Montessori at Home

Montessori at Home by Heidi Spietz, 1991

Exercises in Elementary Body Movement

Present lessons in a detailed, step-by-step manner:

• perform detailed steps as an example
• answer child's questions
• let him try to repeat the exercise

Topics of focus:

1. Manipulating objects
   1. Teaching children to handle objects correctly
      1. plastic tray
      2. plastic drinking glasses
      3. plastic plates
      4. small boxes
2. Walking quietly
3. Pouring
   1. water into a plastic container
   2. rice into a plastic container
4. Opening and closing
   1. doors
   2. cupboards
   3. books
   4. boxes
5. Cutting with plastic safety scissors
   1. fabric
   2. paper
   3. ribbon
6. sewing
   1. threading big plastic needle with yarn
7. preparing food
   1. washing fruit
   2. drying fruit
   3. putting butter on bread, muffins, rolls, etc
   4. slicing bread with plastic knife

Caring for the Environment

1. Learning to use a broom
   1. first, sweep in a relatively small area
   2. later, in a larger area
2. washing the floor
3. dusting
   1. with a rag cloth
   2. with a feather duster
4. washing dishes
5. care of a garden
   1. planting seeds
   2. watering
   3. weeding
6. care of an animal

Social Courtesies

1. Greetings
   1. saying "hello"
   2. shaking hands
   3. the importance of making eye contact
2. answering the telephone
3. asking permission to leave
4. saying "thank you"
5. proper behavior in restaurants

Care of Onself

1. Dressing and undressing oneself
2. Caring for clothes
3. Polishing shoes
4. Lacing shoes
5. Tying shoelaces
6. Learning how to zip
7. Learning to put on and take off
   1. shoes
   2. mittens

Learning how to use clothes fasteners is facilitated by a "I Can Dress Myself Board."

Geometric Shapes

Make posterboard shapes of:

• circles
• equilateral/scalene/right angle triangles
• pentagons
• hexagons
• octagons
• ovals
• trapezoids
• rectangles
• etc

Presentation:

1. identify by sight
   1. trace/reproduce on paper
   2. show examples in "real life": clothing, floor tiles
2. identify by feel

Senses: Taste/Smell

Prepare bottles filled with different-tasting solutions:

• sweet
• salty
• bitter
• sour

Demonstrate putting a drop on finger, tasting, identifying, then rinsing with water before tasting the next solution.

Smell: similar to taste, with fragrances

• mint
• lavender
• garlic

Geography

Present the following land forms, two at a time:

• island vs lake
• peninsula vs gulf
• cape vs bay
• strait vs isthmus

Identify actual examples on a map

Math: Spindle Box

Equate a given quantity with a particular number

Partition a shallow container with into ten equal sections (use posterboard or index cards). Fasten the partitions so they don't slip back and forth. Label the sections 0..9.

Focus on the first five sections of the box. Say "zero" and point to the first section in the spindle box. Once you and your child agree that "zero" represents "nothing," then proceed to the next section.

Pick up one crayon and say "one." Place the crayon into the second section and again say "one." Continue in this manner until you have completed the first five sections of the spindle box. Now invite your child to do the exercise. Once your child has mastered 0-4, proceed to 5-9.