tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5141474491645750310.post3856109766464188982..comments2023-06-19T07:55:59.016-07:00Comments on Montessori ici: on strike.Neptunehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16633808709890395812noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5141474491645750310.post-14308752291302975102011-11-05T19:13:09.154-07:002011-11-05T19:13:09.154-07:00Charissa, I'm so glad to see you around!
AND I...Charissa, I'm so glad to see you around!<br />AND I thank you for your heartfelt post. THat has given me loads of insight as of what is going on. Very interesting.<br /><br />But whatever is going on, the situation made be have to be creative, and so far, it is paying off. It has added a new dimension to us and our lives.<br /><br />I don't see myself as a guide so much now, but as the older student... I feel sometimes that I am taking the place of the slightly older child that the younger are looking at. And I take this role differently. Instead of showing, I do, and let them come to participate(or not). Instead of demonstrating, I make with them. It has change our perspective of each other, it has changed the roles. And I feel more with them, more implicated. Look at my next post I think you'll understand.<br /><br />I indeed think that flexibility is the key. And those hurdles that you are worried about will come (they came for me, and yet, my kids are in Montessori facilities...). But creativity goes a long way. Listening to your child AND to yourself as well!<br /><br /><br />Luckybeans: <br />THank you so much for being here and reading! And, tHank you for your point of view. I feel like I received a tap on the shoulder through the net. :) And I have to admit that they are welcome in times like these!<br />I guess it really does eventually pay off to let them be. Although sometimes I don't feel like it. I guess we have, as parents, to believe in what we do!Neptunehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16633808709890395812noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5141474491645750310.post-42343399062098624912011-11-05T15:53:26.155-07:002011-11-05T15:53:26.155-07:00I second that, very wise Mama. When I was working...I second that, very wise Mama. When I was working as a Montessori Guide/Directress I realized that Guides had a different kind of authority with the children than the parents. I knew right then that I would have a different relationship with my kids (that I hoped to have some day) than I had with my students. With parents the child knows that the parent will love them no matter what with the teacher there isn't that same certainty so there is a different type of respect.<br /><br />Before our kids were born, my husband and I discussed how we envisioned raising them. He said that he was very on board with Montessori schools and the method but his preference was home schooling. As I thought about that I knew right away that one of the 6 basic components of the Montessori classroom environment, community life, would be missing in the home school environment. Here's what I know to be beneficial about community life within the M. classroom:<br /><br />The development of the children’s community within the classroom is aided by several key elements in Montessori’s method. One of the keys to this is the sense of ownership that stems from their responsibility to their classroom. The second key is the responsibility the children begin to feel for each other. Montessori gave the students freedom in their social relations, only limiting them when they interfered with the rights of others. From this freedom the child’s natural interest in others grew spontaneously. A third key is the inclusion of children of differing ages in each class. Older children are found to assist the younger ones spontaneously and they provide inspiration to the younger ones by the example they set. In addition to the mixture of ages in each class the rooms were not separated by solid walls but by partitions allowing the students to easily access one classroom to the next.<br /><br />There were many reasons for me to consider home schooling though: lack of funds for tuition, the desire to be a SAHM/W and my desire to be their Montessori Guide. I could sacrifice my desire if it would benefit them but the money thing was something that we might not have a choice about so I decided that I would let go of ideals and realize the obstacles that may very well come up if I couldn't give them the ideal classroom setting. <br /><br />So much of parenting is demonstrating flexibility. Even in the classroom you find that, especially with the Kindergarteners (5-6 year olds). They get antsy and bored especially near the end of the school year. That's when it's helpful to send them to visit the 1st grade class, if there's one nearby. The excitement and nervousness that they used to have when school was new to them returns. They come back renewed and hopeful.<br /><br />It's discouraging when the children reject the materials. We want so badly for them to be engaged. When they have their peers to work with it really does help but so often we just have to work with what we have. Boy oh boy, do I know about that.<br /><br />Keep us posted. I check your blog a few times a week and am glad to know what's been keeping you busy.Charissa Jacobsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14243134322233326608noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5141474491645750310.post-42979003839065294592011-11-05T10:23:33.175-07:002011-11-05T10:23:33.175-07:00In my understanding, Montessori is all about empow...In my understanding, Montessori is all about empowering the children and giving them the skills they need to make good decisions. It gives them practical skills, yes, but in order to let them apply them and become competent, self-sufficient people. So your son's words are in every way, an indication of your success! Wise mama.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com