There seem to be more and more things competing for time in the day. With parents’ busy schedules, unpredictable weather and the temptation of television, computer games and other electronics when children arrive home after school, it is not hard to believe that, statistically, children in our country are getting a lot less unstructured outdoor time than in past generations. And that is a problem. It is important for us as educators and parents alike to recognize the importance of and to preserve unstructured outside time. Being outdoors in the natural world is a vital positive influence in every child’s development. For that reason, at our school, every class goes out to recess every morning and afternoon in all but the foulest of weather. Children staying for lunch go outside for another short lunch recess. Spending time in unstructured outside play after school and on weekends is also important for children.

Unstructured outdoor play is essential for a variety of reasons, among them:

• Physical play increases overall fitness, builds healthier bodies, and helps prevent childhood obesity.
• Children need to develop large and small motor skills along with cardiovascular endurance.
• Time outdoors raises vitamin D levels, helping prevent future bone problems, diabetes, and heart disease and may also help boost the immune system.
• As little as 20-minutes of exercise has been linked to a boost in brain function afterward.
• Teachers know that outdoor play can help children release pent-up energy and doing so improves focus and concentration.
• Outdoor play has been linked to improved distance vision and lowers the chance of nearsightedness.
• Children learn important social and cognitive skills while playing outdoors: creating and organizing their own games, developing friendships and learning to resolve conflicts.
• Outside time allows children to learn through constructive play, social play, socio-dramatic play and rule-based games.
• Free time outside allows children to develop observation skills and learn about the world, using all of their senses to feel the wind or sun on their skin, observe an insect or flower, or listen to birds chirping, for instance.
• Time outside allows children to create, explore, experiment, manipulate, reconfigure, expand, influence, change, marvel, discover, practice, push their limits, yell, sing, dance and move.
• Studies suggest that time in nature may be effective in reducing ADHD symptoms.
• Environmental education has been linked to improved test performance evaluating critical thinking skills, math, reading, writing and listening.
• Green spaces help reduce stress levels in children.
• Children need free unstructured playtime to protect their emotional development.
• A hurried lifestyle and loss of free time can contribute to anxiety and depression in children.
• Studies show that time spent in nature enhances social interactions and interpersonal relationships.
• New studies show physical exercise actually increases white matter in the brain and speed and connectivity of brain activity.

At home, spending time outdoors can be as easy as heading out to the backyard or playground, walking to a meet a friend, having a picnic, going to the zoo or a local park. We are lucky to have a variety of wonderful biking trails and parks very close by, such as Farrel McWhirter, Grasslawn, Anderson, Perrigo, and Marymoor parks, to name just a few. With the longer days and hopefully nicer weather of spring upon us, take advantage and spend some time outdoors with your child. You will both be glad you did.

Sources and additional resources:

http://www.earlychildhoodnews.com/earlychildhood/article_view.aspx?ArticleID=360

www.kidsdiscovernature.com

http://www.teachpreschool.org/2009/10/preschoolers-should-go-outside-everyday/

http://www.livestrong.com/article/141891-the-benefits-outdoor-play-children/

http://www.npr.org/blogs/ed/2014/08/06/336361277/scientists-say-childs-play-helps-build-a-better-brain

http://time.com/3145404/exercise-makes-kids-brains-more-efficient/

Practical Life and Sensorial Activities in a Montessori 3-6 Classroom Are Foundational for Math.

Math is an abstract concept. The ability to count, compute and use numerical relationships are hugely significant human achievements. The number system is an abstract invention that has been created over thousands of years. In primitive societies, the counting went “one, two, many.” It is exciting to witness the young child’s readiness to understand this same concept.

Children are naturally attracted to the science of number. They are trying to understand their world and make sense of their environment. They have an inborn ability to see differences and similarities, patterns and sequences. The child learns to notice and adapt to changes in the environment and as the child’s knowledge of the environment grows, he/she is able to make a mental map and feel comfortable in his/her space. The Montessori materials that are designed for categorizing and sorting help build this internal order.

The mathematical concepts covered in the primary Montessori classroom are numeration, the decimal system, computation, the arithmetic tables, whole numbers, fractions and positive numbers. Arithmetic is the process of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. Geometry and algebra are introduced in the sensorial area of the classroom.

