Talking to children about tragedy

After 9/11, my son, then 2, started building twin towers of lego and then knocking them down.  I had not told him anything, but somehow he picked up on something.  Children can tell when their parents are upset or afraid, and sometimes they know more than we think they do.  But what they know, and how they understand it, may be very different from what we would expect.  Be alert to signs they may have some fears they cannot quite express, and create openings for them to talk.

Avoid watching the news when they are in the room; young children pick up on much more than we realize.  

Ocho Kandelikas

This is the song we have been singing as we added candles to the Menorah last week.  Hanukkah is a great holiday for math!  Each day we counted the candles and added a new one, then counted the new number of candles.

I was trying to think of a simple song, other than the ubiquitous "I have a little dreidel", that would not require learning Hebrew.  Since we ave already practiced counting in Spanish, I thought this song was just perfect.

Elementary school tragedy

Everyone who works with children was forced to put themselves in the position of a teacher at Sandy Hook.  And most of us had occasion to realize something we may always have known, but never thought much about - we would not think twice before putting our bodies between a bullet and the children in our care. It's a daunting realization.

Jam session

We were downstairs in the music and movement area when a jam session broke out spontaneously.  The children had taken out instruments and started playing.  Now, this happens pretty frequently, but what was amazing about this time was that EVERYBODY was participating at the same time, and they were all playing in rhythm with each other!!!  Of course, I joined in and soon there was dancing and singing as well as playing.

This was not just a great example of community cohesiveness and cooperative play; it also demonstrated fairly advanced musical intelligence.  It is common for children of this age to simply beat on their instruments. It'snot so easy to play while listening to others, and to stay in rhythm with each other.  Could this have been the result of the rhythm activities that we have been doing in circle together?

Normalization

Typically, sometime in November, there is a shift in the rhythm of the class.  The children need less direction.  They go choose their work from the shelves without being prompted, as though it were what they have always been doing.  They put their work away when they are done.  This is what Maria Montessori called normalization.  

The choice of word comes from the fact that, when others were marveling at Montessori's results, she insisted that what they were seeing was nothing more than normal for children.  When children are appropriately engaged, they will be well-behaved, because learning is such a delight to them.

 Now,I can't say that there are never any behavioral issues, or that there are no children needing to be redirected at times, but our class does seem to have settled into its rhythm.  They are choosing their work,and putting it away, as though it is the most natural thing in the world.

Yesterday's walk

We went for a walk through the park and gathered some seasonal items.  There were several kinds of leaves, of course, including the ubiquitous gingko and some oak leaves.  We also found some large, dark brown, seedpods that I was finally able to identify as from a locust tree.  They make great shakers, and this morning we danced rattling our locust seeds.  The leaves became a matching work, finding the two leaves of the same type and color from the pile.

We've also been gathering acorns, and our collection has grown quite large.  We found some unusually long ones to add to our collection; the children were so excited!  We have been doing some small-motor skill practice with them, including picking them up with tongs.  This is a very popular activity.  You can probably expect some acorn themed artwork in the coming weeks.

First month

Class is settling in really nicely.  In a few short weeks it's amazing how much progress the children have made in acclimating to classroom procedures.  Learning to follow procedures is no small thing!  It is not just about logistics or helping the class run more smoothly, although of course that is important.  When the children learn to follow procedures they are learning to organize their thoughts and their time.  It starts at a simple, age appropriate level, but this is the foundation for so many aspects of competence in the future.  According to Dr. Montessori this is the sensitive period for organization.  One look at my desk will tell you that I did NOT go to a Montessori school when I was little!  I wish I had!

Welcome

Welcome to the Finger Painted Hands blog!  This blog will give updates of what is happening in our school.  Follow along to get a flavor of what is going on in your child's class and suggestions for following up at home.  Parents are encouraged to comment with feedback and suggestions of their own.  

If there are topics you would like to see discussed here, you can post here or email me at miriam@fingerpaintedhands.net.  I will do my best to answer any questions about class procedures, Montessori philosophy, or anything else you might want to know about.  

We're looking forward to seeing you at Back to School night next week, and we are all very excited about the coming school year!  

Miriam