Advantage of a Five-Day Montessori Program

Since the primary goal of Montessori involves creating a culture of consistency, order, and empowerment, most authentic Montessori schools will expect children to attend five days a week.

At the elementary level, both public and private schools run on five-day schedules. Preschools, however, are a different story. Preschools (especially traditional ones) typically offer a choice between two-day, three-day, and five-day programs, so parents can choose the option that best fits their schedule and what they feel their child can handle. 

At MCDC we only offer only a five-day schedule for our Primary Program serving children ages 1.5 to 6. We believe the benefits of a five-day program are immeasurable. Our policies and practices are child-centered. Children learn to love learning by exploring and concentrating on their chosen activities. At our school we offer them the freedom to repeat those activities without interruption until they master them. This supports a child’s natural learning process. Thus, we believe, a five-day program is in the best interest of every young child. For children ages 1.5 to 4, you may choose between a half-day and a full-day program. Children ages 4.5 and up attend full-day programs.

Here is an Adult Perspective

Imagine you are very excited about beginning a new project today, such as learning to put together a scrapbook, knitting a sweater or building a new piece of furniture. You assemble the materials and begin. The joy of this process is very fulfilling, and you look forward to continuing tomorrow.  

Something comes up, however, and you can’t get back to this labor of love until Wednesday. On Wednesday you assemble your materials, and the thrill of this work returns. You know, though, that tomorrow you will again be unable to return to this work. On Friday your enthusiasm is dampened. You have to assemble your work again, re-trace your steps, and try to remember where you left off Wednesday.  If this frustrating sequence of on-again, off-again continues, you soon may lose interest in the project.

It is more so with children. Starting a new learning activity is easier with consistency. It helps children maintain their enthusiasm and interest if they are allowed to continue. Waiting entire days between stages of activities causes them consternation, just as it does to you.  The process of developing longer and longer attention spans is also thwarted when whole days intervene.

 

Additionally, there are so many activities in a Montessori classroom that no child can possibly complete them all in the school year. Imagine how much more learning can be opened up for a child who doesn’t have to limit her or his attendance to two or three days a week!

The Montessori program is designed to meet each child’s interest at his or her particular age.  Missing out on many of these activities simply limits the customized possibilities that a child can enjoy. 

Furthermore; remaining in the same Montessori program for this crucial Kindergarten year provides the opportunity for children to reap the benefits of all the groundwork laid during their first two years in the program. In addition to the academic growth and acquisition of knowledge, the children have the important opportunity to be role models and teachers for their younger classmates, developing early leadership skills and further developing self-confidence. Participating in this program enables children to develop more as independent and capable decision-making individuals.

Thank you for considering Montessori Child Development Center, in Poway. Please visit our website mcdcpoway.com for more information. 

Marijane Schafer, Director of Montessori Child Development Center

858-748-1727

9 Things to Do Instead of Spanking

9 Things to Do Instead of Spanking

by Kathryn Kvols

Research confirms what many parents instinctively feel when they don't like to spank their children, but they dont know what else to do. The latest research from Dr. Murray Straus at the Family Research Laboratory affirms that spanking teaches children to use acts of aggression and violence to solve their problems. It only teaches and perpetuates more violence, the very thing that our society is so concerned about. This research further shows that children who have been spanked are more prone to low self-esteem, depression and accept lower paying jobs as adults. So, what do you do instead?

(1) Get Calm

First, if you feel angry and out of control and you want to spank or slap your child, leave the situation if you can. Calm down and get quiet. In that quiet time you will often find an alternative or solution to the problem. Sometimes parents lose it because they are under a lot of stress. Dinner is boiling over, the kids are fighting, the phone is ringing and your child drops the can of peas you lose it. If you cant leave the situation, then mentally step back and count to ten.

(2) Take Time for Yourself

Parents are more prone to use spanking when they haven't had any time to themselves and they feel depleted and hurried. So, it is important for parents to take some time for themselves to exercise, read, take a walk or pray.

(3) Be Kind but Firm.

Another frustrating situation where parents tend to spank is when your child hasn't listened to your repeated requests to behave. Finally, you spank to get your child to act appropriately. Another solution in these situations is to get down on your child level, make eye contact, touch him gently and tell him, in a short, kind but firm phrase, what it is you want him to do. For example, "I want you to play quietly."

(4) Give Choices

Giving your child a choice is an effective alternative to spanking. If she is playing with her food at the table, ask, "Would you like to stop playing with your food, or would you like to leave the table?" If the child continues to play with her food, you use kind but firm action by helping her down from the table. Then tell her that she can return to the table when she is ready to eat her food without playing in it.

