Category: Quentin at 3

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Our Week in Pictures

This week saw the weather get warmer, school wrap up before the Spring Break and Quentin’s asthma really dig deep and cause some hard days. 

We also had a lot of fun. 

  
A quiet game of Bird Bingo. 

 
Making newspaper pots and having our submission to a child’s magazine featured  here. 
  
A quiet day home from school to fight an asthma attack. The farm is such a nice way to take his mind off everything. 

  
Feeling better and taking advantage of the warm weather. Working outside allows all of us to remember the importance of Gross Motor play. The air smells fresh and clean. Spring is here. 

  

Shadow puppet play is a nice way to end a week. We can all have fun with it and it lets Quentin develop language and story telling. Imagination at its best. 

Hope your week was a good one. 

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Sunday Book Club: Something for the Teacher

  

My biggest passion in Montessori is the Peace Education component. Peace Education is sort of the overarching umbrella. Underneath that vast topic Stewardship is in there. 

While returning some books to the library this weekend, my eyes settled on the title of this book. It had me at the title, but the artwork stole my heart. 

  

This is a family book. I am reading it myself, Quentin and I are reading it together and our whole family can do the activities and follow the guidelines outlined in its pages. 

It’s broken down into three sections:

   
  
It has sections on what an unhappy animal looks like and what we can do to change that.  There are activities like making a worm compost, a mason bee house, and items needed on a forest hike. 

I won’t spoil any more of it. This is one every school, home and children’s group should have on their shelves. It can be found here, or try your local library. 

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Sunday Book Club: Seeds and planting

  
The first blossoming fruit trees are in full display here and so Spring is on our minds.

 This week  I gathered materials for planting some of the now rooted Maple keys around our front yard. 

  

To go along with this I rotated in some of our favourite planting books for Quentin. 

  
A Seed is Sleepy by Dianna Hutts Aston
This series is my absolute favourite nature series for children. The art is beautiful and detailed. I use it in my 3-6 class and we’ve enjoyed it here at home since Quentin was one. 

  
Grandpa’s Garden by Stella Fry
This one has been with us a long time as well. A simple story of a boy and his Grandfather through a year of organic gardening. It has tips and tricks at the back as well as a “garden map” to help you plan your design. 

  
If You Hold a Seed by Elly MacKay
I often have Elly MacKay books listed. If you’ve read them it’s easy to see why. Her style of artwork is stunning and her stories are beautifully told. This one is perfect for our Maple key planting. It tells the story of two lives: a small boy and a tiny seed. 

I’ll do another post regarding our planting. If Spring has not yet found your part of the world, take comfort in knowing that it isn’t too far off. 

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Sunday Book Club: Our favourite Big Idea books

This week has been busy for us. However, we have been exploring big concepts with Quentin and I thought I’d share some of the best books for children that look at abstract ideas. 

  
 

All of our selections give interesting facts and leave the dialogue open for more discussion. We purposely looked for facts that were interesting but not alarmist for a young child. 
    

You Are Stardust by Elin Kelsey

“If you were a planet, you’d be a lot like the Earth. Rainforests on land and algae in the oceans are the Earth’s lungs.”

A book detailing the connections between the Earth, it’s creatures and the child. So stunning and absolutely fantastic. 
 

   
 Wild Ideas by Elin Kelsey

“If squirrels can learn to cross roads by watching people, what can you learn by watching squirrels?”

A book that celebrates the nature of problem solving. It shows children that it’s okay to have problems, and just like animals people are capable of using their minds to come up with a solution. A valuable lesson for all of us. 
  

If: A mind bending new way of looking at big ideas and numbers by David J. Smith
“If the Sun were the size of a grapefruit, Earth would be the size of a grain of salt.”

I love big concepts. This book is ideally suited to the next Montessori Plane of Development, however Quentin can grasp some of the concepts and we enjoy talking about them. 

  

4,962,571 by Trevor Eissler
This is a long time favourite here. Written by Montessori advocate Trevor Eissler it tells of a boy who wants to count to a really big number. It is an excellent book for any 3-6 child who has moved on to the Golden Beads in the classroom, or a child who is intrigued by the prospect of counting leaves on a tree. 
Happy Sunday 

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Sunday Book Club: Our favourite fictional Winter books

Yes, Spring is right around the corner, but it is not here yet. So I thought I’d share our cosiest books to curl up with under a blanket.

