Knobbed Cylinders Teach About Size

I introduced Gosling to a new Montessori activity today. It is called "knobbed cylinders."  It was designed for the study of size. The knobs at the top of the cylinders allow for her to practice the "pincher grasp" which she will need later for writing.  There are 4 blocks of knobbed cylinders.  I started with the easiest one. (I am also using the "toddler sized" version.)  There are 5 cylinders in the first block, each is has different diameter but the same length.  They are set in order from largest to smallest or vice versa. I modeled for her how to remove each of the cylinders and place them above the block.  After taking all 5 cylinders out, I modeled how to put all 5 cylinders back in, pinching each one by the knob and placing it back in the correct hole in the block.

What Montessori is all About

Here is a wonderful video that can help explain what Montessori is all about.  It is called "Building the Pink Tower."                          http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bveBrpqtAhY

Great Montessori Giveaway!

Montessori Living Now has an amazing Montessori Giveaway going on now. Check it out!!!

http://livingmontessorinow.com/2012/04/03/2nd-blogiversary-giveaway-2-montessori-print-shop-cd-rom-collections-and-mps-coupon/

In Time For Easter

Gosling has wanted to "play" with this bunny since my mom brought it to me last year.  This year she is using it for Object Transfer, moving the eggs from the clear tray to the bunny tray and back again.  One issue I have had is that she likes to open the eggs and then she gets frustrated when she can't put them back together.  I think I might glue them shut.

Dry Pouring

For the month of March I introduced "dry pouring." Usually this is done with rice, beans etc. but being that Gosling is starting early, and I didn't want a huge mess to clean, I decided to go with small colored pom-poms.  This has worked really well for her. She pour the pom-poms from one measuring cup into the other and back again.

Montessori Materials

      Montessori Materials can be very expensive.  Traditionally they are made of wood and are very high quality.  But many of the materials can be made at home and the same goals can still be achieved.  That being said, there are a few materials that are just not cost or time effective to make yourself.  One material I recently purchased is the Pink Tower. This is a sensory activity that teaches order, big, bigger, biggest, small, smaller, and smallest. Of course since all Montessori leaning is child guided sometimes other lessons can be learned as well.

     When the Pink Tower arrived I opened it and set it out in our "classroom."  The next time Gosling was in the room, it was the first material to which she went. I wonder if it was the beautiful pink color which drew her attention.  At any rate, she immediately picked up the smallest pieces and walked off with them.  I realized that we were going to need some boundaries or the pieces would soon disappear and although I shopped around and got a good deal on these materials, I do not want to have to buy replacement pieces!  So, I took out a piece of white contact paper and stuck it onto the shelf where I am storing the Pink Tower.  Then I traced each piece first in pencil and then in pink marker. This now gives Gosling a place to put the pieces when she uses the Pink Tower.
     At the moment she is still bringing the pieces to me, but it is the beginning of a learning process.

Transferring Objects

     Last fall our family when to St. Louis to visit some of the cousins.  It was a wonderful trip and we saw many historical sites. But of the most remembered moments for me was each evening Gosling (then 16 months) would get down the shoe box of pencils, pens, crayons and markers and transfer these objects into another box. She just sat down and did this on her own. This is why I love Montessori's teachings. I can see why she the activities that are taught, are taught. They truly follow the way a child thinks and learns.

     So, for Gosling's first Montessori learning center I made a Valentine box of transferring objects. She is supposed to transfer the objects from the box to the tray, one at a time, and back again. So far, she does great transferring the objects to the tray, but each time I demonstrate how to put the objects back in the box she grabs them out of the box and puts them back on the tray as fast as I can put them in the box. This is funny because she had no problem going back and forth on her own.