Shana Tova! A New Year, New Friends, New Things to Do!

Montessori classrooms often start their year with the song, "At The Beginning," by Montessori music teacher Sanford Jones. We sing together,

At the beginning is a good place to be
What will each day bring for you and me?
New life, new friends, new things to do
At the beginning is a good place to be

And here we are at the beginning! Our old friends have returned to be together and new friends have joined us. We are learning new things to do and revisiting what we already know.

Rolling and unrolling a work rug are skills we master in the first weeks!

 

The pegboard required focus and invites creativity.

 

Face-washing with an eyedropper brings concentrated attention.

Having water accessible means the children can do it for themselves.

 

It's fun to visit an old favorite book with friends!

Our new Assistant, Alicia, gathers a group for a story. 

 

Preparing snacks with individual snack work

We gather together in small groups and large groups throughout the day! 

We play games and celebrate together. 

Playing games with chairs develops our coordination and strengthens our bodies. It's also a lot of fun!

 

We celebrated the first birthday of the year! He carries the earth around the sun and 

we celebrate a new year of life. 

 

Ariel leads the Sound Game with a group of children.

 

We lift our grape juice high as we sing the blessings for our Shabbat lunch!

Outside there are new tools and spaces to enjoy and new ways to use our bodies.

 

We learn to wait for the trampoline so that everyone can use it safely.

 

A zig-zag of wood scraps makes a great balance beam.

 

What can we use this wheelbarrow for?

 

Finding seeds on the nasturtium flowers we planted last spring. 

Maybe we can plant these and get new plants!

 

Planting anemone bulbs in the new butterfly garden.

 

Stumps are great for climbing, and these invite children to sit and share a conversation

 We explore land and water forms in the sandbox. First we dug a lake, then we built an island in the middle. The first hand sensorial experience builds real understanding of big concepts.

Rosh HaShanah is here! We read many books about the Jewish New Year and listened to the sound of the shofar.

 

Painting Rosh HaShanah cards to take home.

 

The children anticipated the loud sound of the shofar, covering their ears.

 

Some children can blow it too!

Happy New Year! L'Shana Tova!

Gemilut Hasadim - a Spontaneous Outcome of the Montessori Method

"The first step towards a social consciousness recalls the 'spirit of the family or tribe', for in primitive societies, as is well known, the individual loves, defends and values his own group, as the end aim of his existence. The first signs of this phenomenon amazed us, because they occurred quite independently of us, or of any influence that we could have exerted. ...This unity among the children, which is produced by a spontaneous need, directed by an unconscious power, and vitalized by a social spirit, is a phenomenon needing a name, and I call it 'cohesion in the social unit'."
Maria Montessori, The Absorbent Mind p. 212, Chapter 23

Not every day can bring about the sense of social cohesion in the classroom. These are, after all, young children going through all sorts of developmental stages. But the days and weeks where they come together, working together to solve problems and loving one another, are spontaneous and beautiful displays of gemilut hasadim, acts of loving kindness. Gemilut hasadim is considered one of the highest mitzvot (commandments) we can fulfill and seeing it manifest in the classroom is exciting. 

In this instance, the following took place over the course of about 2 minutes.

Outside after snack, waiting for the last friend to join them, instead of playing or choosing something else to do.

He is finally outside! Let's hug him!

More hugs! Everyone is feeling pretty good.

Immediately after hugs were exchanged, everyone ran to open the sandbox together. 

I stood back and let them figure it out.

The good feeling lingered as the children spent a long time mixing 

and digging and sifting in the sandbox.

It is important to understand when children are filled with good intentions and wish to show kindness to others.  My role as teacher is to stay clear of the action, and enjoy the happiness they share. 

This happens in other ways in the classrooms well.

Inviting his friend to play some music together

Now we can both do it!

This dressing frame can be tricky. Calling on friends to help when the going gets tough creates a feeling of community and helpfulness. 

It doesn't matter who spilled the water; when it's time to wipe it up, sometimes 

everyone wants in on the action!

The freedom to interact, choose activities that appeal to them, and take care of problems or needs independently are what bring these kinds of actions about; no amount of cajoling or instruction on the part of an adult can convince children to help each other. The children can spread joy among themselves, performing gemilut hasadim in the most natural, heartfelt way.

Inside and Outside

We have been experiencing extremes of weather lately as we head into summer. The children are very concerned and interested in the weather and we talk about different things we can do in different weather and the different clothes we can wear.

Last week was quite rainy! It's excited to watch the rain come falling down.

The rain never deters outdoor play. Catching drips with a bucket.

All the rain refreshed the garden and we harvested some snow peas to share for snack!

Checking our green beans as they sprout in their peat pots.

The hedge got a trim! Let's all put the leaves in the yard waste barrel!

"Fixing" the wagon together.

Inside we have been very busy learning new things to do, practicing ones we've tried before, and enjoying our friends.

Slicing strawberries to share with friends!

Europe on the puzzle map is like Europe on the globe, it matches!

Stitching on burlap is a nice way to introduce sewing.

Washing a table has many steps and requires concentration; beading has only one step but it requires concentration as well!

So many ways to build. This scene plays out in every Montessori classroom, sometimes every day!

A preliminary hammering work will get us ready to use real hammers and nails.

Polishing the wooden gazelle until it glistens.

Exploring natural objects with the magnifying glass, and taking a new perspective on the world.

Pouring juice into her cup as we get ready for Kiddush. We love Shabbat and the ritual of celebrating together. We also love challah and juice, of course!

The Environment Speaks

In Montessori classrooms there is an emphasis on functional independence - the ability of children to do things such as putting on shoes, getting a drink of water, and using the toilet by themselves, for themselves. But there are other ways independence shows itself, and if adults can step back long enough to let it run its course, interesting things happen. The joy of working with their hands is unlocked when they are free to choose - my work is to set up their environment to enable them.

Some sand pushed up out of the pavers by the ants caught her attention and she patiently swept it up without being asked or told or directed.

Working alone but sharing the pleasure of being together.

After some missteps and a small suggestion on which stepstool might be the safest, he figured out how to reach the higher windows.

Spring offers many gifts to us all, and especially young children who possess a marvelous sense of wonder. 

Checking the snapdragons, pulling off the faded blooms, figuring out how to make them open up like little mouths!

Planting green beans with our new potting work.

Our chia elephant sprouted! "It's wearing green pajamas!"

Quiet reading with a friend.

The chia elephant sprouted, grew, and then dried out. Scrubbing the seeds out of the grooves was very engaging work.

Examining a tiny, wiggling worm!