Last week, our Elementary students participated in an end of the year Field Day! They enjoyed cooperative and team-oriented games with eggs, hula hoops, water balloons, bubbles, and more! The children had a blast. Take a look below to see more photos from the day.
We are excited to announce the grand opening of our Greenspring Nature Center! Come take a peek and meet some of our critters during our Spring Showcase on Friday, June 2nd from 3:00-5:00pm.
“The land is where our roots are. The children must be taught to feel and live in harmony with the Earth.”
– Dr. Maria Montessori
Daisy is a lionhead rabbit from the Carroll County Humane Society.
Barry and Lola are parakeets who came from a private owner who could no longer care for them.
Ivan is a Russian Tortoise from a private owner who could no longer care for him.
Some of our other animals include Khalessi, a bearded dragon, and Oreo, a Guinea pig, as well as oscar fish, guppies, and beta fish.
Stop by and visit the Nature Center soon!
For children birth – age 10
Whether you have a one year old or an eight year old, you might be familiar with an explosion of toys in your home. If you are dreaming of ways to streamline your living spaces, keep your children engaged, and encourage a sense of order, take a look at these recommendations for setting up a Montessori-inspired play space.
Setting up a Montessori-inspired playroom does not require a great deal of time or expense. The goal is simply to create a space that encourages independence and concentration in your child. As your child grows, the space will need to evolve to fit their needs, but the guiding principles remain the same. Here are some key components to keep in mind:
The furniture in Montessori spaces is child-sized and the materials are kept on low shelves so that the child can access them independently. If you have the space at home, it’s ideal to include a child-size table and chairs, an open space allowing for movement and large floor work, and a safe cozy spot for resting or recovering from an upsetting moment. Providing your child with a space that they can navigate independently allows for them to feel empowered without the intervention of adults.
To help your child be successful in the space, consider reducing the number of toys available. If your child is having trouble cleaning up their toys, it could be a good sign that they are overwhelmed by the number of toys that are available. You may use a small shelving unit with two or three shelves and just a few items on each shelf. Putting out just a few toys at once, and rotating them regularly, allows your child to focus on what’s available. Also, rotating toys will rekindle your child’s interest in older toys that they haven’t seen for a while. When a toy has remained on the shelf for a whole week untouched, you know it’s time to put it away and put out something different.
| This is as true for toddlers as it is for elementary-aged children! Older children may be interested in choosing what should go on the shelf and what can be stored for the time being. Older children can also help decide how many toys should be out at once and when it’s time to rotate. |
While there is no need to fill your playroom with “academic” work, you can select toys that help your child develop in different ways.
You might think about including a variety of toys that focus on the following:
It’s also important to include toys that offer a varying degree of difficulty. You want a mix of challenging toys and things that are easy and familiar for your child to play with when they need a mental break. Studies suggest that battery operated toys that light up and make noises are designed to entertain and do not foster a child’s development of concentration. Open-ended toys that engage rather than entertain will encourage creativity and concentration in your child.
Include nature
If possible, choose a room with natural light. House plants offer children a chance to take care of something, as well as add natural beauty to the room. Young children also love watching fish or other pets and they can learn to help feed and care for them as well. You might also consider setting up an outdoor play area where your child can dig in the dirt, water plants, enjoy sand and water play, and do messy art projects.
Children have a sensitive period for order from birth through age five, peaking in early toddlerhood. You can see this through young children’s love for routine and repetition. Montessori environments support this desire for order by designating a specific spot for each material. In a play area, instead of a big toy bin full of many things, each toy has a space where it belongs on a shelf. Toys with multiple pieces, like blocks or play animals, can be organized in small baskets or trays on the shelf. You can even attach photos to each bin or shelf so that the child knows exactly where each toy belongs.
Provide a simple and beautiful space
Montessori spaces use more neutral colors and have very little hanging on the walls. What is displayed on the walls is carefully chosen and hanging at the child’s eye level. When choosing decor, choose artwork that is simple and thought-provoking for the child. Framed art hung at the child’s level can offer a peaceful feel to the space. Natural materials such as wood or wicker also offer a warmth and sensorial experience for the child. The goal is to reduce the visual stimulation of the environment so that the child will be attracted to the materials and be able to concentrate on their play and development.
Give it a try!
This might seem like a lot to think about, but you can pick and choose what works for your child and your home. You can experiment over time to see what works best. One of the most important pieces of Montessori philosophy is to take time to step back and observe. What do you notice your child is drawn to? Are there any spaces in the room that they are not able to access on their own? Feel free to “break the rules” and try new things in your space!
Photographs by Jen Snyder
In the Toddler classrooms, students have been working in the outdoor environment gardens – planting and weeding. They have begun learning the names of types of animals and plants. They also enjoy practical life activities in the classroom, such as watering and caring for plants, as well as feeding fish. One of our Toddler classrooms is even home to bullfrog tadpoles in the final stages of their metamorphosis (which can take up to 2 years to make the transformation!).
In our Children’s House classrooms, students have been working in the outdoor environment gardens – planting and weeding. Campus walks are a big part of our nature curriculum for Children’s House. Our Dual Language classes have enjoyed nature walks where they have begun learning the names of animals and plants in Spanish.
The children have also planted native host plants such as milkweed, lemon balm, and fennel which are the only plants where the monarch, white peacock, and swallowtail butterflies lay their eggs. Caterpillars are essential nutrition for nestlings. Bird parents have been recorded feeding over 700 larvae to their chicks in a single day! To support the birds who make their homes on our campus, a classroom parent generously made birdhouse kits for our children to assemble. In order to have diverse ecosystems we need to provide native host plants and safe nesting sites.
Our Elementary classrooms have been busy with outdoor projects this month. Our Mulberry Lower Elementary classroom inoculated a log with mushroom spores and the students have been caring for them with frequent watering. In the classroom, they have been learning about the body parts and functions of mushrooms to support this project. The Redbud Lower Elementary class also worked hard to remove invasive plant species from our grounds. Both classes recently moved their outdoor environment to the Susquehanna Village, and they are preparing their raised garden beds for summer planting. Upper Elementary students have been working to identify species of plants and animals on campus.
Adolescent students are currently beginning a study of climate change, which will culminate in a mock climate summit that is open to the community as an Igniting Voice event on May 25th.
Additionally, one of our Adolescent students was inspired to create a rain garden on campus. He coordinated with his peers to purchase and plant many new native species on the north side of campus. These trees, shrubs, and flowering plants will provide water retention and filtration, as well as essential habitat to native species. We are looking forward to seeing the rain garden grow and flourish in years to come. Thank you to our Adolescents for taking on this big work!
This month our community celebrated Earth Day with two special campus-wide events! First, we had a visit from Irvine Nature Center presenting Nature in the Classroom: All About Animals. We also hosted a special Grounds Day to spruce up our campus. Some of our big projects included the Lower Elementary Outdoor Environment move, Adolescent Rain Garden planting, invasive vine chopping, mulching, weeding, and so much more! Enjoy photos of our celebrations here.