The sensorial and practical life areas of the classroom prepare the child for math and language. The foundation for geometry is developed through the sensorial materials. For instance, some of the materials are graded by size. Children experience spatial relations by manipulating these materials (the pink tower, the brown stair, red rods, constructive triangles, two main types of graded cylinders, plane shapes and geometric solids.) The plane shapes and geometric solids are the basis for computing volume and surface area. The monomial, binomial and trinomial cubes are all geometric representations of algebraic equations, used in higher math. Squares and cubes pave the way for the golden beads where the child experiences the concept of one hundred beads joined to make a square and a thousand beads joined to make a cube. Sensorial activities also indirectly prepare for base ten counting. The pink tower has ten graded cubes, increasing in size by 1 cm.; the brown stair has ten graded square prisms, each 1 cm. larger than the last; the ten red rods are graded from 10 cm. to 100 cm. in length.

The numerical rods in the math area are similar rods but are divided into ten consecutive red and blue sections of 10cm. The child can set the rods out from numbers one to ten so it shows that the longer the rod, the higher the number. Simple math calculations can be performed with the red and blue rods. It is easy to see how the “two” rod and the “three” rod combine to make the “five” rod. In mathematics, objects are classified and have a definite order. All parts of the sensorial curriculum have classification activities. Practical life activities are done in a definite order, which is internalized. Pre-reading activities include matching, sorting and sequencing activities.

The practical life activities are the foundation of the entire Montessori curriculum. Its direct aims are coordination, confidence, independence, concentration and order. These five attributes are internalized and benefit the child throughout life. Manipulation of the materials requires coordination. Finally, the child must have the confidence to work independently.

The Montessori math program addresses three separate concepts: number, quantity, and the relationship of the two together. The child uses concrete materials that isolate each concept. Then the child is shown how to label a quantity with the appropriate numerical symbol. The child then advances to a progression of sequential materials that combine number and quantity. In the same way that a child can learn the “Alphabet Song” without having any idea of the sounds of the letters, similarly a child can learn to count without actually understanding what it all means, but the concrete Montessori materials make sense of it all.

After children have become familiar with the numbers one through ten, they progress to the teens, and then focus on numbers to one hundred. After that, he child is ready for the golden beads which are used for large number recognition over one hundred. Golden beads are also used for the basic arithmetic functions of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. Children enjoy working with large numbers and compute easily with hundreds and thousands using golden beads and numeral cards.

Golden beads are all the same size. A single bead comprises one unit; ten beads strung on a wire make a ten bar; one hundred is a square made up of ten ten-bars side by side and one thousand is ten one hundred squares stacked on top of each other to form a cube.

Additional work is introduced with the number chains–which are separate chains of beads one through ten–that demonstrate squares and cubes of numbers. Children love to skip count using these chains, which forms the concrete basis of the multiplication tables.

There are many more math materials to challenge students since the Montessori math curriculum in a 3-6 classroom actually extends to 3rd grade. They are varied and enticing and children are never bored and can work at their own level with joy and confidence. It is amazing how far these students can progress with the foundation of confidence, curiosity, and order they learned in the practical life and sensorial areas of the classroom.

Learning to think is not the same thing as learning to memorize.  Thinking requires infinitely more effort and involves much more brain activity than reciting something back.  Thinking involves inquiry, innovation, creativity, analysis, synthesis, problem solving, persistence, self-confidence, self-motivation, independence and even courage.  That is why the emphasis in a Montessori classroom is on children learning rather than teachers teaching.  We strive to foster independence and joyful discovery that naturally leads to greater learning and retention.

The world is changing in such a way that more than ever the children of today will need to be able to think for themselves. Rote learning will simply not prepare children for the complexity and fast paced change that tomorrow is sure to bring.  We need them to be able to think for themselves.

The entire structure of the Montessori system from the curriculum, to the way the classroom is set up, to the specific ways in which the teacher interacts with children, is designed to prompt and encourage children to think for themselves, to discover, to make mistakes and learn from their own mistakes.  The teacher in a Montessori classroom is as much a guide as a teacher, keenly observing each child’s interests, and abilities and prepared and ready to introduce the next series of lessons when a child shows he or she is ready to move onto the next level.  Montessori materials are themselves designed to allow a child to recognize when something is not correct, and to correct it themselves.

