Abe Lincoln's Hat

Presidents Day is around the corner. It's always fun to uncover some new and interesting tidbit about these figures that we've visited so many times in the past. Like Abe Lincoln storing important papers in his hat, or George Washington using tricks to win battles during the Revolutionary War.

It's also a good chance to have a lesson on observing the features on faces. We use a portrait. We start by talking about some of the different shapes of faces; square, round, oval. I demonstrate a drawing, voicing my thoughts as I determine the shape of the face, then the size and placement of eyes, nose, mouth and hair. I'm not great at drawing, so my demo doesn't intimidate. In fact it demonstrates the ability to laugh at oneself. Both these drawings were done by 5 year olds. The one has a little hat made with a half circle and a rectangle of black paper pasted onto it.

This is a small hat the children can make. Use black construction paper. Make the rectangle about 3 inches instead of 2 5/8 inches wide in order to be able to cut tabs in the top also. Bend the top tabs inward. Use paste to attach the small circle for the hat's top. The slightly curled up sides on the hat brim will give it the well worn look of Abe's own hat.

Happy Chinese New Year!

We're looking forward to a wonderful year of the dragon. Clean homes with blooming flowers in vases will bring good fortune through the year.

Firecrackers were invented in China. They are lit throughout the 15 day festival.

Here is a nice little string of paper firecrackers to make.

First, give each child a pretzel stick (not to eat just yet!), several pieces of red paper that are about 3 inches by 5 inches and a 2 foot piece of string.

Roll a piece of the red paper around the pretzel stick. Tape it.

Use a small awl and piece of carpet felt from a paper punching activity to punch a hole through the center of the tube (firecracker).

Tie a knot at the end of the string. Push the other end of the string through the hole in each "firecracker" to make a "string of firecrackers"!

Hang them around the room.

A Fraction Game

I use this game to introduce fractions to kindergarten age children and higher. Through it, they learn that when the denominator number is smaller, the fraction piece is larger. It also helps them to visualize how fractions can be added together.

Our fraction circles range from 1 whole to a circle of ten tenths. For the game, I made up 3/4 by 3/4 inch squares with all of the fractions printed on them. There is one "1" and two "1/2" squares, three "1/3" squares, etc. To begin the game, the children place each of the fraction labels on the corresponding red fraction piece.

I cut label stickers to fit each side of two dice. On the sides I wrote fractions up to 1/10, since that is how far our fraction circles go. Each player (usually two) takes the base circle from the whole and the half fraction pieces. A child can play alone or with a friend. the object of the game is to see who can fill up their base circle first. The circle must be filled up exactly. Sometimes no one wins. They are eager to play again until there is a winner.

I begin by explaining that one half is one of two parts, one third is one of three parts, etc.

A player rolls the two dice, however, he can only use one of the fractions shown. He must choose the one that will best fill his circle. If neither fraction shown will fit into what remains of his circle, he must try again on the next turn. Although there often is no winner, this is a popular game.

Happy Chinese New Year!

Practicing making Chinese characters with these little overlay booklets. Each one shows the strokes for making a single Chinese character for a word. The pages are transparent to show how to build the character. Since each character fits into a square, plain paper divided into squares is used for practice. We use individual small squares of paper.

Tiger Moms

I'm sure you've heard the growl about "Tiger Mom" parenting. For the last 30 years, our school has attracted Asian families. Typically, these parents do expect excellence from their children. The children that I've known are well loved by both parents. Recognizing the potential and ability of each child to learn is part of the expression of that love. This was also part of Dr. Montessori's philosophy. She expected more of the children in her charge than any other educator of her day. And just as Dr. Montessori provided the children with materials and experiences to meet her expectations, Asian parents often use their free time to instruct and monitor their children.

While many of these children may spend their free time at home doing math problems at the kitchen table or diligently practicing an instrument, they are proud of their achievements. As a teacher, it is a joy to work with them. They are eager and not afraid to learn new materials and processes. They show respect for their teacher and other adults. Yet, these same children, appropriately and happily have fun, laugh and enjoy friends in school throughout the year.

Amy Chua's "Tiger Mom" is a bit extreme. However, the message that when you expect more you get more and that the child will benefit from the experience with self confidence that could not have been achieved any other way, is true.

To encourage or not ...

This young boy enjoys using the moveable alphabet and is capable of reading the words but reluctant to reading them on lists or in short books. When asked to read, he declined but Mrs. T paid no attention, sitting with him, coaxing him to read a simple book. He plodded through, and upon completion of the last page, he gushed, "Mrs. T, I'm glad you ignored my complaints!"

