Montessori Meissner

Over the past few weeks I noticed Nathan sort of acting out and getting in trouble a lot. He's been driving Steve and me crazy with his defiant behavior. I was telling Lady about it and, of course, she didn't want to hear a single negative word about her grandson. She made a good point in Nathan's defense, he might be bored. I think she is absolutely right. He is in need of more stimulation than I can provide him at home. Besides, he's learned everything there is to learn on Nick Jr. now.

I know every parent thinks this about their children, but Nathan is ridiculously smart. A lot of people don't get to see it, though, because he's also a little shy. Anyone who is lucky enough to be part of his inner circle knows this to be true. I visited a Montessori school for him today because I think Nathan would really thrive in that type of environment. We walked in the classroom today and he was immediately intrigued by everything going on at the various stations. We stayed for a little while so that I could see how Nathan felt about the classroom and the kids. He seemed to fit in really well. He'll be in a class with kids ages 3-6. This school follows the five basic categories of learning: practical life, sensorial, math, language, and culture.

Here is the information on Nathan's new school.

Concepts

• Inner guidance of nature. All children have inherent inner directives from nature that guide their true normal development.
• Freedom for self-directed learning. The Montessori method respects individual liberty of children to choose their own activities. This freedom allows children to follow their inner guidance for self-directed learning.
• Planes of development. The natural development of children proceeds through several distinct planes of development, each one having its own unique conditions and sensitive periods for acquiring basic faculties in the developmental process. The first plane (ages 0–6) involves basic personality formation and learning through physical senses. During this plane, children experience sensitive periods for acquiring language and developing basic mental order.
• Prepared environment. The right precise conditions around children allow for and support their true natural development. For young children, the environment must be prepared in this way by providing a range of physical objects that are organized and made available for free, independent use, to stimulate their natural instincts and interests for self-directed learning.
• Observation and indirect teaching. The teacher's role is to observe children engaged in activities that follow their own natural interests. This indirect teaching to control the environment, not the child, contrasts sharply with the ordinary teacher's role of implementing a pre-determined curriculum. For example, a Montessori method class has the teacher resolving misbehavior by refocusing the child to some positive activity, rather than engaging in the ordinary system of rewards and punishments.
• Normalization. During the 0–6 plane of development, children have the ability to shift their fundamental being from the ordinary condition of disorder, inattention, and attachment to fantasy to a state of perfect normal being, showing such external behavior as spontaneous self-discipline, independence, love of order, and complete harmony and peace with others in the social situation. This psychological shift to normal being occurs through deep concentration on some physical activity of the child's own free choice.
• Absorbent mind. The young child (0–6) has an absorbent mind which naturally incorporates experiences in the environment directly into its whole basic character and personality for life. This mental faculty, which is unique to young children, allows them to learn many concepts in an effortless, spontaneous manner. It also allows them to undergo the key phenomenon of normalization to return to their true natural development. After the age of about six, this absorbent mental faculty disappears.
• Work, not play. Children have an instinctive tendency to develop through spontaneous experiences on the environment, which Dr. Montessori referred to as 'work'. In this sense, the children's normal activity is attached to reality in the present moment, rather than idle play through such means as toys and fantasy.
• Multi-age grouping. Children learn from each other in a spontaneous manner that supports their independent self-directed activity. The ordinary Montessori classroom therefore consists of a mixed-aged group, such as 2–6 (primary level) or 6–12 (elementary level).

Kathryn is being home schooled. Her curriculum includes studying her hands...
...working on rolling over....

... and honing her sitting up skills.