October 7, 2005 9:33 PM
Montessori at Home #10
Here's how any mom can make the most of teaching moments by using Montessori techniques:
Take puzzles, for instance. Choose the kind with knobs, as they encourage the child's pincer grasp - which will strengthen and refine his thumb and finger control so that when the time comes to pick up a pencil he'll be ready.
Put the puzzle on a shelf where you keep your child's other manipulatives.
Begin the lesson by showing her how to carry it from its place on the shelf to a table and how to set it down quietly. How to pull out her chair and take her place gracefully. Now you begin by removing the pieces with your right hand - holding the knobs - and placing them to the left of the puzzle.
When all the pieces are removed, pick up one with your left hand, and slowly trace around it with your right index and middle fingers. Make a point of looking for the same shape, then trace it also with your two right fingers before replacing the pice where it belongs. Repeat, and then invite your child to continue.
When the puzzle is finished, encourage her to do it again - and again - as many times as she can before she expresses that she is finished.
If this seems exaggerated, let me explain how the Montessori method has been applied to this simple task and what is going on:
The knobs on the puzzles encourage pincer grasp.
Going through the presentation of the material in a slow and gracious fashion is role modeling - teaching the child to slow down, to pay attention, and to treat materials with respect.
Placing the pieces of the puzzle to the left sets up the child to pick them up from the left and set them down on the right. This encourages left-to-right eye/hand coordination which is a precursor to reading and writing.
Tracing the pieces and their respective homes with two fingers of the right hand is another exercise of the fine motor control necessary for writing.
Encouraging repetition is the cornerstone of helping your child devlop concentration, and concentration is the most important tool for your child to become a good learner.
What makes the Montessori method so appealing for me is that it is based on a true understanding of the child's God-given potentials. And while the Montessori materials are wonderful and effective, they are also expensive and no longer the only game in town. With a little understanding of the principles, any mother can select appropriate manipulative materials (I'm going to be coming up with a page of recommendations next week) and present them in the Montessori way - thus maximizing the child's educational experience and character building too.
The flip side of the coin is that by using the Montessori approach, you and your child slow down. As you apply the techniques you learn, tweaking what you already know as a mom just a little, your home will become more serene. I guarantee you.
Try this out and let me know what you think.
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