A kind and gentle North Austin community school
We regularly speak about the importance of consistency in the lives of young children. From school drop-off to lunchtime procedures to bedtime, routines help kids find comfort and a sense of place in our busy day-to-day lives. Indeed, Dr Montessori established that it is through the repetition of everyday tasks that children learn best. How […]
At the end of his very, very busy day off Ferris Bueller reminds us that “life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.” For many of us in Austin, October is a busy month, what with two weekends of ACLFest and the Grand Prix. […]
Academics at all levels have researched how we learn. There are myriad pedagogies that we won’t get into here. (It probably goes without saying but we like Montessori best!) One aspect within the question of how we learn is “What happens when mistakes are made?” Carol Dweck made famous the phrase “growth mindset” in her […]
If you’ve ever seen a two-year-old work her way around a room and pick up nearly every item within reach, then you know the appeal that simple objects have to a young child. Everyday items can be so attractive for the child to look at, to pick up and carry around. Over a century ago, […]
Every morning we prepare for our work time with a brief yoga session. Some are surprised that these active, wiggly, questioning 3-, 4-, and 5-year olds can sit for a few minutes of quiet breathing, movement and stretching. But clearly these kiddos themselves understand the rewards because they ask for it daily! After our early […]
Recently two of our older students, a 5- and a 5 1/2-year-old, have been enjoying working on embroidery together. And by recently, we mean, the past 6 or 8 weeks. They have done a few other Montessori works here and there, but sewing has been their main focus. It’s been long enough that we teachers […]
In early August HMS teachers returned, with our annual ritual of preparing the classroom for a new school year. With this unending heatwave we have also re-organized our normal daily schedule to accommodate the blistering afternoons. We’re used to spending the end of our school-day on our lovely playground, but this month we’re enjoying the […]
This spring when we began studying desserts a conversation was started among kids and adults. What we thought might be a few weeks’ study of food and nutrition was lengthened by the children’s enthusiasm and curiosity about cuisines and cooking and the stories that accompany our food choices. At first, we brought in pies and […]
In search of a theme that truly excites these young ones, what better than cakes, cookies, pies and ice cream!
Springtime is such a wonderful time of year – on the playground and inside our classroom.
All year long, we’ve been expanding our outdoor classroom, and this month was no exception. We’ve brought outside a full compliment of Practical Life materials for kids of all ages. These activities, such as pouring water, spooning rice, watering the flowers and sweeping (both practice and actual) are things that we do every day. These […]
“But what do humans do?” Khuloud asked during today’s lunchtime discussion about the sun and trees and what they “do.” After a moment to reflect, a 5-year-old responded “To not pollute the Earth!” Dr Maria Montessori spoke often of a Cosmic Education. She believed that we are all one, that the whole planet–plants, rocks, animals, […]