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Montessori Monday – DIY Dressing Frames and Alternatives

Written on April 9, 2012 by Deb Chitwood in Activities - Practical Life, Activity of the Week, Montessori Homeschool Classroom and Materials, Montessori Monday

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Flower Button Board (Photo from Chasing Cheerios)

Activities for care of self are a very important part of the Montessori curriculum. They’re especially important for helping children develop both coordination and independence. At the same time, dressing frames are often among the least-popular materials in Montessori schools.

While the dressing frames are still important for Montessori schools, there are DIY versions and alternatives that work well for homeschools and other preschools. This is an area where you can easily save some money and get the same results!

DIY Montessori Dressing Frames

DIY Dressing Frame (Photo from Child Central Station)

Promoting Independent Dressing – Montessori Inspired (with dressing frames created using document frames, old clothes, and a staple gun) from Child Central Station. Also includes the Montessori way for a preschooler to put on a coat independently.

We Made Dressing Frames from Toddler Approved (using picture frames, old clothes, and a staple gun)

DIY: Montessori Dressing Frames for Toddlers from Montessori for Infants and Toddlers

Dressing Frames & Other Goodwill Finds from Havin’ Fun Yet?

Dressing Frames from Homemade Montessori

Montessori Dressing Frames from 54 Stitches

DIY Dressing Frame Alternatives

Activity of the Week – Dressing Basket

Dressing Basket (Photo from Montessori ici)

Dressing Basket from Montessori ici

Dressing Basket from Harvesting Kale

Cold Weather Dressing Basket by Jessie from The Education of Ours at Mommy Moment

Dressing Board (Photo from Simply Montessori)

Dressing Board from Simply Montessori

Dressing Vests from Grin Mama Blues

Button Snake (Photo from Counting Coconuts

Button Snake from Counting Coconuts

Cheap and Easy Button Snake from Jonah Lisa Land

Felt Snakes for Boys (Photo from What DID We Do All Day?)

Felt Snakes for Boys from What DID We Do All Day?

Button Board from Rockabye Butterfly

Flower Button Board from Chasing Cheerios (photo at the top of this post)

Button Animals or Seasonal Items (such as the Thanksgiving button turkey from Itty Bitty Love, the button chicken from Little Red Farm, and the Valentine button snake from Leptir)

Dressing Frame Presentations

Dressing Frames from Montessori Primary Guide

Montessori – Practical Life – Dressing Frame – Zipper Video from Montessori Primary Guide

Montessori – Practical Life – Dressing Frame – The Buckle Video from Montessori Primary Guide

Montessori Practical Life Dressing frame: hook and eye Video from Montessori Primary Guide

Montessori – Practical Life – Dressing Frame – Lacing Video from Montessori Primary Guide

Dressing Frames from Montessori World

Have you used dressing frames or an alternative for your child or classroom?

Montessori Monday Link-Up

If you have some Montessori activity trays/lessons to share, please link up below. It’s fine to link up a post from your archives – and you may link up anytime during the week! Please place the Montessori Monday button (using the code from the right sidebar) in your post or put a link back to this post.

Let’s use Montessori Monday to gain inspiration/ideas and to encourage each other! If you would leave an encouraging comment on the post linked up ahead of you (along with any other posts you’re drawn to), that would be awesome! Thanks for participating!

Note: If you have a giveaway on your blog, please add it to my Family-Friendly Giveaway Linky Page! If you enjoy entering giveaways, you’ll always find some great giveaways there! And don’t miss my TOTALLY AMAZING 2nd blogiverary giveaway of $1,300 worth of prizes sponsored by Montessori Print Shop! My giveaway ends Thursday at 10:01pm MST so that I can announce the winners for my blogiversary on Friday!

If you have any Earth Day activities to link up, you may link them up here if they’re Montessori-inspired. If you have Earth Day activities of any type, you may link them up in the Earth Day Blog Hop hosted by the Preschool Blogger Network (in my yesterday’s post).

