Practical Life
I have been trying to encourage Daisy to engage in more of the "practical life" activities that are at the heart of the Montessori curriculum... apparently she hasn't displayed much interest in this area yet at school. She loves the book nook, of course, but she also seems drawn to the Math/Sensory area, and today in fact she told me that was her "favorite." She's done some painting, too, in the arts section. But, apparently practical life is neglected. So I've been having her help in the kitchen more, and she seems pretty enthusiastic. She actually helps me with dishes.
Today Giuliana, one of Daisy's teachers, gave me the treat of getting to stay a little longer (past 8:30, the parent kick-out time) in the classroom. I was thrilled, because I know I've been guilty of overstaying in the class and I've been pretty sure it's frowned upon. There was even a little note attached to the Friday Packet mentioning Oak Room parents staying too long, and I was positive I was one of the people that was meant for. So, I was pleasantly surprised when Giuliana said I could stay for a bit this morning and watch Daisy do some "work" (as they call it in Montessori).
It was delightful! She went and unrolled a mat, which is what they're supposed to do; I noticed how impatient I felt seeing how slowly Daisy unrolled and flattened hers, and how tempted I was to show her the "right" way to do it. Giuliana pointed out the importance of being patient and letting her do it her own way, and sure enough, she succeeded in time. Then Giuliana showed me something she and Daisy have been working on. First, Daisy goes and fetches some pretty heavy wooden blocks from the shelf and carries them back to her mat. Giuliana told me this lifting and carrying was a Practical Life activity, even though it wasn't occurring in that particular section of the room. Some of the blocks were quite heavy, and Daisy dropped one, but she was able to pick it up and carry it over to the mat. Then, one by one, she went back and fetched all the others and lined them up in order of size, like a staircase. I was impressed by Daisy's ability to stay focused on the task and to see it through to completion without much (or any, actually) egging on by me or the teacher.
When the blocks were all lined up, Daisy got a marble (the last part of the activity), placed it just so, and it traveled down the wooden staircase, striking a different musical note with each block. A simple thing, but quite lovely, and I saw how the fine motor skill of placing the marble in just the right place was cultivated. I think it also takes some fine motor skills to line the blocks up just right so they make the staircase. So Montessori, the whole thing: simple, seemingly, without a lot of bells and whistles, but with a lot of levels and areas cultivated, and rather beautiful. I was so proud to see my girl doing her work, and to have some glimpse into her day.
Oh, and there's one other thing I got out of it. Two boys came over and sat close to Daisy's mat while she was doing her activity, and I guess they were talking, not very loudly or anything. Nevertheless, Daisy told them a couple times to be quieter and to back off of her area. I thought this was kind of unpleasant, and I turned to Giuliana and asked, "What do you do when this happens?" She said, "We watch." They don't do anything, in other words, unless really necessary-- and no action was necessary, Giuliana thought. She told me it was good for Daisy to be asserting how she felt, even though yes, it could have been phrased more nicely (with pleases or excuse mes). She was in favor of me not leaping in to squash what Daisy was saying, and she felt it was okay for Daisy to need quiet and to want space to do her task. I really appreciated getting this perspective from Giuliana, because I think I can be too quick to jump in and correct Daisy for not being what I think of as polite or accommodating enough. It worries me that I might be squashing her assertive side, but I don't always know if I should intervene. I appreciate learning from Daisy's teachers about patience, about observing rather than intervening all the time, and about letting Daisy create some boundaries and space for herself instead of perpetually training her to give others what they want. That doesn't mean, of course, that I should stop wanting her to be polite and considerate, thoughtful of others-- but maybe I should be allowing her a little more assertiveness. I think I worry too much about her being a "good girl" and socially skilled. These things are important, but so are other things.
As I've mentioned in other places... my girl loves math activities! How about that?
Today Giuliana, one of Daisy's teachers, gave me the treat of getting to stay a little longer (past 8:30, the parent kick-out time) in the classroom. I was thrilled, because I know I've been guilty of overstaying in the class and I've been pretty sure it's frowned upon. There was even a little note attached to the Friday Packet mentioning Oak Room parents staying too long, and I was positive I was one of the people that was meant for. So, I was pleasantly surprised when Giuliana said I could stay for a bit this morning and watch Daisy do some "work" (as they call it in Montessori).
