HappyMama

This is the only “Montessori” activity I wanted to make for our youngest child, modeled after this one.  He does enjoy it!

This is the “hundred board” I made the other day out of a cardboard box!  It works great, the packets of #’s fit into the top of the board.  Sorry, the control chart picture turned out dark.

We’re wearing jackets!  I can’t believe it.  The scorching month of August is over.  For 4 weeks straight we couldn’t leave the house without the baby getting a heat rash.  Today we walked from the house to the car & his lips turned a little purple, and big brother said he looked “like a girl.”  (Sometimes I wear a purplish lipstick.)

The cool air is absolutely refreshing.  The change of season, however exciting, also brings to my core a twinge of anxiety.  Time is the measure of change; the change of season is the gentle, but not-so-subtle way God reminds us of the passing of time.  Another summer is here & gone… was it time well spent? 

What we’ve been up to lately:

• 4 of us 5 have had colds for over a week now, just won’t go away and it’s a real drag.
• Our eldest has begun violin lessons!  Mom & dad are going to learn, too.  A family project.  At least that’s the plan.  This way the younger ones can take lessons from me.  I plan to start piano lessons with them next year.   That’s assuming we can swing a keyboard out of the budget.
• hubby continues to work on our basement.  He’s made a lot of progress this year and is currently trying to determine what type of pipe to buy for the bathroom sink.  I’m sure our guests will appreciate the privacy of their own bathroom when they visit.
• Our baby will be a toddler - officially - in a couple weeks.  I honestly can’t believe it.  Seems like he was born a couple weeks ago.  Anyway, we’ve started teaching him to sign, and he’s got “ceiling fan” down pat.  He’ll say “more” and “pick me up” on occasion.  He loves communicating with us.  And he still grins constantly. 
• My brother is returning from Italy soon - prayers for safe travel welcome!
• My sister-in-law is expecting!  Prayers for safe pregnancy!
• I’m still occasionally reading & fully in awe of von Hildebrand’s book Transformation in Christ.  Put it on your Christmas list!

And finally, a glimpse of our eldest child building words with his movable alphabet, a favorite activity.  It starts with a challenge by me, along the lines of, “can you think of a word that ends with -ill?”  And he says, “Aunt Jill!  pill!  till!”  And for the next 40-50 minutes, he’ll sit there, building words on his own, and then towards the end, just doing “creative” art:

Ashleigh just shared this helpful website:  MontessoriForEveryone.com.  She offers free downloads on Fridays!

What follows are pics of materials for a presentation on the first creation story in Genesis.  It begins with a piece of black felt on which I drew a triquetra - which has been presented previously - with Elmer’s school glue.  (In the beginning was the Word.)

Day 1:

Day 2:

Day 3:

Day 4: (stars, sun, moon)

Day 5: (sea animals & birds)

Day 6: (land animals and humans)

The child is also given the Scripture verses written out. 

To emphasise the importance of “reading” this particular story as a 2-part creation, I wrote days 1-3 on one card, days 4-6 on the second, and day 7 on the third.  It is theologically essential, in my mind, to read this story as God laying down 3 spheres on the first 3 days (light, water & sky, land) followed by 3 days where God provides “rulers” of those 3 spheres.

In the previous post, I mentioned the manual I’m using for the Good Shepherd Catechesis.  I wanted to list the presentations in the book and note which ones we’ve done.  CGS follows the liturgical schedule, so I’ll begin with Advent activities.  Each listing is a separate presentation.  I’ll bold the ones we’ve completed.  Right now I’m working on the rest of the ordinary time presentations.

• Beginning advent
• Isaiah’s Prophecy
• Micah’s Prophecy
• The Annunciation
• The Visitation

Presentations for the Christmas season:

• The Birth of Jesus
• The Gesture of Epiclesis
• Epiphany

Presentations for Ordinary Time:

• Altar work 1-4
• Geography 1-3
• Gesture of Offertory
• The Presentation
• The Mustard Seed
• The Leaven
• The Pearl
• The Hidden Treasure
• Creation

Presentations for Lent:

• The Grain of Wheat
• The Good Shepherd
• Psalm 23
• The Cenacle

Presentations for Easter:

• Baptism 1-4
• The Trinity
• The Sign of the Cross

I have several friends using or getting ready to use the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd in their homes or parishes, beginning with children in the 3-6 age group, but continuing on from there.  In brief, it’s religious education the Montessori way.  This program is designed by Catholics, but is easily adapted for Anglicans, and other Protestant denominations can simply omit the altar work.  The presentations involve a lot of preparation, unfortunately - I think in the future there will be “kits” of some of the materials for you - but it’s something I’ve enjoyed immensely so far. 

There is extensive training to learn how to be a CGS catechist, and the only resource I’ve found so far for “the rest of us” who can’t do the training right now is Moira Farrell’s book sold by Our Father’s House.  I have her 3-6 manual plus a few of the books sold here, which I highly recommend.

A sample presentation shown below is for one of the parables of the kingdom from Matthew 13, the Pearl Merchant.  At left is our little Merchant in his home with his prized pearl collection.  At right is a seller of pearls, and on his display stand is the Pearl of Great Price, which the Merchant falls in love with.  At bottom is the Merchant full of joy, after he has sold his home, his other pearls, and even his cloak, to purchase The Pearl. 

One thing that I really appreciate with this method of catechesis is that nothing is watered down for the children; it is only made tangible.  During the presentation I read the actual verses out of an adult Bible to my son, I didn’t dumb down the words or simplify them.  The Bible is the Word of God, and can be appropriately given to even young children in it’s true form.  Children have a pure openness to God’s Word that can actually instruct and witness to the adults in the room. 

As with all Montessori materials, the learning is in the using.  After initial presentations, the materials are put in a specific place, and the child is free to reenact the story as he pleases.  He is also given the Scripture verses written out.  It is during the quiet moments that the child uses these materials that he is reflecting and meditating; there is room for the Holy Spirit to converse with him and inspire him.  “What is worth selling everything for?”  The catechist is only there to prepare the meeting between God & His child, not to get in the way or be disruptive. 

There are many purposes to what Maria Montessori called Practical Life activities.  Gross/fine motor skills, ability to concentrate, self esteem, and so on. 

Of course children love things like pretend stoves and food, (I don’t condemn having them!) but if given the choice, they prefer helping you make real food and doing real housework.  By giving them tools that they can use - child-size if necessary - and by giving them small tasks that they can accomplish, then they will discover self-worth in a way that a plastic toy can’t provide. 

One practical life activity my kids enjoy is washing dirty clothing.  (It also elicits good conversation about how most people around the world wash their clothing.)  Last April we did this work in the bathtub, and when hubby came home from work, one of the boys ran to him and proudly said, “dad, we washed your stinky socks for you!” 

To have a successful learning experience requires careful preparation.  We had laundry soap in a small dropper bottle, which they dropped into a tub of water.  We had a small washboard for scrubbing.  They learned “rinse”, “wring”, and how to use the clothespins.  This activity worked much better when we did it outside on the deck recently in the 90+ heat.  My little guy stood by the rinse bucket and splashed happily in the cold water the entire time.  Too bad for us our HOA frowns on clotheslines in the yard.  So ridiculous. 

Other ideas:  whisking eggs, measuring flour with measuring cups, using a non-electric carpet sweeper (ours was $22 from Michael Olaf - a great investment), pouring liquids, hammering nails into a tree trunk or hammering golf tees into clay, using a sandblock, putting nuts & bolts together, kneading dough and making pizza, dusting, polishing, tablesetting, sweeping, plant care, pet care, folding laundry.  Practical Life.  Good name.