Linked to AfterSchool Linky Party, The Mommy Club Resources and Solutions at Milk and Cuddles and Crystal & Co. , What’s on the Tray Wednesday, Thrifty Thursday, The Weekly Kid’s Co-op, Fun Stuff Fridays, Living Life Intentionally Linky Party, The Weekly Kid’s Co-op, Preschool Corner, Show-and-Share Saturday, The Sunday Showcase at Mom to 2 Posh Lil Divas and Classified: Mom, Link & Learn, and Outdoor Classrooms Linky at PreK + K Sharing

Tags: Activity of the Week, care of self, DIY dressing frames, DIY Montessori materials, dressing frames, Montessori, Montessori Monday, practical life

Montessori Monday – Montessori-Inspired Outdoor Environment

Written on April 2, 2012 by Deb Chitwood in Activity of the Week, Montessori Homeschool Classroom and Materials, Montessori Monday

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Outdoor Work Station (Photo from Discovery Days and Montessori Moments)

I love the movement to get kids outdoors. There’s been a lot of talk about getting kids outdoors since the publication in 2005 of Richard Louv’s Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children From Nature-Deficit Disorder. Richard Louv wrote about nature-deficit disorder where children are becoming increasingly disconnected from the natural world, resulting in attention difficulties and other problems.

Maria Montessori’s Views on Children and Nature

“There must be provision for the child to have contact with nature; to understand and appreciate the order, the harmony and the beauty in nature.” Maria Montessori

“It is also necessary for his psychical development to place the soul of the child in contact with creation, in order that he may lay up for himself treasure from the directly educating forces of living nature.” Maria Montessori

Maria Montessori would agree with the movement to get kids outdoors. She placed a great emphasis on nature and nature education. Dr. Montessori also felt that the outdoor environment should be an extension of the classroom.

Resources on Natural Montessori Outdoor Environments

Montessori Print Shop has a helpful post on Natural Montessori Playgrounds with links to many resources and a Montessori Outdoor Environments Pinterest board.

Rockingham Montessori School has a free download of Montessori Insights Magazine with a number of articles related to “The Child and Nature.”

Natural Learning Initiative has Montessori Schools and the Designed Environment (academic papers) and Montessori Schools and the Designed Environment (impressive designs).

Montessori on a Budget has a post with many suggestions for Creating a Montessori Garden Classroom.

Montessori-Inspired Outdoor Ideas for Home or School

While every school or homeschool can’t afford to hire a landscape architect to design a beautiful outdoor Montessori environment, there are a number of inexpensive changes you can make to your home or school outdoor environment. Work can often easily be brought outside – a wonderful idea this time of year, and more emphasis can be placed on activities like gardening and simply spending time in nature.

Will (9) and Christina (4) exploring the Black Hills near our house, 1994.

We were lucky to live in the country or where nature was nearby to make nature an important part of our homeschool: Exploring Nature and Growing Plants Outdoors without a Garden.

Christina (2) and Will (7) reading outdoors, 1992.

My kids also loved to read and do schoolwork outdoors.

Outdoor Numbers and Counters

You could try an activity like Montessori Outdoors – Numbers and Counters.

Numbers and Counters at the Beach

When you go to the beach, you could have activities like Montessori at the Beach: Numbers and Counters or Land and Water Forms at the Beach.

Michael Olaf has ideas for slowing down to enjoy nature as well as bringing “intellectual” activities outdoors in Montessori from Birth to Three – A Superior Environment.

Discovery Days and Montessori Moments has some great examples of working outdoors: working outside, washing clothes outside, sorting animals outside, and outside prepared environment (photo at the top of this post).

The Secret Garden has lots of ideas for taking learning outdoors. The blog’s tagline is “My thoughts, planning and activities for our Secret Garden. A freeflow, Montessori outdoor environment for 4 – 6 year olds.”

The Education of Ours has a post showing that providing natural items outdoors is what’s most important in an outdoor environment: Montessori, Taken Outside.

Do you have favorite activities or environments to help your child and/or students get outdoors?

Montessori Monday Link-Up

If you have some Montessori activity trays/lessons to share, please link up below. It’s fine to link up a post from your archives – and you may link up anytime during the week! Please place the Montessori Monday button (using the code from the right sidebar) in your post or put a link back to this post.

Let’s use Montessori Monday to gain inspiration/ideas and to encourage each other! If you would leave an encouraging comment on the post linked up ahead of you (along with any other posts you’re drawn to), that would be awesome!

Thanks for participating! (Note: If you have a giveaway on your blog, please add it to my Family-Friendly Giveaway Linky Page! If you enjoy entering giveaways, you’ll always find some great giveaways there! And be sure to check out my awesome iPad giveaway sponsored by Montessori Compass, which ends tonight at 10:01pm MST!)

