This week at The Children’s House we’re going to be learning all about Autumn – talking about seasons and the changes we can see all around us (days getting shorter & nights getting longer, weather getting colder, leaves changing colour etc); the children will be making leaf rubbings and collages, as well as cooking stewed apple – yum!! At the end of the week, we will have Pet Visit Day, where children are welcome to bring in their pets for a visit during the class session so that they can tell us about them – we have had all shapes and sizes of pets over the years, so all are welcome, and if children can’t bring in a live animal, they can bring in an animal teddy instead if they like!
As always at the start of the year, we are focussing on the Practical Life exercises in the classroom, this is an area which is the basis of the entire Montessori curriculum. Through using the Practical Life exercises, children learn about respect and care of themselves & their environment; they grow to realise the importance of the work cycle – returning an activity to where they got it from, & in the same state as when they got it; during all this they also develop their hand-eye coordination, gross & fine motor skills, concentration & independence. It is a wonderful area for new & returning students alike as we can extend the exercises as a child needs to stimulate their interests & learning (e.g. going from spooning pasta to spooning flour to sieving flour), and we also support & promote the ‘vertical learning’ which Maria Montessori was such a huge advocate of – this is where younger children actively learn from older ones, & the older children gain more confidence in themselves as they can see they are competent & capable within their school environment – we always find there are wonderful interactions within the mixed age groups!
Autumn Leaves
Falling, falling autumn leaves,
Falling, falling from the trees.
Up above and on the ground,
Swirling, twirling all around.
Falling, falling autumn leaves,
Falling, falling from the trees.