Category Archives: Care of Environment

Independence in the Early Childhood Montessori Classroom

by Camilla Nichols, Senior Director of Montessori Development

“How does he achieve this independence? He does it by means of a continuous activity.
How does he become free? By means of constant effort…
Independence is not a static condition; it is a continuous conquest,
and in order to reach not only freedom, but also strength,
and the perfecting of one’s powers, it is necessary to follow this path of unremitting toil.”
~ Dr. Maria Montessori (The Absorbent Mind)

Maria Montessori recognized early on that there was a need for a form of education that looks at the whole child, at what drives them and what their true needs are. She observed the need for independence in children and began experimenting with different ways to guide children to become more involved in their own education, which was in opposition to the typical thought on Early Childhood Education in the 1900s. Montessori also recognized the importance of having children feel that they belong to a group, that they matter, and that other people care about them.

Young children on the road to independence want to be given the opportunity to do things on their own. On average, a child falls 17 times an hour while learning to walk, but the child doesn’t give up on this task until he has succeeded by repetition, thus learning by trial and error. Mistakes are a vital part of learning because they help children to adjust and motivate them to try again. When a child is learning a new task through direct experience, each small achievement creates a new connection in the brain, and before you know it, this new task has become automatic.

Maria Montessori allowed children to become actively involved in their own education. She discovered that when children were able to freely choose an activity and follow what she called “the child’s inner guide”, they were able to engage for a longer time and were more deeply connected to their activity. Their concentration also deepened, compared to the more traditional practice of the teacher assigning the activity or work.

This discovery was made in Italy back in 1907 at the first Montessori School, Casa dei Bambini, during an interesting observation. A teacher had accidently overslept, and as she rushed into the school, she stepped into the Prepared Environment and was astonished by what she found. All of the children had already chosen work on their own, without her being present. At first she was upset, but then Dr. Montessori urged her to observe the phenomenon before her. This is how one of the Core Principles of the Montessori Method, “Follow the Child”, was born. It was very clear that the children seemed more engaged, content, and happy, and were able to socialize, share, and help each other based on their own choices. Many core principles of the Montessori Method are based on Maria Montessori’s early observations. She observed that children make choices that are influenced by developmental needs and that the children will continue to repeat an activity over and over until their needs have been met.

“We must, therefore, quit our roles as jailers and instead
take care to prepare an environment in which we do as little as possible
to exhaust the child with our surveillance and instruction.”
~ Maria Montessori (The Child in the Family)

In a Montessori Prepared Environment, we always encourage and allow repetition as the children are born with a natural instinct to repeat. Young children are very capable of following through with an activity on their own. The role of the adult is to demonstrate how to do it and then take a step back and observe the child as she independently finishes the task. The Prepared Environment also allows children to make their own choices in a beautiful and inviting setting. Children of mixed ages work together as a community where everyone matters and everyone is able to follow their own inner guide, independently choosing meaningful and purposeful activities that foster a lifelong love of learning.

“Help me to do it by myself” ~ Maria Montessori

World Connections Through Montessori

by Camilla Nichols, Senior Director of Montessori Development

At The Montessori Children’s Academy, we are always looking for opportunities to connect our students with other children and cultures through events inside and outside of the Prepared Environment. Maria Montessori believed that widening the children’s horizons was an important aspect of learning that we are part of something bigger and that we are all connected and needed.

We prepare MCA students to become global citizens through a variety of activities, lessons, and projects that will strengthen and develop their sense of belonging in this world. It also teaches our children at a very young age that they can have an impact and make a difference. This is something that has always been integrated into MCA, where we have inspired families to continue looking for opportunities where they can make a difference in their own communities outside of school.

In the Geography area of MCA’s classrooms, there are color-coded Cultural Folders representing each continent. In those folders our students find pictures of people, houses, food, and a variety of other items from each Culture. There are folders for North America, South America, Europe, Africa, Antarctica, Asia, and Australia. Often, the children will also find corresponding Cultural Boxes that house souvenirs from each continent. A student chooses a folder and the corresponding flag, along with the colored globe, and can discuss the pictures with a friend or simply review alone while also examining the objects.

As part of our Cultural studies, MCA students learn to sing moving, meaningful songs such as “The Universe”, “Beautiful Earth”, and “The Continents” by Shelley Murley (Montessori Minute Melodies: https://music.apple.com/us/album/montessori-minute-melodies/279575407) and are exposed to many wonderful books and fables with stories and messages from various cultures. We invite parents into our classrooms to introduce students to their own culture and traditions. In the past, parents have shared traditional celebratory clothing, food, or various small items, as well as assisted us in celebrating Diwali, Lucia, Yom Kippur, Chinese New Year, and many other cultural events. MCA is proud of our diverse community and celebrates the uniqueness that each child, family, and staff member brings to our little corner of the Montessori world.