Linked to AfterSchool Linky Party, The Mommy Club Resources and Solutions at Milk and Cuddles and Crystal & Co. , What’s on the Tray Wednesday, Thrifty Thursday, The Weekly Kid’s Co-op, Fun Stuff Fridays, Living Life Intentionally Linky Party, The Weekly Kid’s Co-op, Preschool Corner, Show-and-Share Saturday, The Sunday Showcase at Mom to 2 Posh Lil Divas and Classified: Mom, Link & Learn, and Outdoor Classrooms Linky at PreK + K Sharing

Tags: Activity of the Week, Montessori, Montessori Monday, Montessori outdoor activities, Montessori outdoor environment, Montessori-inspired outdoor environment, Nature-Deficit Disorder

Montessori Monday – Inexpensive and DIY Geometric Solids and Extensions

Written on March 26, 2012 by Deb Chitwood in Activities - Sensorial, Activity of the Week, Montessori Homeschool Classroom and Materials, Montessori Monday

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Geometric Solids Matching (Photo from The Work Plan)

I love the Montessori geometric solids at any time of year. Montessori geometric solids are beautiful sensorial materials and wonderful for the stereognostic sense (the process of feeling objects and recognizing them based on what is felt). This is a great time of year to place an extra focus on geometric solids with the coming of Easter and fun with ovoid-shaped Easter eggs!

Geometric solids aren’t an easy material to make and are generally purchased by both preschools and homeschools. There are some inexpensive versions available. You’ll find an interesting discussion about buying geometric solids at Homemade Homeschool.

Inexpensive Geometric Solids

Note: It’s best if the geometric solids are all one color. (The traditional geometric solids are all blue for isolation of difficulty so the child doesn’t confuse shape with color).

Here’s a more thorough list of Montessori material suppliers along with comments from parents who purchased from various companies: Where to Buy Montessori Materials.

DIY Geometric Solids

There are tutorials for making at least some of the traditional geometric solids (cube, sphere, cone, cylinder, rectangular prism, triangular prism, ovoid, ellipsoid, triangular-based pyramid, and square-based pyramid) used in Montessori schools. Even if you’ve purchased geometric solids, following the DIY tutorials could be great extensions for children at more advanced levels.

Clay Geometric Solids from Adventures of a Rainbow Mama

Geometric Solids made of polystyrene from WeeWinkles

Paper Models of Polyhedra site

Geometric Solids Presentations and Extensions

Geometric Solids (Photo at the top of this post) from The Work Plan

Geometric Solids presentation and extensions from Montessori Primary Guide

“Teacher Discussion: Presenting Montessori Geometric Solids”

Geometric Solids and Exercises from Basic Montessori: Learning Activities for Under-Fives by David Gettman (on Google books)

Geometric Solid Sorting Cards (Image from Montessori Print Shop)

Geometric Solids Materials from Montessori Print Shop (available for purchase)

Geometric Solids 3-Part Cards (free) from Maybe Montessori

Geometric Solids Materials from Montessori for Everyone (available for purchase)

Geometric Solids Matching Cards from Our Montessori Story

Geometric Solids Extension (Photo from Chasing Cheerios)

Geometric Solids for Baby and Geometric Solids Extension (photo) from Chasing Cheerios

Montessori Sensorial Work: Geometric Solids (presentation) from My Montessori House

Matching Real-Life Objects to the Geometric Solids (Photo from Montessori MOMents)

Matching Real-Life Objects to the Geometric Solids from Montessori MOMents

Geometric Solid Sorting (Image from To the Lesson!)

New Life for our Geometric Solids – Thanks to Montessori Print Shop from To the Lesson!

Geometric Solids Objects (Photo from Inspired Montessori and Arts at Dundee Montessori)

Geometric Solids Objects from Inspired Montessori and Arts at Dundee Montessori

Geometric Solids Sorting (Photo from Mi Escuelita Montessori)

Geometric Solids and Geometric Solids with Photographs and Objects from Mi Escuelita Montessori

Geometric Solids with Mystery Bag from My Montessori Journey using Mystery Bag Tutorial from Montessori by Hand

Geometric Solids and Mystery Bags from Montessori Teachings

There are a number of geometric solids extensions (along with LOTS of other Montessori activities) in John Bowman’s Montessori at Home eBook (available for purchase).

Montessori Monday Link-Up

If you have some Montessori activity trays/lessons to share, please link up below. It’s fine to link up a post from your archives – and you may link up anytime during the week! Please place the Montessori Monday button (using the code from the right sidebar) in your post or put a link back to this post.

