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Welcome to the Nido classroom new school year. I look forward to sharing with you the many wonderful things we do in our classroom. Please check here often for updates and links to information. Thank you! jeanette@traversechildrenshouse.org "We see the figure of the child who stands before us with his arms held open, beckoning humanity to follow." ~Dr. Maria Montessori, Education and Peace Room Parent |
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Classroom Highlights
11/3/23
Hello Nido Families!
We had such a great time for Pumpkin Fun Day! Early in the day, we cut into a pumpkin and scooped out the seeds and pulp from inside. Many of the babies enjoyed touching and playing with the “guts” of the pumpkin. In the afternoon we continued our pumpkin exploration by carving a face and creating a Jack-o’-lantern. Some of the older children tried tasting the raw pumpkin pieces that came out. This was a simple and fun way to experience Halloween in our classroom.
As a reminder, if there are any holidays or special celebrations that your family observes, please let me know, and I will work with you to bring these important events into the classroom.
Last month, we had a small group of parents gather to discuss the book The Montessori Todder by Simone Davies. We are hoping to have another such conversation in the spring if we have enough interest from families.
Last week we welcomed Emmie and the Wheaton family into the Nido. We are so excited to have a new tiny friend to get to know. We also said goodbye to our sweet friend Charlotte when she moved up to the Primrose classroom in YCC. We are so excited to continue to watch her grow and visit with her on the playground and in the gym.
10/3/23
Hello Nido Families!
We’ve had a busy two weeks. The children have been enjoying music and playing the various instruments in our classroom. Instruments in Montessori 0-3 environments tend to be exclusively percussive and monotonal to allow children the opportunity to explore cause and effect. There is an evolution from the early days of babyhood when they just begin to be able to shake a rattle to the older infants who bang and shake harder and louder to listen to what sounds can be produced; by the time they are older toddlers, they are able to shake and hit their instruments with more control and explore dynamics within the instruments themselves. Once children move to Primary, they are given lessons on chromatic instruments. In the Nido, almost anything can become an instrument to the babies; puzzle pieces, balls, wooden toys, and trays all can be tapped or banged to produce different sounds.
We also have Group every morning where we play shakers and sing songs. We usually sing some variation of a Hello or Good Morning song followed by two or three other songs. Sometimes everyone stays with us to sing, sometimes children use the time to crawl or walk around with the shakers in their hands. We sing many of the same songs as those on the YCC song list we compiled several years ago. In the past few weeks, we’ve added Five Little Pumpkins and Way Up High in the Apple Tree to the frequent rotation as we’ve moved into fall.
Finally, we also occasionally play music for the babies when they are exploring the environment. We avoid constant background music as we are trying to make sure the babies can experience language directly when we are talking to them or reading to them. If you have any favorite songs that you listen to at home with your children, please send them to me and I’ll make a playlist for the Nido.
I’ll also add a reminder that we have an Adult Learning Opportunity later this month. We will have a book club-style discussion about Simone Davies’ book The Montessori Toddler on October 26th at 4pm. This will be a facilitated conversation wherein all the 0-3 guides can help answer questions about how to translate what happens in the classroom to your home environment. There is a signup on the linked webpage so that we can adequately prepare childcare.
9/21/23
Hello Nido Families!
Welcome to the 2023-2024 school year! Thank you all so much for welcoming me into the guide role in the Nido. It was wonderful to get to spend time with many of you last night at our class picnic. I’m glad many of our current families got to know some of our future families and welcome them to the TCH community.
We have had a great start to the school year. It’s been amazing to continue getting to know all of the babies and watch them investigate our environment. They’ve all been exploring movement so much, and we’ve enjoyed going outside almost every day. As the weather becomes less predictable in the fall, please consider finding a rain suit for your child that we can layer warmer clothes underneath. Several children already have rain suits, and they work well as a layer against wind as well as the mud that is typically left over from the morning dew.
As I mentioned at our Back to School night, we have an Adult Learning Opportunity next month. We will have a book club style discussion about Simone Davies’ book The Montessori Toddler on October 26th at 4pm. This will be a facilitated conversation wherein all the 0-3 guides can help answer questions about how to translate what happens in the classroom to your lives at home with your children. There is a signup on the linked webpage so that we can adequately prepare childcare. Almost all of the children in our current class are entering into the toddler phase of life, and Simone Davies’ book has a lot of information about the way toddlers develop and how we can aid them.