Visiting the Montessori School and Getting Oriented: Part 1

Today was my first visit at the Montessori school where I will be observing for the next two months.  I will be observing the summer camp program, as the school is open during a traditional school year. The staff were lovely and welcoming and found me the perfect spot to sit where I could observe the happenings in the class space.  There are 4 classrooms in this center and each were divided with walls, however the room that I was in had a closet/storage area where staff could pass between two of the rooms. 

Right away, I noticed how open and calm the entire space was.  There was minimal art on the walls with the exception of photographs from nature (birds and flowers).  There were a variety of plants around the space as well.  The ceilings were high and two entire walls were filled with floor to ceiling windows and doors that all could be opened to outside working spaces.  In the classroom that I was observing in, everything was child height with the exception of the adult sized kitchen area.  Any shelves that divided spaces were low to the ground and visually did not interrupt the flow of the space.  There were at least 20 child sized tables and chairs around the room, all in pairs.  Each piece of furniture was light or natural wood colored with the exception of one or two shelves that were black.  There were carts filled with cooking materials, bowls that were child sized, measuring spoons and cups, and a variety of ingredients.  There was also a station where children could select drawing or writing materials (crayons, colored pencils, and a few markers), all organized by color along with white paper of different sizes. 

In the 20 minutes that we spent inside today, I worked to take the whole space in. It just felt beautiful and open and serene and welcoming.  I arrived at 8:30, just after drop off time for the summer program and children were greeted at their vehicles by staff members and walked into their classrooms.  Most of the children attend the school during the rest of the school year, so they were familiar with the staff and procedures.  There were a few new to the program children and they needed a bit more time to exit their cars and SUV's.  Throughout the entire time I observed today, I noticed how the staff and teachers hung back to give the children the opportunity to be independent.  Independent they were! When children needed help with something, most of the time, they approached either an older sibling or an older peer in the classroom for help.  The children hardly ever approached an adult for help.  There were several new to the program students who did need a little more help and consoling (they missed their families) and the teachers were so calm and quiet and sweet when helping those students transition into the next activity. 

When I arrived, most children had already entered the classroom and were preparing for "water day".  As this is a summer camp, the children were on a different schedule than usual.  The lead teacher let me know that much of the time I was there today would be spent outside for water day.  While I observed the classroom space, the children were hard at work readying themselves for outdoor play.  I watched as they applied their own sunscreen, retrieved their towels from their bags, and made sure their water bottles were full.  Most children who attend the school year round have a reusable bag that they brought with them.  The bags were clearly decorated by each child and they wrote their name and added other decorations with puffy paint to them.  All of the items needed for water day were inside their reusable bags.  Each bag was hung on an individual hook on the wall under a picture of the child that also had their first and last name displayed below it.  The children were not confined by cubby spaces, rather they had a large hook available for them and space on the floor below to place their lunch box and extra shoes. 

After the children had dropped of their belongings and had prepared themselves for water day, the children gathered on the large carpet to listen to two stories.  I noticed that there was no announcement that books were being read aloud, rather the teacher just sat down in a chair (the only adult sized chair in the entire room) and started reading.  Immediately, 15-20 students joined her and sat on the rug in front of her to listen.  There was no shushing for the children to be silent or for anyone to move to another spot, the children just sat and listened  and were attentive.  When that story was finished, the teacher presented a water themed book and the children all cheered and then got quiet again so they could hear.  

The teachers reminded the children 5-6 times that if they needed to put sunscreen on, get their towel, fill their water bottle or use the restroom, they should do that during that time as once they were outside there would not be the chance to come back inside.  I watched, in AMAZEMENT, as 5 children stepped out of the line to line up for the restroom.  Once they arrived at the restroom door, each child sat down in a line and patiently waited for their turn to use the restroom.  Such a change from what happens in my own school! Each child was in and out of the restroom quickly, and returned to their spot in line.  Each older child was paired with a younger child as their buddy, to make sure the crossed the parking lot safely and to ensure they made it back inside safely.  Each big buddy also made sure that their little buddy had a water bottle and towel before leaving the classroom.  

As we headed outside we got to walk through the outdoor classroom area and I need to go back and check it out some more, but it was amazing as well! Everything was child sized and all materials needed for work were set out next to individual picnic tables.  There were even a flat of dead marigolds for the children to explore.  I did not take many pictures today, as I wanted to be respectful of the children's identities and privacy, but I did take one picture when I arrived of the outdoor playground area. 

It was a large fenced area, for safety and contained a wide variety of balance beams, tree stumps, two pull up bars (which were used for flips) an area with plenty of shade and a wide open tall grassy area with native plats (right behind the balance beams in this picture).  This is where we spent most of the morning and as it was water day, the teachers brought out a rotating sprinkler and placed it to the left end of the balance beam/stumps.  There were many children who ran right into the sprinkler and then there were those who were more hesitant.  The teachers and assistants rotated around the space, talking with children if approached, but not seeking out children to talk with.  The teachers and assistants were very careful to not intrude on the children's play and only engaged with the children if the children invited them into their play.  There were a few children who were crying, one because he left his towel inside and another missed his mom and dad.  The teachers did engage with these children, checked on them to make sure they knew what was making them upset and then left them with their feelings.  One of the children entered in and out of play, crying when they were not "in" play and then wandering to find other play to enter into.  The staff watched both children and hung back to determine if they would be able to independently figure out how to transition themselves or if the needed adult help.  The child who left their towel inside was comforted by their older sibling and the older sibling and a teacher showed the child where the older siblings towel was for him to use.  The child really wanted their own towel and the teacher quietly and calmly explained that the children were all given many opportunities to get their towels before coming outside, so they would not be going back in (a teachable moment in independence and responsibility for sure!).  The child was reminded once more that the older sibling would share their towel with them and off the teacher and older sibling went.  When reading the Montessori methods book yesterday, I read about what a teacher would do in a situation such as this and it was interesting to see it in action.  It did sound more harsh in the book, but it was calmly explained to the child and then everyone moved on.  The child did stop crying after they were able to enter into play with other children and was able to refocus themself after a bit.