Let’s use Montessori Monday to gain inspiration/ideas and to encourage each other! If you would leave an encouraging comment on the post linked up ahead of you (along with any other posts you’re drawn to), that would be awesome!

Thanks for participating! (Note: If you have a giveaway on your blog, please add it to my Family-Friendly Giveaway Linky Page! If you enjoy entering giveaways, you’ll always find some great giveaways there! And be sure to check out my awesome iPad giveaway sponsored by Montessori Compass!)

Linked to AfterSchool Linky Party, The Mommy Club Resources and Solutions at Milk and Cuddles and Crystal & Co. , What’s on the Tray Wednesday, Thrifty Thursday, The Weekly Kid’s Co-op, Fun Stuff Fridays, Living Life Intentionally Linky Party, The Weekly Kid’s Co-op, Preschool Corner, Show-and-Share Saturday, The Sunday Showcase at Mom to 2 Posh Lil Divas and Classified: Mom and Link & Learn

Tags: Activity of the Week, DIY geometric solids, Easter, geometric solids, Montessori, Montessori geometric solids, Montessori Monday

Montessori Monday – Montessori-Inspired Easter Activities

Written on March 19, 2012 by Deb Chitwood in Activity of the Week, Holidays and Celebrations, Montessori Monday

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Finding a Home for A Bunny Color Sort (Photo from The Princess and the Tot)

St. Patrick’s Day is over, and Easter will be here in three weeks! It’s a perfect time to prepare some Montessori-inspired spring/Easter activities!

Last year I published a post with lots of Montessori-inspired spring activities (and printables). There were a number of Easter activities included.

Easter Egg Sound Set

I also published Montessori-Inspired Easter Activities. Today, I want to share Montessori-inspired Easter activities published since that post. I’ll be adding to this post through Easter since many of this year’s Easter activities haven’t been published yet.

Most of the activities focus on Easter eggs, bunnies, and chicks and are appropriate if you have a Christian or secular Easter celebration. If you’d like activities for Lent, please see my Montessori-based Lenten activities and my Lent Pinterest board.

Montessori-Inspired Easter Activities

Easter Cards and Booklet (Image from Montessori Print Shop)

Easter printables (available inexpensively) from Montessori Print Shop

Easter Chick Grid Game (Photo from Förskoleburken)

Easter Chick Grid Game (free printable) from Förskoleburken (see also Rabbit Grid Game from PreKinders)

Spring has Sprung! Activities for 10 Books (photo at the top of this post) from The Princess and the Tot

Tot Trays – Easter, Easter Sensory Bin, Tot Trays – Traveling Style, and Momma Made…Easter Egg Matching/Memory Game from Playing House

Easter Trays, including egg sorting, pom pom sorting, and rabbit tower building, from StrongStart

Easter Sensory Bin (Photo from 1+1+1=1)

Easter Fun ~ Sensory Bin & More from 1+1+1=1

Easter Color Matching Tray (Photo from H is for Homeschooling)

Easter Sensory Bin, DIY Nesting Eggs, and Easter Trays (Photo) from H is for Homeschooling

Egg-Themed Sensory Tray (Photo from Homeschool Mo)

Egg-Themed Sensory Tray from Homeschool Mo

Easter Trays (Photo from Mama of Many Blessings)

Easter Trays and More Easter Trays (photo) from Mama of Many Blessings

Australian Easter Themed Trays from Our Worldwide Classroom

Easter Week from Chestnut Grove Academy

Spooning Small Eggs (Photo by Julie from The Adventures of Bear)

Montessori Tot School from The Adventures of Bear

Global Easter: Pysanky Eggs from Montessori Candy

Sensory Play: Sound Eggs from The Iowa Farmer’s Wife

10 Uses for Plastic Easter Eggs from Our Feminist {Play}School

Writing Letters in Sand (Photo from Leptir)

Easter – Activities from Kindergarten/Easter Activities from Leptir

Object-Letter Match (Photo from Lesson Plans to Pots and Pans)

Working with Easter from Lesson Plans to Pots and Pans

Collaborative Easter Pinterest Board

Pinterest - Easter Collaborative Board

For Easter Activities of all types, check out the Collaborative Easter Pinterest board.

Montessori Monday Link-Up

If you have some Montessori activity trays/lessons to share, please link up below. It’s fine to link up a post from your archives – and you may link up anytime during the week! Please place the Montessori Monday button (using the code from the right sidebar) in your post or put a link back to this post.