Around September 21^st of each year, our students and staff celebrate the International Day of Peace. For many years, it has been an annual MCA tradition to participate in a worldwide celebration where approximately 150,000 Montessori students from 65 countries come together to sing “Light a Candle for Peace”. Dr. Montessori was a huge advocate for peace and was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize three times! Her legacy of Peace Education lives on to this day. During the celebration, our students come together to hold hands and pass the colored Globe of Continents or a Peace Flag while singing at the dedicated New Jersey time, usually around 9:30AM. The chosen song always starts with children in New Zealand and then travels to all the continents throughout the day. For video footage of children singing around the world and to listen to the song “Light a Candle for Peace”, we invite you to visit www.singpeacearoundtheworld.com.

In past years, students, families, and staff from The Montessori Children’s Academy have built relationships with and donated money or supplies to Montessori schools in need in countries like Uganda and Puerto Rico. We have also assisted with rebuilding schools throughout Asia by collecting pennies and hosting numerous bake and craft sales.

Most recently, MCA enjoyed an exchange program with Bladins Montessori School in Malmö Sweden. Our students created art projects and booklets representing the USA and introduced Flat Stanley to Sweden. Those items made their way to Sweden where Bladins’ students reciprocated with art projects, pictures of Swedish foods and traditions, and even a life-size Pippi Longstocking. Once here in America, Pippi visited all MCA classrooms and our students fell in love with the character while learning about her adventures and the author Astrid Lindgren. Swedish students viewed photos of some of MCA’s classrooms and compared our Prepared Environments with theirs. Bladins’ main hallway entrance now displays of all the items that our MCA students sent to Sweden.

At MCA, we love sharing and connecting our students and our school to all corners of the world.

“Culture and education have no bounds or limits; now man is in a phase in which he must decide for himself how far he can proceed in the culture that belongs to the whole of humanity.”
~ Dr. Maria Montessori

The Montessori Children’s Academy and Cora Hartshorn Arboretum and Bird Sanctuary: A Match Made in Nature!

By Camilla Nichols, Senior Director of Montessori Development

In a quaint neighborhood in Short Hills, New Jersey, within walking distance from the train station, lies a hidden gem; a sanctuary, nestled in the woods known as Cora Hartshorn Arboretum and Bird Sanctuary (CHA). The arboretum was developed by Cora L. Hartshorn on 16.5 acres of land that had been gifted to her by her father, Stewart Hartshorn, in 1923. Cora Hartshorn passed away in 1958, leaving the arboretum and bird sanctuary to Millburn Township.

In addition to a bird observatory and lab facility, CHA offers over 16 acres of beautiful woodlands with three miles of protected hilly hiking trails. The grounds of this non-profit organization are not only home to undisturbed nature, but house a diverse woodland habitat where native trees, plants, and animals can thrive. CHA offers several impressive environmental educational programs, and the old Stone House contains some live animals, a beehive, and other rotating exhibits.

Throughout the school year, CHA is a popular field trip destination for school groups, and on the weekends, you will find families participating in guided hikes, Nature Scavenger Hunts, camping in the woods, learning about composting, and more. There is no fee to enter, but donations to CHA are encouraged.

CHA invites parents to explore its weekly Arboretum Sprouts program for children 18 months to 3 years (with a caregiver) or the After School Turtle Tots drop-off program for 4-year-olds through Kindergarten. Both programs offer nature experiences through hikes, songs, stories, songs, hikes, and hands-on learning.

At CHA, there are opportunities to volunteer, to sponsor an Arboretum Animal, and to become a Hartshorn Arboretum Member. The Montessori Children’s Academy has taken, and will continue to take, advantage of all that CHA has to offer for our students, and we are thrilled that one of our current MCA mothers, Anudeep Virdi, proudly volunteers at CHA. MCA, with support from Mrs. Virdi and the Executive Director of Cora Hartshorn, Tedor Whitman, is thrilled to be building a relationship to support this local hidden treasure, where residents and families from around our great state and beyond can explore and connect with nature all year round.

Now more than ever, especially since the pandemic of 2020, children are spending more time indoors and have come to depend on screen time where abstract impressions are being introduced. In Richard Louv’s bestselling book, Last Child in the Woods, the author discusses how to save our children from “Nature-Deficit Disorder”. Louv makes direct connections to a lack of nature experiences in children and childhood obesity, attentional issues, and depression. Dr. Maria Montessori also recognized the need to involve the body in order for “natural learning” (or concrete impressions) to take place.