(5) Use Logical Consequences

Consequences that are logically related to the behavior help teach children responsibility. For example, your child breaks a neighbors window and you punish him by spanking him. What does he learn about the situation? He may learn to never do that again, but he also learns that he needs to hide his mistakes, blame it on someone else, lie, or simply not get caught. He may decide that he is bad or he feels anger and revenge toward the parent who spanked him. When you spank a child, he may behave because he is afraid to get hit again. However, do you want your child to behave because he is afraid of you or because he respects you?

Compare that situation to a child who breaks a neighbors window and his parent says, "I see you've broken the window, what will you do to repair it?" using a kind, but firm tone of voice. The child decides to mow the neighbors lawn and wash his car several times to repay the cost of repairing the window. What does the child learn in this situation? That mistakes are an inevitable part of life and it isn't so important that he made the mistake, but that he take responsibility to repair the mistake. The focus is taken off the mistake and put on taking responsibility for repairing it. The child feels no anger or revenge toward his parent. And, most importantly, the child's self-esteem is not damaged.

(6) Do Make-ups

When children break agreements, parents tend to want to punish them. An alternative is to have your child do a make-up. A make-up is something that people do to put themselves back into integrity with the person that they broke the agreement with. For example, several boys were at a sleep-over at Larrys home. His father requested that they not leave the house after midnight. The boys broke their agreement. The father was angry and punished them by telling them that they couldn't have a sleep-over for two months. Larry and his friends became angry, sullen and uncooperative as the result of the punishment. The father realized what he had done. He apologized for punishing them and told them how betrayed he felt and discussed with the boys the importance of keeping their word. He then asked the boys for a make-up. They decided to cut the lumber that the father needed to have cut in the backyard. The boys became excited and enthusiastic about the project and later kept their word on future sleep-overs.

(7) Withdraw from Conflict

Children who sass parents may provoke a parent to slap. In this situation, it is best if you withdraw from the situation immediately. Do not leave the room in anger or in defeat. Calmly say, "Ill be in the next room when you want to talk more respectfully."

(8) Use Kind but Firm Action

Instead of smacking an infants hand or bottom when she touches something she isn't supposed to, kindly but firmly pick her up and take her to the next room. Offer her a toy or another item to distract her and say, "You can try again later." You may have to take her out several times if she is persistent.

(9) Inform Children Ahead of Time

A child's temper tantrum can easily set a parent off. Children frequently throw tantrums when they feel uninformed or powerless in a situation. Instead of telling your child he has to leave his friends house at a moments notice, tell him that you will be leaving in five minutes. This allows the child to complete what he was in the process of doing.

Aggression is an obvious form of perpetuating violence in society. A more subtle form of this is spanking because it takes its toll on a child's self-esteem, dampening his enthusiasm and causing him to be rebellious and uncooperative. Consider for a moment the vision of a family that knows how to win cooperation and creatively solve their problems without using force or violence. The alternatives are limitless and the results are calmer parents who feel more supported.

Kathryn Kvols, a national speaker, is the author of the book, "Redirecting Children's Behavior" and the president of the International Network for Children and Families. She can be reached at 1-800-257-9002.

The Three-Period Lesson

The Three-Period Lesson

Tuesday, 19 September 2006 22:52 | Written by Lillian DeVault Kroenke

Editor's Note: The Three-Period Lesson is a fundamental technique used by Montessori educators to introduce a new lesson to children and lead them along a path to understanding and mastery. Most of us first think of the Three-Period Lesson as it is used to teach vocabulary, as illustrated in this brief article by Lillian DeVault Kroenke (excerpted from her longer article, "Building Your Child's Vocabulary At Home"). We commonly use the same three steps in helping children master new lessons throughout the curriculum.

Introducing Rocks & Minerals: Quartz, Pyrite & Obsidian

Most Montessori pre-primary teachers introduce rocks and minerals as a sensorial and vocabulary building activity. Let's use three contrasting minerals for our example: quartz, pyrite and obsidian. For the purpose of this example, let us assume that your child is already familiar with quartz.

The First Period: This is...

One by one, pick up and handle the stones. Keep the conversation precise and to the point. Identify each stone individually. Repeat the name several times, clearly and slowly. There is no need to rush.

"This is pyrite. Pyrite."

Handle the stone. Let your child handle the item if possible. It reinforces the idea kinesthetically. Repeat the name while he is holding the item. Return it to its place.

Pick up a second stone, preferably the one he knows best

"This is quartz. Quartz."

"Can you say quartz?"

Handle the stone. Let the child hold the stone and proceed as above. Take the last stone.

"This is obsidian."

"Would you like to hold the obsidian?"

The Second Period: Show me ...

This will often be a separate and later exercise. If it is, be sure to repeat The First Period briefly. Note which item your child seems to know best.

This is a time to extend the handling and movement - the action, to reinforce the names. This is not the time to ask (test) the child to verbalize the names.

"Pick up the obsidian."

"Feel the obsidian."

"Put the obsidian on the tray."

"Pick up the quartz."

"Feel the quartz."

"Put the quartz on the tray."