Let’s use Montessori Monday to gain inspiration/ideas and to encourage each other! If you would leave an encouraging comment on the post linked up ahead of you (along with any other posts you’re drawn to), that would be awesome!

Thanks for participating! (Note: If you have a giveaway on your blog, please add it to my Family-Friendly Giveaway Linky Page! If you enjoy entering giveaways, you’ll always find some great giveaways there! And be sure to check back here tomorrow for an awesome iPad giveaway sponsored by MontessoriCompass! UPDATE: Here’s the iPad giveaway link!)

Linked to AfterSchool Linky Party, The Mommy Club Resources and Solutions at Milk and Cuddles and Crystal & Co. , What’s on the Tray Wednesday, Thrifty Thursday, The Weekly Kid’s Co-op, Fun Stuff Fridays, Living Life Intentionally Linky Party, The Weekly Kid’s Co-op, Preschool Corner, Show-and-Share Saturday, The Sunday Showcase at Mom to 2 Posh Lil Divas and Classified: Mom, Link & Learn, and Spring Festival of Inspiration.

Tags: Activity of the Week, Easter, Montessori, Montessori Monday, Montessori-inspired Easter activities, spring

Montessori Monday – DIY Tactile Boards and Extensions

Written on March 12, 2012 by Deb Chitwood in Activities - Sensorial, Activity of the Week, Montessori Homeschool Classroom and Materials, Montessori Monday

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DIY Tactile Boards and Tablets (Photo from Making Montessori Ours)

For a Montessori homeschool and many preschool environments, Montessori tactile boards are a great DIY project. Tactile boards are a wonderful sensorial activity, but they were never one of the most popular materials in my Montessori preschool or homeschool. Especially for a homeschool, DIY tactile boards are a good place to save money.

In traditional Montessori classrooms, you’ll find both rough and smooth boards and boards for gradation of textures. There are also tactile tablets for matching grades of sandpaper.

DIY Tactile Boards and Tactile Tablets

Making Montessori Ours made tactile boards and tablets from plywood and sandpaper (photo at the top of this post).

Little Schoolhouse in the Suburbs has $2 touch boards from floor sample tiles and sandpaper.

Montessori Free Fall has a tutorial using foam board and sandpaper.

Tactile Tablet Matching (Photo from Barefoot in Suburbia)

Barefoot in Suburbia made tactile boards and tablets from hard foam board and sandpaper.

Walk Beside Me used matte board and sandpaper.

A Bit of This and A Bit of That used mini cheese boards and sandpaper.

Carrots Are Orange used a slate board and sandpaper to make a sandpaper texture board.

Extensions/Alternatives to Traditional Tactile Boards and Tactile Tablets

Sandpaper and Normal Paper Sorting (Photo from Elaine Ng Friis)

Elaine Ng Friis made a rough-and-smooth activity sorting sandpaper and normal paper.

Harvesting Kale made texture boards using wooden boards from the craft store and items of varying textures.

Kreative Resources made texture boards from inexpensive cutting boards and items of varying textures.

Julie K. in Taiwan made texture boards using cardboard and items of varying textures.

Post-Apocalyptic Homeschool made texture tablets from cardboard squares and items of varying textures.

My Delicious Ambiguity used wooden coasters and items of varying textures.

Walk Beside Me has tiny fabric matching pillows (and an interesting post about the use of sandpaper).

School Time Snippets has a texture road of butcher paper with items of varying textures.

Making Montessori Ours has a fabric box and mystery bag in addition to DIY tactile boards and tablets.

Tactile Board and Tablet Presentations

Montessori Primary Guide has presentations for Sensitizing Fingertips, Touch Boards (Rough and Smooth Boards 1-3), Touch Tablets, and Fabrics.

David Gettman’s Basic Montessori: learning activities for under-fives – Google Books has presentations for touch boards, tactile tablets, and fabric matching.

Montessori World has presentations for texture boards and tablets.

Montessori Monday Link-Up

If you have some Montessori activity trays/lessons to share, please link up below. It’s fine to link up a post from your archives – and you may link up anytime during the week! Please place the Montessori Monday button (using the code from the right sidebar) in your post or put a link back to this post.

Let’s use Montessori Monday to gain inspiration/ideas and to encourage each other! If you would leave an encouraging comment on the post linked up ahead of you (along with any other posts you’re drawn to), that would be awesome!

Thanks for participating! (Note: If you have a giveaway on your blog, please add it to my Family-Friendly Giveaway Linky Page! If you enjoy entering giveaways, you’ll always find some great giveaways there!)