The first full week of Montessori at The Children’s House is here!! We will be talking all about our families & friends in school; it’s important for the children that we establish the link between their home/family & school from the beginning, so they see that their families are valued, & a consistency is built for them between the 2 places. The children love to see photos of themselves & their families in their class, so we’re asking all children to bring in a family photo this week which we’ll put up on the wall to make a family display. During the week we will then be talking about our families, discussing the similarities & differences, naming all the people in our families who love us, and talking about what makes our own family so special. Verbalising and naming these things aloud can help reinforce the children’s feelings of security and reassure them of all the love surrounding them – a lovely thing to do at any age!

We will also be learning & practising a lot of practical skills needed in the classroom, such as carrying chairs & trays, rolling mats, saying please and thank you, and using a quiet voice indoors – we’ll be using drums and shakers to explore the difference between loud and soft sounds! Then at the end of the week we’ll be doing some yoga and relaxing exercises with the children.

Families

Some families are big                    (arms out wide)
Some families are small                (arms in close)
But I love my family                       (point at self)
Best of all!!                                       (throw arms up in air!)

Rolaí Polaí (Irish rhyme)

Rolaí polaí suas, suas, suas,                    (roll arms and raise them up)
Rolaí polaí síos, síos, síos,                       (roll arms and lower them down)
Rolaí polaí amach, amach, amach,        (roll arms and stretch them out)
Rolaí polaí isteach, isteach, isteach!      (roll arms and bring them in, hugging yourself)