"Pick up the pyrite."

"Feel the pyrite."

"Put the pyrite here."

The Third Period: What is this?

This will often be a separate and later exercise. If it is, be sure to repeat The First Period briefly. Note which one you child knows best.

When you feel your child knows the names, point to the object your child knows with certainty and ask:

"What is this?"

Then point to the next object and ask:

"What is this?"

Point to the last object and ask:

"What is this?"

Specific Techniques

The Trick of the Middle

We learn in Psychology 101 that, in a long list of items, we have the hardest time remembering the items in the middle of the list. The items at the beginning and at the end hold our attention and are easier to recall.

Place the new object at the beginning or at the end. Place the object that you are sure your child knows in the middle to increase his comfort level. The last object can be new or somewhat familiar to the child.

If you continue, begin this time with the last object mentioned, reinforcing it immediately. Keep the known object in the middle. When you get back to what was originally the first object, you will reinforce it again.

The Second Period

Most adults want to get to the third period as soon as possible. We want to test, get it over with, and move on to something else. After all, it's easy for us. We already know it.

I want to emphasize that the second period is the critical, most important period and should be the longest. The second-period lesson serves several purposes: reviewing the vocabulary, reinforcing the vocabulary, and getting a glimpse of the process underway within the child. What connections are made? What slipped through the cracks? What needs more emphasis?

Second-Period Variations

Extend the second period as long as you can hold your child's interest. Have the child move the object around. The movement, which increases kinesthetic memory, will make the lesson more attractive. For example:

"Move the --- here," pointing with your finger.

"Take the ---to the table."

"Bring the ---back."

"Point to the---."

"Give me the ---."

At times when we are learning something new, we cling to the examples given in the instructions or by the instructor as the magic way to do it. As long as you understand the principle, keep it simple and focused, you can ask you child to do whatever is appropriate for the setting, object, or idea you are teaching.

Using the Trick of the Middle, ask you child to show you first the one you are sure he knows. That limits the number of items for his focus and increases the odds to select the correct one the second time. Ask for the one he is most likely to know of the two remaining.

If you started with only two objects, there is no middle object. The second object is obvious.

The Third Period

This is the first time you are asking the child to say the name of the object or idea. Move to the testing period only when you are sure your child will succeed. Remember, mastery usually takes some time.

One of the most insightful mandates to the Montessori teacher is teach by teaching, not correcting. If you move to the third period too quickly, you will be in a correction mode. If this happens, bring the lesson to a close. Casually move on to something else with no recrimination. At a later time, begin again with the second period.

Our ultimate goal is to help the child master the information and himself. This knowledge becomes a starting point for the child's next learning adventure. We want each child to say, "I can do it." Every time your child masters a skill or assimilates an idea, he is becoming a stronger, more competent and independent person open to learning more. Enjoy your time with your child. Isn't that what you really want?

---

Lillian DeVault Kroenke, now retired, has been a Montessori pre-primary Directress and school administrator, teacher trainer, owner of designed for children, curriculum researcher for the Montessori Development Foundation and director of the AMS School Consultation Service. She can be contacted at 505-291-8022.

Meet Marijane Schafer, Founder & Director of MCDC!

 Meet Marijane Schafer, Founder & Director Of MCDC

"I believe young children thrive in an educational environment where they are treated like the unique individuals they are and are guided by teachers who love children and understand their needs.

At MCDC, children experience a deep sense of security and are motivated to learn by the warm, home-like setting that we have created for them. Situated in a large house re-designed for school use, surrounded by trees, vegetable and flower gardens, selected farm animals, and a big, grassy play area, learning at MCDC extends beyond the classroom to the gifts of the natural world.

I opened the school in 1978 to provide parents in our community with a quality educational alternative for their children. We have remained intentionally small so that we can maintain a close relationship with the children and their families.  This is why we primarily have been serving our San Diego Communities such as Poway, Rancho Penasquitos, Scripps Ranch, Rancho Bernardo, Ramona, 4S Ranch, Escondido and numerous other surrounding communities for over 35 years.  The staff and I are committed to giving every child an opportunity to discover and develop to their potential.  If you care to see just how we do this, we encourage you to take a tour of our school by visiting http://mcdcpoway.com/scheduleatour or  call us at 858-748-1727.

Thank you for your interest in MCDC; I hope that you and your child can visit our school in the near future. Please wander through this web site and then come by and see for yourself how children here learn to become happy, healthy, and capable individuals."

We also invite you to visit our Google Plus and check out our reviews our Yelp page.

Here is the school information:

14911 Espola Rd Poway, CA 92064

(858) 748-1727

mcdcpoway.com

Monday Message from MCDC!

To see more, check out our virtual tour by clicking the link below!

http://mcdcpoway.com/virtualtour

“The environment must be rich in motives which lend interest to activity and invite the child to conduct his own experiences.” - Maria Montessori