January features children of the world, weather, snow and things that go with snow, such as mittens, polar animals, snowflakes, snowmen, and fake snow in the sensory bin. We have books about polar bears, and one that gives the Spanish verbs for what polar bears like to do, such as sleeping, sliding, running, walking, swimming and such.
For weather, we have a snowflake, rain and a sun stamp for painting. We also have felt weather representatives for raindrops, white clouds, gray rain clouds, a lightning bolt, and a blowing face that represents wind.
We have little language cards that have pictures of people in traditional dress and the word for hello in the corresponding language. During group time, or when a child chooses such a language activity, the adult says the word, and gives space and time for the child to repeat each word.
We also have a magnetic boy that can be dressed up in fireman clothes, and little cards that have a picture of an isolated body part — hand, foot, mouth, nose, eye, ear, belly button — to place in slots.
The number five is in the drop box, along with five pegs to place in the holes (symbol, quantity and the combination of the two).
We sing songs such as:
Tune: "Row, row, row your boat…"
Snowflakes, snowflakes,
Falling to the ground,
Great big snowflakes that do not make a sound.
Tune: "I'm a little teapot…"
Build a little snowman, short and fat,
Give him a carrot nose and a tall hat.
Now my little snowman, won't you stay?
Out comes the sun, and you melt away.
A chubby little snowman, had a carrot nose,
Along came a bunny, and what do you suppose,
That hungry little bunny, ready for his lunch,
Ate the snowman's carrot nose… nibble, nibble, crunch.
Thumbs in the thumb place,
Fingers all together, this is the song we sing in mitten weather.
Thumbs in the thumb place,
Fingers all together, this is the song we sing in mitten weather.
My lady wind, my lady wind,
in and out she blows about trying to get in…..
Whooohooohooohooo, Whoohoohoohoo,
Whooohooohooohooo, Whoohoohoohoo.
Mr. Sun, Sun, Mr. Golden Sun, Please shine down on me.
Mr. Sun, Sun, Mr. Golden Sun, Hiding behind the tree.
These little children are asking you, to please come out so they can play with you,
So, Mr. Sun, Sun, Mr. Golden Sun, Please shine down on me!
It's raining, it's pouring,
the old man is snoring,
he went to bed,
and bumped his head,
and didn't wake up till morning.
Tune: Frere Jaques
Where is thunder, where is thunder,
Hear it boom! Hear it boom!
Pitter, patter, raindrops.
Pitter patter, raindrops.
I'm all wet. I'm all wet.
Tune: Twinkle, twinkle little star
Pitter, patter, drip, drip, drop. How I wish the rain would stop.
Will the sun come out today? So we can go out to play?
Pitter, patter, drip, drip, drop. How I wish the rain would stop.
"North America, South America, Africa, Europe Asia. Don't forget
Australia. Don't forget Antarctica."
I have two little eyes right above my nose,
The cutest little eyes, they can open and close,
First I open, then I close,
That's the way my little eyes go.
I have one little mouth, right below my nose,
The cutest little mouth, it can open and close,
First I open, then I close,
That's the way my little mouth goes.
I have eyes and a mouth, and in between is my nose,
The cutest eyes and mouth, they can open and close.
First I open, then I close,
That's the way my eyes and mouth go.
We are receiving books and other items from Barnes & Noble after our book fair. Thank you for your participation. Every teacher at Montessori Tides is super excited about their new materials! We made a great order of new board books for our class, as well as an open-ended magnetic manipulative!
In closing, please mark your calendar for Thursday, Jan. 26, for Parent Education Night II. The Toddler session will be from 6 to 7 p.m.
The Primary session will be from 7-8 p.m. If your child is moving into a Primary class in the fall, this is a great opportunity to become familiar with the materials.
In the Toddler class, we will discuss what kinds of skills we aim to develop through the many provided activities. It may surprise you that the hand-washing work is also an indirect preparation for math.
In the Primary class, you will explore Montessori materials that Maria Montessori developed nearly 100 years ago. Hands-on, you are able to experience the isolated concepts, the order and organization each material brings, the order and sequence of the classroom activities, and the control of error built into the materials that allows children to self-correct and gain full understanding of the abstractions presented.
You will see that when you learn through Montessori materials, many senses are involved. You also will notice that movement is always an integrated component of the learning experience. I still marvel about how so many materials have been designed to offer the gradual experience of ideas through activities from concrete to abstract and from simple to complex.
What you won't see are children in action in that evening. You won't be able to notice, therefore, how the children are at liberty to choose anything they know how to do every day, ever expanding.
Research now strongly suggests that freedom of choice in education allows for greater engagement (stamina, concentration and joy) in the learning experience. I hope you will be able to come explore the many activities of the Toddler and Primary classrooms and marvel at the many subject areas covered through multiple activities!
P.S. Read Janet Lansbury’s article about a magic word of parenting. Do you know what the other magic word is? (Hint:The answer is embedded in the article.)