We find that many children need a bit of nudging, in reading as well as math. These are important areas and areas where the children themselves are happy to make strides. I imagine that is because their parents value progress in those areas. In this way, we still "follow the child" while helping those who need it, to make the right choices.

J.K. made use of her snack between bites.

For the past few weeks the children have been painting a stool, boxes and this little chest of drawers for the PODS auction. Here are some of them putting their signatures on the back of it. I'm amazed by the children's fine work.

insects, reptiles, birds and mammals!

Today Mandy, from the Lehigh Valley Zoo visited the school. From 1 tiny and 3 medium sized carriers, she showed a hissing cockroach, a turtle, a snake and 2 screech owls. Mandy encouraged each child to touch the cockroach's exoskeleton, the turle's shell, the snake's scales and the owl's feather. To introduce the final animal, a mammal, she passed around a piece of camel fur. We were all curious to see what hid in the last carrier. E.W. muttered, "Uh-oh, I think it's a bear." E.N. cooed,"Oh-h-h, she brought a little camel!" No, but it was this sweet bunny. Thank you, PODS, we learned a lot.

words to live by

Last week two of our students were peeling oranges for snack. One was having difficulty with the task. Mrs. T. overheard one of the children's encouragement to the other: "If you keep on trying maybe you can do it." The response: "Yeah, that's the world; that's the way life is."

history lessons

We've been reading book after book about our early presidents and enjoying all of them. We made Abe Lincoln's log cabin and some tried drawing him. One of the books showed his signature. Since it was put on our light table, tracing it has been a popular way to practice a little cursive writing.

Today we read a book about George Washington's favorite breakfast. It was too simple to not try it. So here are the hoe cakes frying. Surprisingly, everyone loved them and came back for seconds.

Next week we'll begin learning fun facts about more of our past presidents. What kind of pets did they have? One had two alligators. What did they like to eat? How did they have fun in the White House? How did they help our country?

snow fun

J.K. shoveling and R.M.'s legs near M.L., H.K. and T.M. putting the final touches on the new playground buddy.
Another avid shoveler.

sweet valentine's day

Montesorian Michelle Irinyi eloquently defends the celebration of Valentine's Day in this post for the North American Montessori Center.
For all of you busy multitaskers, this quote from her post sums it all up. "Valentine’s Day isn’t all about romantic love. It’s about friendship. It’s about the love we share with those around us. It’s about teaching children to care about those around them. "

Every day counts - the bead chains

It has gotten a bit too cold for the great outdoors, but we've got plenty to keep us busy. For several weeks, now, many of the children have been interested in counting the bead chains. This first picture is of the bead chain material. This material illustrates the squares and cubes of the numbers 1 through 10. Note the bead squares and cubes sitting on the little shelves to the right. The top shelf holds color coordinated boxes with the counters and chain for each number's square. Hanging are each of the chains that when folded together would become that number's cube.
The next picture shows a child being introduced to this work. She is shown how the short two chain can be folded into the two square. Then she is shown how the long two chain can be folded into the two cube. Then she is shown how 2 two squares can be put together to make a two cube. The chains are counted and the counters are placed. The lesson is repeated with the three chain.

If the child desires, s/he can continue with the other chains in their order.

At its simplest, this activity is good for practicing the order of the numbers. That after 29 comes 30, and after 39 comes 40, etc. On the next level, it illustrates skip counting; counting by twos or threes or fives. On another level, an older child will see the multiplication tables. And finally, this material illustrates the squares and cubes of these numbers and their relationships with each other.
Counting the bead chains is a popular activity in the classroom. I believe it is the thrill of accomplishment. As the chains get longer, the image of a daunting task is found to be readily achieved with just a little perseverance.

Happy Chinese New Year!

On Monday morning several students were dressed in red. Ready to welcome a new year. This is M.L. and A.T. (measuring). L.W. also looked her best, and brought a delicious snack of Asian treats.

snow snow snow

It's so nice having the snow cover the playground. The children have covered our windows with paper snowflakes. Paintings and cotton snowmen hang on our walls. Unfortunately, the extreme cold has kept us inside more than usual. We used the extra time to talk about Antarctica. But today was sunny and tomorrow should be a bit warmer. In snow pants, boots, hats, mittens and jackets, children squealed with delight as they made snow angels and gathered armfuls of snow.