It was delightful! She went and unrolled a mat, which is what they're supposed to do; I noticed how impatient I felt seeing how slowly Daisy unrolled and flattened hers, and how tempted I was to show her the "right" way to do it. Giuliana pointed out the importance of being patient and letting her do it her own way, and sure enough, she succeeded in time. Then Giuliana showed me something she and Daisy have been working on. First, Daisy goes and fetches some pretty heavy wooden blocks from the shelf and carries them back to her mat. Giuliana told me this lifting and carrying was a Practical Life activity, even though it wasn't occurring in that particular section of the room. Some of the blocks were quite heavy, and Daisy dropped one, but she was able to pick it up and carry it over to the mat. Then, one by one, she went back and fetched all the others and lined them up in order of size, like a staircase. I was impressed by Daisy's ability to stay focused on the task and to see it through to completion without much (or any, actually) egging on by me or the teacher.
When the blocks were all lined up, Daisy got a marble (the last part of the activity), placed it just so, and it traveled down the wooden staircase, striking a different musical note with each block. A simple thing, but quite lovely, and I saw how the fine motor skill of placing the marble in just the right place was cultivated. I think it also takes some fine motor skills to line the blocks up just right so they make the staircase. So Montessori, the whole thing: simple, seemingly, without a lot of bells and whistles, but with a lot of levels and areas cultivated, and rather beautiful. I was so proud to see my girl doing her work, and to have some glimpse into her day.
Oh, and there's one other thing I got out of it. Two boys came over and sat close to Daisy's mat while she was doing her activity, and I guess they were talking, not very loudly or anything. Nevertheless, Daisy told them a couple times to be quieter and to back off of her area. I thought this was kind of unpleasant, and I turned to Giuliana and asked, "What do you do when this happens?" She said, "We watch." They don't do anything, in other words, unless really necessary-- and no action was necessary, Giuliana thought. She told me it was good for Daisy to be asserting how she felt, even though yes, it could have been phrased more nicely (with pleases or excuse mes). She was in favor of me not leaping in to squash what Daisy was saying, and she felt it was okay for Daisy to need quiet and to want space to do her task. I really appreciated getting this perspective from Giuliana, because I think I can be too quick to jump in and correct Daisy for not being what I think of as polite or accommodating enough. It worries me that I might be squashing her assertive side, but I don't always know if I should intervene. I appreciate learning from Daisy's teachers about patience, about observing rather than intervening all the time, and about letting Daisy create some boundaries and space for herself instead of perpetually training her to give others what they want. That doesn't mean, of course, that I should stop wanting her to be polite and considerate, thoughtful of others-- but maybe I should be allowing her a little more assertiveness. I think I worry too much about her being a "good girl" and socially skilled. These things are important, but so are other things.
As I've mentioned in other places... my girl loves math activities! How about that?
posted by Sarah Goss at 3:31 PM
4 Comments:
Interesting. Thirty years back when we plunked you in a Montessori school for a year, we had no notion of the fine points of what was going on. We saw that there was a lot of independent learning, which was my field, but I didn't look deeper. I'm finding Daisy's experiences impressive.
Dad
This is a beautiful story that makes me very happy, since finding a great school and great teachers is not an easy or assured thing. I love Giuliana, and I'm grateful that she is one of Daisy's teachers. This is the first time in 65 years that I have felt positive about a school, any school! M.B. (Happy Gommy)
Well hello, parental units! I don't know a lot of details yet about the Montessori curriculum, but yes, I think it's quite deep. Each activity, even ones that look simple, are meant to cultivate important skills. So, for example, the cylinder activity involves placing wooden pieces in the correct holes, but at the same time the grasping motion is a fine motor skill that prepares them for later holding a pen. I think all the activities have layers to them.
I am glad you like the school, Gommy! Our girl seems pretty happy to me, and she's definitely learning new things.
Thank you, Sarah. This is very, very helpful and I'm so glad Daisy is a such a great school. If we lived closer, I'd definitely have to go and visit for Phoebe.
Adrienne
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