Within a typical Montessori preschool/kindergarten classroom there well over a hundred different developmentally appropriate learning activities; each one presenting abstract ideas in concrete form.  The depth and breadth of the curriculum allows the Montessori teacher to adapt to address the unique needs of the children in his/her class.  The Montessori teacher further enhances the environment by bringing in a variety of additional lessons to pique the curiosity of the students in his/her particular class.  Learning is individualized so that it fits the pace as well as the interests of each student.

Because there is not a rigid one-size-fits-all lesson plan for each day as there is in a traditional school setting, the Montessori teacher is allowed the freedom to meet the particular needs of his/her students.  The emphasis is always on keeping alive the spark of curiosity, supporting and encouraging independence and nurturing each child’s inherent desire to learn.  In this way we work every day to support our students on their journey to think for themselves.

You may be interested in reading the following articles and viewing the below TED talk on the topic of independent thinking and preserving and fostering the creativity every child is born with:

http://www.education.com/magazine/article/raising-independent-thinker/

http://www.blog.montessoriforeveryone.com/encouraging-independence-in-children.html

http://www.montessorianswers.com/difference-between-montessori-and-traditional.html

Discovering a natural way to learn | Karin Ann | TEDxHongKongED https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nVgattQId64 

The Importance of the 3-Year Montessori Cycle & the Montessori Kindergarten Year:

The primary Montessori program is designed as a three-year cycle. Ideally children from 3 – 6 years old stay with the same teacher right through their kindergarten year.

The third year, or Montessori kindergarten year, is when all the learning that has taken place in the previous two years reaches fruition and a child’s knowledge begins to fall into place. Your child will be challenged to reach his/her potential by his/her Montessori teacher who knows your child incredibly well and so can provide precisely what is needed next. Children build upon what they have learned, experience rapid academic and social growth and their skill level dramatically increases when they are given the opportunity to consolidate their knowledge within the Montessori classroom. Third year students are ready to explode into more complex learning and discovery and they delve into a wealth of new and interesting materials. They are guided to take on more and more complex work, begin to learn time management skills and have an increased set of expectations and privileges in the classroom. These older children also reinforce their academic skills by helping another child, a well-documented way to consolidate knowledge.

Your child has been unconsciously looking forward to being one of the “big kids” in the classroom so when he/she is put into a school where the kindergartners are looked down upon as being in the “baby class” his/her cycle of maturing is interrupted. It is especially unfortunate for a child who is a younger sibling at home to miss this opportunity to shine. This year of leadership gives a child immeasurable self-esteem and intellectual confidence.

A key advantage of staying at our school is that your child’s teacher already knows your child very well so no time is lost at the beginning of the year trying to assess him/her. Be sure to speak to your child’s teacher about kindergarten during conferences. The gift of this third year can never be taken away and it sets up a child for future academic and social success.

As you plan for your child’s future schooling we encourage you to view a video from American Montessori Society.  We hope this video will provide more information about the benefits of having your child stay in a Montessori classroom for his or her pivotal kindergarten year.

Children may be enrolled for kindergarten if they are 5 years old by August 31 (prior to the upcoming school year). Kindergarten students may attend five full days or five half days at Sammamish Montessori School.

Related article:  Standford University study finds benefits to delayed kindergarten (avoiding early entrance).

25 Reasons to Keep Your Child in Montessori through the Kindergarten Year

Montessori Builds Innovators (Harvard Business Review)

WA State Public School Kindergarten Readiness checklist

In her analysis of Montessori education, University of Virginia Professor, Angeline S. Lillard, Ph.D. notes eight fundamental ideas central to Montessori education that in her words, help provide students with superior educational outcomes:

1. Movement and cognition are closely intertwined; physical movement can enhance thinking and learning.
2. Choice and perceived-control promote children’s concentration and contentment in the learning process.
3. Personal interest enhances learning in a context where interests build on prior knowledge and the children’s own questions.
4. Extrinsic rewards negatively impact long-term motivation and learning.
5. Collaborative (child–child) arrangements are conducive to learning.
6. Learning situated in and connected to meaningful contexts is more effective than learning in abstracted contexts.
7. Sensitive and responsive (nurturing) teaching is associated with more optimal outcomes. (Multi-age classrooms where children stay with the same teacher and many of the same peers promote continuity and close relationships.)
8. Order in the environment promotes and establishes mental order and is beneficial to the child.

More information about Montessori education:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQl-7Lmm4hE (Superwoman was already here)

www.montessori-science.org

www.amshq.org