   
 I had a friend ask about children’s poetry, and I have included some. I find it’s a hard balance with kids poetry. I’m not looking for silly, but I am looking for rich language that can be understood by a young child. Not easily found in the poetry section. 

 
  
Montessori friendly fictional books are no different than non-fiction. They are beautiful, rich and ideally reality based. This last part is a bit tricky when dealing with fiction.  I don’t mind a bit of whimsy, but I try to leave out the anthropomorphic animals. 

  
Fox’s Garden by Camille Garoche 
This is part of a wordless books series. It is a beautiful story of a child’s compassion. The artist works in paper cutout dioramas and the pages are stunning. 
  

The Snow Rabbit by Camille Garoche
Yes, this author and her wordless books have made it onto this weeks list twice. But if you’ve read these stories, it’s easy to see why. This is her latest, published only last Fall. I love how the child gets to make up the story from the beautiful dioramas pictured in the pages. The simple, selfless love of a child for her sister is the theme of this book. I love that these books get Quentin talking about what he’s seeing in the pages. These are great books for anyone looking to explore emotions or virtues with a child.
  

Tap the Magic Tree by Christie Matheson
Given to us by a close friend years ago, this book continues to be one of Quentin’s favourites. It can be enjoyed by a child as young as 18 months (or possibly younger) and it is perfect for the child who has trouble sitting still through a story time. Lots of actions like tapping, knocking and shaking the tree make this a really fun book for the younger child. I like that it goes through the seasons in a simple way and shows the differences.

  

Good Night Songs: A Celebration of the Seasons by Margaret Wise Brown
I am always interested in the hidden work of authors that is published posthumously. Especially ones from my own childhood. So when this was published last year I hurried to get my hands on a copy. Such a beautiful quiet day or bedtime book. Simple poetry and songs that Quentin really enjoys. Our copy came with a cd as a bonus. 

  

Once Upon a Northern Night by Jean E. Pendziwol
This one surprised me. I was looking for something else and it caught my eye. I’m so glad it did. A soft and gentle lullaby about a small child going to sleep while the rhythms of  nature continue on all around. This was another good find of poetry for young children that wasn’t fantasy based. Just a simple account of a child going to sleep, but so beautifully written. 

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Sunday Book Club: Our Favourite Science books 

  
I am loving the science books spread out all over the house this week. 

Quentin is really coming into an interest in the natural world. Until recently I have always struggled to find good quality science books that offer interesting information, yet keep it at a level that will engage him.

  
Here are some of our favourites: 
   

 

Animalium by Katie Scott

The animal kingdom like you’ve never seen it. This book has become a favourite around the world and opening the first page it’s obvious why. It’s a must have for Montessori book shelves at home and at school.  

  

Story of Life: Evolution by Katie Scott
More of a fold out timeline than a book, it is stunning. I have never seen a timeline done with such detail and beauty. Although this concept isn’t introduced until the 6-9 Montessori classroom, Quentin is fascinated by the different creatures and the information given for them. There is information on one side and pictures on the other and it’s just executed so perfectly that even a young child can take pleasure in reading it. If your child loves dinosaurs, mammoths and everything in between, this is the perfect book for you. 

  

Nature Anatomy by Julia Rothman
This is my favourite over all Natural World science book. It covers everything, not just animals, is small enough to tuck into our hiking pack and is easily held by little hands. 
  

Tiny Creatures: The World of Microbes by Nicola Davies
This one is right on the cusp of Quentin’s understanding. He loves this book because it’s subject matter ties in so well with the use of his new microscope. He is beginning to make the concrete connection to the microscopic world. Our nature table is a great place to find things to put under the microscope. When we go for nature walks he will now find something and ask what it might look like under the scope. This, like all the books on this list is a book he can grown into. He enjoys it now, but his true understanding is yet to come. 

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A Child in the Wild 

We are reviewing a child’s adventure club. I’ll do a full review shortly when we are farther along, but I thought I’d share our travels of today. 

  
A Montessori child in the forest. There really just isn’t anything more awe inspiring. The soft foot falls, the quite concentration as he carefully steps over a mushroom.

  
  
Here, the rainforest meets the Pacific, and fresh water meets salt. Moving at the child’s pace, made us more mindful of our surroundings. 

 

 
Do you use a nature journal with your child? It is an easy and fun way of collecting memories. 

