Weekly Wrap Up! 1st Week of 2015

Howdy!!  I know have been MIA for over 6 months (well except the super brief, 2 day, attempt at daily posting in November...what was I thinking?).  To be honest, it has been a mixture of not knowing where my head is, to not having 2 hands to type with, and not feeling like I had anything worth posting about!

But, we are back, with REAL Montessori (or at least Montessori inspired) schooling.  Last semester we used workbooks and curriculum.  So, we are finishing up on those and transitioning into more Montessori lessons again.  I'm ready!  

We started out this year with a new theme for our calendar.  We use the Calendar Connections from 1+1+1=1, and we are using the cards that focus on the Arctic and Antarctic.  Seems about right, since the high yesterday was all of like 4 degrees, and the windchill was below zero ALL.DAY.LONG.

Our discussions have included ice, glaciers, icebergs, and polar lights.  We've also talked about latitude and longitude, hemispheres, and the arctic circle.  

We used these wonderful Arctic Animals set from from Trillium Montessori. 

And I was thrilled when Mini Cooper, completely on her own, went and found a journal and wanted to draw pictures and copy the names so she could remember her work!!

We had a refresher course with our Little People animals and the Article and Noun presentation.  I also presented Grammar Box 2 (which I see I have no photos of).

Working through Grammar List 1.  We enjoyed the discussion of what some of the words meant.  We even watched a Youtube video of a wringer to learn what that was!

Explorer completely enjoyed getting to work on the Continent puzzle.  We also sang the Continent song, which she loved.  We used this to talk about where Antarctica was at.

Mini Cooper had a really fun day when she spelled her first word!!  She is certainly at a language sensitive period.  Always wanting to know how to spell things and write them down. She had no idea it would be possible that she could spell her own word!

When we started pulling out the Montessori Materials, it apparently brought inspiration to the sensorial materials.  The girls spent a lot of time building together this week.

For Christmas, Charger got this super cool Snap Circuts set!  We will be working on this a lot!  

We made the fan fly!  Super cool!

We learned about how ice melts by using a fun experiment I found from Art and Creativity.  First, we sprinkled it with salt, and then we put food coloring on it.

You could then watch the salt make tunnels through the ice as we watched the food coloring go through the tunnels.

The kids spent a good hour watching their ice cubes melt, adding food coloring, and experimenting.  Mustang was adding salt to get hers to melt faster and even pulled out a magnifying glass so she could get a better look.  Very fun experiment.  

One last little fun activity the big kids have been doing is to play the Oregon Trail.  This was a flashback for me and we've all been enjoying trying to get to Oregon without having our oxen stolen, our friends die, or to get sick from dysentery.  Lots of strategizing, planing, and discussion has come from this game!

All in all, it's been a great week back!  I hope yours was as well!  See you next week :).

God Bless,

Lisa

We're going to link up:

Montessori Triangle Box Lessons

This past weekend we received a new shipment of materials.  I am ALWAYS excited to get new Montessori Materials, and this was no exception!  I dug right in and started trying to understand our new materials, specifically the Triangle box.

I had watched this video on the Primary Triangle box lesson and was moderately impressed.  Knowing that triangles build triangles wasn't a new concept to me (and of course shouldn't be).  I thought this would be one of the lessons that I went ahead and taught even though I didn't really see the value, because sometimes I don't get the 'why' until later.

But, as I was reading through the Geometry album (free) from Cultivating Dharma and read the equivalency charts, I found out that it takes a whole new level in the Elementary class and I was VERY IMPRESSED.  So much so, that I showed my husband.

Now, my husband is very passive about our schooling choices, and I think he sometimes questions the financial investment necessary for the Montessori Materials.  I occasionally show him the materials and get mixed results.  Not this time :).

Here are the photos for the basic Triangle Box presentation (you can also watch the video in the above link to see it in action):

The triangle box with all the contents inside.  Pretty easy to distinguish what is in the box.

The pieces are all laid out and the object is to build three different triangles.

Here they are all put together.  

It was slightly challenging for Mini Cooper, who is 3 1/2 (a bit below the recommended age), but she did just fine.

But, that isn't the end...

Here are the Elementary Lessons (the ones that had us so impressed).

By rearranging the pieces of each triangle, the child is able to visualize that each shape has the same AREA no matter what the shape, itself is.  This is a concept that is so very hard to explain.  

Here, we have a square and a rhombus.

Finally, a triangle and a hexagon.  Even I found myself internalizing the material on yet another level.  I had always known it to be true, but I don't think I've ever put it together myself.

This equivalency chart is part of the free Elementary album from Cultivating Dharma and is just a wonderful resource.

