessori Live is a membership site which has a video library you can access online. They have demonstrations of teachers presenting the lessons so you can better visualize how this is done. As you will see in the demos – the emphasis in a Montessori lesson is on brevity, clarity, and being concise. This is a good motto to keep in mind. Show don’t tell.

Tracey asked if our kids ever “outgrow” Montessori. It depends upon your definition of the term. Montessori analyzed human growth and development. She took careful notes and made suggestions for each stage. While folks are most familiar with the method as it is applied to early childhood, it is by no means limited to this time of life. Children eventually move beyond manipulatives but they continue to develop independence and take personal responsibility for their education. The method continues to rely on the mentor model and makes limited use of texts in favor of research and experience-based learning. This article explains how Montessori is implemented at the upper levels in some schools.

On the left sidebars are Montessori-inspired curriculum and idea books. Some more purist than others. All affordable. My favorites are there including the books by Labritta Gilbert and the Workjobs books. We first found these at book sales when our big boys were tiny and are using them still. If the original materials are out of your price range go here first.

I have updated my right-hand Montessori sidebar links and have added some wonderful new resources. There are a dizzying number of free ideas linked there. There are also several new teacher training programs included which are especially helpful. There are more resources there than any one family could ever use therefore I share them along with this sage advice:

Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding. Prov 4:7

When you have the understanding of the big picture and the overarching goals then you need little else. Without it, all the getting of resources in the world will only stress both you and your shelving.

Just a couple shots of Brendan and Tess at work. They have enjoyed being back to school as well although it seems that your siblings’ work is always a bit more enticing than your own. All in the younger set are working on taking turns and not enthusiastically shouting out answers or stepping in to “help” each other over much. There are far worse problems for teacher/mom to have than fighting over ‘getting’ to do school work though lol!

This game was too easy for Brendan this year:

Tess is fascinated with Jars and Lids but not quite able to turn them properly as yet. We introduced these at the exact right time:

“Pancakes” made of sponges are transferred from cookie sheet to their cardstock shadows. This was tricky for Brendan. It was quite sweet to see his determination however. You can see his left hand behind his back. I explained that he was to use his spatula to move the pancakes into place so he is being very careful not to use his hands.

When children in a Waldorf kindergarten misbehave, it usually means they have “fallen out of the form” of the moment. How can we recreate the form around them? I have found a number of things that work well. For example, if a child becomes too loud or too silly at snack time, I stand behind him and begin straightening the chair, fixing his place mat, cup, plate – in other words “re-forming” the space around him.

So begins this exerpt from Beyond the Rainbow Bridge. It explains so nicely the “why” of orderliness, namely the effect of the environment on the child. It wisely suggests that by creating order around a restless or unruly child we can help instill ordered behavior from the outside in. It helps us ‘save our no’s’:

If we save our “no’s” for situations where children are doing something dangerous or when they may damage someone’s belongings, they will more readily listen to those “no’s” when they are necessary. If we use the word “no” too often or indiscriminately, children soon learn to ignore it

Montessori for Everyone has gathered a number of posts elaborating on this theme. As she says, “A little bit of thought goes a long way.” I have given more than a little thought to environment as we begin a new school year, especially since our school room was visited by my one-man wrecking crew on a couple occasions this summer (“Oh puzzles! Oh beads! Oh…!”) I trust that reforming this space will reap even more benefits than the reforming of the other rooms that has happened so far.

A couple tidbits from Montessori for Everyone:

Go for form and function
In the Montessori prepared environment, every part of the room should be beautiful. While there are often budget limitations, it’s important to use attractive, sturdy shelves, tables, and chairs. Whenever possible, materials should be “real” (wood, glass, bamboo) and not plastic. The children will rise to the level of the materials, and show more care in handling them if they are good quality.

We have been gathering real wicker baskets to replace plastic storage where possible. I would like to eventually get some fabric crates as well.

Control the environment, not the children

Like was said before. Do more of the one and you need to do less of the other.

and finally, my mantra

Less is more
Don’t cram the shelves till they’re overflowing. This is confusing and bewildering to the children, and makes it harder for them to make good work choices. Better to put out a few exquisitely beautiful materials than a shelf full of mediocre ones. Better to have one gorgeously framed painting than a wall full of cheap posters.

Some days I am pretty certain Susan and I were separated at birth. She has posted another installment of her reflections on home education. These are written from the perspective of having now grown children. To me, these are some of the very best kinds of reflections. They have the benefit of hindsight and the fruits of her labor are evident now. In other words, when women in her position speak – listen to them.
: )

Among this post’s gems:

Homeschooling is really not the difficult, complex, scary thing some people make it out to be. It doesn’t require a degree, complicated plans, paperwork, and tedious record keeping. It can be simple, relaxed, and lovely.

this one really hit home this week:

Keep learning yourself, even if it’s about just one thing-

and this one reminds me of what I am forever reminding myself – Be what you want them to be. Because….

Because, besides prayer, the three most powerful tools in a homeschooling parent’s toolkit are:

1. Example
2. Example
3. Example

There is more. Go see.

I am trying to upload more consistently this school year. We have really enjoyed being “back to school”. It is a simple routine but one strewn with lovely touches which have gone over very well. Here is an example. For first grade we are finishing Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons as we have done for the previous six first graders. The lessons include letter practice. Instead of printables destined for the trash we are making main lesson book pages of the best work.

First, we take small crayons and make stripes to serve as general guidelines. These help corral the letters without putting undue pressure on young hands. Then a few of each letter indicated in the lesson are practiced. In this way we can employ some of the creative techniques we love without having to entirely reinvent the curricular wheel. Small adaptations make a world of difference for the child and save a lot of hassle for mom. Before scrapping it all and starting over, see how you can make what you have in hand work in new ways.

Here is a recent grade three narration about Leonardo Da Vinci with illustration. It was dictated to me and then written by the student as is usual at this age. Laura Berquist explains.

This process results in a retelling…that is truly the child’s own work, but the separation of the composition of the retelling and the physical act of writing make it a much less burdensome procedure.

When the child is finished telling his story we talk about why it is written as it is. Where are there capitals? Why are some lines indented? Where are the punctuation marks? Why? He is encouraged to pay special attention to those things when he copies his words onto his main lesson page.

We have moved away from typed narrations to those that can be completed by hand for several reasons. I have found typed narrations to be revisited less often. They have a bit of a colder more sterile effect. The child tends to have less “ownership” of that type of work than he has of things he produced with his own hands. It is also a precious keepsake of imperfect letters and heartfelt drawings that came from inside of him.

Since there is a limit to how much small hands can produce it is necessary to practice summarizing. I remember reading years ago that many small children can retell (at least in the moments right after hearing the story) in exhausting detail but struggle with identifying main/relevant ideas. Discussing the composition with the child as he retells goes far in helping develop this necessary skill.

Later he is asked to illustrate his entry. If he does not yet feel comfortable drawing certain things then a representative drawing is perfectly acceptable. For instance a simple rainbow watercolor for the story of Noah works just as well as several detailed people and animals which may be frustrating for little ones. A plain black pot would work to illustrate the Stone Soup story. Whatever is chosen, have them try to fill the page with color. As you can see the tendency, particularly the younger the child, is to make single, tiny pictures in the middle of the page. We gently help to move them out of that habit as time goes on.

For these narrations we are using the three-day rotation described by Laura Berquist, Marsha Johnson, and others to increase retention. We tell the story (or they read it) on the first day. The next day the child retells and copies his story to page. The last day an illustration is added. The result is that the story is very solid in the mind afterwards. Slow and steady wins the race. Focus on doing a few really well rather than making pages for every experience the child has.