In the end he carried his pack the entire 80 minute round trip. We took our time, talked along the way, and made it all about him. We picnicked on a soft blanket, while the almost deafening crash of the Pacific loomed ever closer. When its reach was only an arms length away, we decided we’d better go.

The final destination was worth just as much as the journey.

   

  

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Montessori Friendly Books 2015

   
I’ve been wanting to do this for a while. Anyone who follows us on Instagram knows I have a love affair (read addiction) with good quality children’s books. 

So, why not showcase our latest finds once a week, on a day where maybe you can grab a cup of tea, sit back and enjoy what we’ve discovered. 

Montessori friendly books are no different in criteria than any other Montessori  material. They are good quality, beautiful and for the most part reality based.

I decided that the best Montessori friendly books published in 2015 would be a good place to start, and so, here they are:

  

Her art is some of the most beautiful I’ve seen for children’s picture books and she’s Canadian. I love books that speak to a child’s ability to change their environment by including nature. 

A boys bland and ordinary pond has no bottom. “How extraordinary! Cried Ernest D.” Adventure, in the everyday ordinary with some nerdy prose. Oh yes. This was a hit right away. 

This is our favourite and I’ve written about its brillance before. It amazing, mindful and perfect for every age.

A beautiful science book. It follows its predecessor Farm Anatomy, and the illustrations are spectacular. It will have a place on our bookshelf for years to come. 

This is was published in October, and I’m so glad. We have Fox’s Garden and I couldn’t wait to get my hands on a copy of this. Her books are wordless and centred around a child’s compassion. This time it’s the love between too sisters. The cut paper dioramas are stunning. 

This has been on our shelves for a while too. I love the simplicity of it and of course the artwork. Take home message: home is different things to different people but it is always where the heart is. 
There was one that despite all my efforts didn’t make it in time. The distributor has promised to send a new copy out, so I will continue to wait. 

This one will be well worth the wait I think.  

 

So that’s it. If you have any good suggestions let me know. Opening a child’s world to books has such a fundamental and lasting impression on them. Collections don’t need to be big. Public libraries, thrift stores, and friends book swaps are easy places to score great finds. 

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    Montessori family reunion: A social experiment 

    What happens when you take two Montessori from Birth children, who live thousands of kilometres a part, who have never met, never spoken to each other, and place them in a Prepared Environment? 

      

        

      

    You get instant friendship. 
    We had the extreme pleasure of hosting Jasper and his family from Milkweed Montessori.

    What transpired in our all too short visit was Grace and Couresty, as they prepared snack together, demonstrated materials and talked about their lives. Jasper talked about his trip and friends back home in his own Montessori Casa. Quentin talked about our recent family goings on and the up coming school holiday. 

    Their was a quietness to both of them and it was magical to watch them both move around my classroom. Jasper tried the binomial cube (and completed it successfully) while Quentin got out the geography flags. They sat side by side as if they had done it 100 times before and it was beautiful. 
    We are off on Winter holidays now, and my classroom is closed up, the shelves draped. 

    Our upcoming weeks will be filled with peaceful home life and we will do our best to not fill it with busy holiday nonsense. To aid that, I’ll take a break from this space in order to fully be in the moment. 

    Thank you to all my followers and friends. This has been a good year. I will see you on the other side of 2016. 

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    Montessori Practical Life: Homemade Gifts

    The holidays are so special to each of us. We all have our traditions that are close to our hearts. 
    For me giving homemade gifts is one of those special traditions. Simple acts of love and kindness, carefully made and gifted to loved ones. What could be better?

    This is an excellent opportunity for Practical Life activities for children 3-6 and older. 

    Here are some of our favourites.   

      
    Cookie making. Little hands rolling and cutting dough into stars, trees and snowmen. Rolled cookies are easy and inexpensive to whip up. Placed in a little tin or box a child can proudly deliver, they make a great gift. 

      
     Printable note cards your child can help fold and assemble. These are from one of my favourite artists Alice Cantrell. Her Etsy Shop is a must for me when I’m looking for a beautiful paper gift to send. I also use many of her works in my Montessori 3-6 classroom. Quentin loves picking something out, going through the printing process and assembling the finished product. 

      
     Drying oranges. They are so easy to do and they make quite a statement when wrapped with cinnamon around a gift. Quentin made these almost completely on his own. I simply placed them in the oven. 

    That’s it for now. I hope you enjoy. If you have some favourite homemade gift ideas I love to read them. I’ve included the instructions for the dried orange slices below.