I was extra impressed when, after finishing the lessons I showed her my Mustang (who is 7), made this one:

Once again, I'm so grateful for Dr. Montessori and her insight of how to present complicated concepts to even a young child.  

Thanks so much for stopping by!  God Bless and Happy Schooling,

Lisa

We are linked up this week!

Binomial Bummer

I have been awaiting the day that we could add the binomial cube to our classroom.  Finally I had the funds available to make a purchase that included the cube.

I brought it out to show Charger and gave him the demonstration.  He looked at me, the cube and said. 'That's easy, Mom.'

So away he went...

Elapsed time?  About 2 minutes.  Let's hope that doing it blind folded will at least be a challenge. 

And, I know I have 2 more students to try it in the future.  Oh well, I really like it :).

God Bless!

Mini Coopers Montessori Tot School Wrap Up

Mini Cooper is 2 1/2 years.  She is at the very beginning of the Montessori Primary cycle.  It is an interesting age.  She is very eager to try the things that interest her, and to do them over and over.  She is also very interested in making messes with the work she uses, which tries my patience!  We are trying to find a middle ground :).

Some of the things she has worked on over the last few weeks:

Practical life:

Pouring beads between a jug and two votive holders 'cups.'  She was so pleased with herself.  

Lacing beads, or in her case sorting them.

Spooning lentils.

Sensorial:

Geometric presentation tray.

Showing off her completed pink tower.

Creating her own extensions.

Touch boards.  Her response to the rough side was 'ouch!'

Language:

Working on her pincher grasp to put marbles on a duck.

Matching pictures.

Sorting animals and things.

Another pincher grabber, moving little chicks from one crate to the other.  Next week this will be a practical life exercise when I add tongs :).

I found the little chicks at Hobby Lobby.

We have been having a lot of fun!  Thanks for stopping by!

God Bless!!

We are linked up:

 

Mustang's Weekly Wrap Up

So I started to write everyone up in one post again, and it was too long and confusing and I couldn't add any commentary.  I am going to do separate posts for each kiddo as I have a chance.  There will be some duplicates, and some not.  Hopefully, I wont bore you!

Mustang is age 6 1/2, she is still in Primary Montessori since we are really just starting.  She is on the fast track (pretty much as quickly as I can buy and present the materials), but we are starting with period 1, in all but Math and Language.

Some of her highlights from the last few weeks:

Practical Life:

Button frame (this was easy for her).  

She has been helping a lot in the kitchen.  She asks all the time if she can help me with the dishes.  I am trying more and more to let go.  I just ordered child size cleaning supplies, so hopefully she will enjoy using them.

Sensorial:

Geometry cabinet presentation tray, later blindfolded.

Touch Boards-she liked them the most of all my children.  She is really into her sense of touch at the moment.

Geometric solids.  I used a natural set I already had on hand and added in the Platonic solids made of cardstock.  Mustang really wants to make her own nets-I told her she could soon!

Mathematics:

Our fast track has been taking us down a review of math as we go through the math materials.  She is ready (previous knowledge wise) to start the golden bead material.  But, I wanted to get there the correct way.  So, we have been using the materials ahead of it quickly.  She is almost there!!

Sandpaper letters.

Number rods.

And extensions.

Table top rods, intro to addition and subtraction.

Spindle boxes.

Cards and counters.  These are homemade using red floral gems.  This was very basic for her, but we had never discussed odd and even numbers.  So, it was fun for her to learn something new.

This cards and counters worksheet is from Wikisori.

Language:

Mustang is still going through her All About Reading and First Start Reading.  

She was excited when I downloaded books for her to read on the Kindle Fire!

Art:

Well kind of art.  She was observing Charger working on his math and drew this 10 rod.

 Then, she drew a barnyard scene-we have been reading Charlotte's Web.

Another day, she drew a spider web and a lot of spiders.  Unfortunately, all the drawings were on our dry erase board.  That's a large part of why I took the photos-this is my only way of preserving the drawing.  

Culture is kind of at a stand still.  I just received our sandpaper globe and landforms, so we should be moving forward next week.

Oh and we had one other unplanned Practical Life!  HAIR CUTTING!!!  Mustang thought that she would like to be like her aunt, so she cut Mini Cooper's hair!!!  Grrrr!!

Mini's hair on Tuesday.

Mini Cooper's hair on Wednesday!

Yep, over 6 inches.  It looks cute-after I fixed it-but I'm a little sad (now that I'm not angry).  I'm glad that hair cutting is not a normal part of the Montessori Primary education :).

To see what other kids around the blog world are doing check out Montessori Monday on Living Montessori Now!