“What the hand does, the mind remembers.” ~ Maria Montessori

Dr. Montessori spoke often of children learning and exploring the world through their senses. For example, while observing a leaf, a child’s vision is being stimulated. While smelling the leaf and listening to the sounds of the woods, the olfactory and auditory senses are being developed. And when touching the leaf, the tactile sense is being stimulated. These are all happening at the same time and constitute a holistic Sensorial learning experience.

The Montessori Children’s Academy is thrilled to announce that we will be hosting a Harvest Family Fun Day at the Cora Hartshorn Arboretum and Bird Sanctuary this fall. More information will be sent to our MCA parents, and we encourage all of our families to join us outside in nature while we connect with everyone in our MCA community.

“Let the children be free; encourage them; let them run outside when it is raining; let them remove their shoes when they find a puddle of water; and when the grass of the meadows is wet with dew, let them run on it and trample it with their bare feet; let them rest peacefully when a tree invites them to sleep beneath its shade; let them shout and laugh when the sun wakes them in the morning.” ~ Maria Montessori

For more information on Cora Hartshorn Arboretum and Bird Sanctuary, please visit: https://hartshornarboretum.org

Practical Life for Life: How Montessori Students Learn to Care for Themselves and the World Around Them

by Jacqueline Pisciotto, Early Childhood Head Teacher
and Becky Weaver, Early Childhood Head Teacher

“It is interesting to notice that where life is simple and natural and where the children participate in the adult’s life, they are calm and happy.” ~ Maria Montessori

“So, my daughter said she has been cleaning a mirror?”
It is not uncommon for a Montessori Directress to hear a parent, especially one new to the Montessori philosophy, express surprise that their child is cleaning a mirror during the day, and wants to do it again and again! Maria Montessori recognized that children are naturally drawn to meaningful work that satisfies their needs during various sensitive periods of development. Practical Life activities are crafted to foster movement, concentration, coordination, independence, order, and the development of both gross and fine motor skills. The Directress (or Head Teacher) thoughtfully arranges these materials to captivate the children’s interest, aligning with their sensitive periods. Maria Montessori observed such a profound attraction to Practical Life activities among the children that this component remained unchanged across the evolution of her educational model. Maria Montessori said, “We begin the day with a series of exercises of practical life, and I must confess that these exercises were the only part of the program which proved thoroughly stationary. These exercises were such a success that they formed the beginning of the day in all of the ‘Children’s Houses’. First: Cleanliness. Order. Poise. Conversation.” (The Montessori Method, originally published in 1912.)

If you have ever wondered about the Practical Life area of the Montessori Classroom… Let’s take a look!

Control of Movement (sometimes referred to as Dexterity) work in the Montessori Practical Life area, is vital for the development of the child. It embodies Maria Montessori’s principle of “helping the child to help himself”. The Prepared Environment, which includes work that incorporates real, child-sized materials, has the child engaged in activities such as spooning, pouring, sorting, or tweezing, in order to sharpen fine motor skills and enhance hand-eye coordination. This work serves as a precursor for academic skills like writing and mathematical operations. This focused work also cultivates concentration, independence, and a sense of order.

The Care of Self component of the Practical Life area plays an important role in fostering independence and self-esteem in young learners. Maria Montessori emphasized education as an aid to life. Through engaging with materials such as the Dressing Frames to learn how to button, zip, snap, buckle, and lace, or learning how to put on a coat without assistance, children refine their gross and fine motor skills. This aspect of Practical Life connects the development of physical coordination with the cultivation of independence. Care of Self tasks are designed to foster not only dexterity, but also lay the foundation for lifelong self-care and independence.

The Care of Environment work in the Montessori classroom is central to a child growing a sense of responsibility, respect, and connection with the classroom, the community, and the world. This component encourages children to engage in activities such as cleaning, food preparation, plant growing, and taking care of animals. By participating in the care of their immediate surroundings, children develop a sense of belonging and an appreciation for the interconnectedness of all living things.

Grace and Courtesy work in the Montessori Practical Life area is a key component to the development of social harmony and respect within the classroom community, which then extends to the children’s lives outside of the classroom. These lessons, which include practices like greeting others, saying “please” and “thank you”, and learning how to interrupt politely, are fundamental in cultivating an environment of mutual respect and empathy. Such activities not only reinforce positive social behaviors but also help children develop emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills. Through Grace and Courtesy, Montessori students learn the importance of kindness, cooperation, and respect for others, laying the groundwork for becoming thoughtful and considerate members of society.

Children in a Montessori classroom are drawn to Practical Life work again and again!

The work is foundational for developing a child’s sense of independence, responsibility, and self-discipline. It helps children connect to their inner needs, as well as the greater classroom community and world around them. By engaging in tasks that range from self-care to care of the environment, children enhance their motor skills, concentration, and independence while laying a foundation for lifelong learning.

“These children reveal to us the most vital need of their development, saying:
‘Help me to do it alone!’” ~ Maria Montessori