Elementary Montessori: Successful People who Credit their Achievement to their Montessori Education

For more than a century, Montessori education has played a part in teaching students to think critically, enjoy learning, and to have the courage and curiosity to take on new ideas in creative ways. Several of the most successful men in internet technology attended Montessori schools, along with performers of both genders, and even a Nobel Prize recipient.

The World’s Most Famous Diarist

When her family moved from Germany to the Netherlands in 1938, Anne Frank was enrolled in a Montessori school, where she was encouraged to learn and practice her love for writing. According to a fellow Montessori classmate, Anne enjoyed writing and was possibly headed toward a career in the field of journalism. Unfortunately, World War II erupted, and Jewish families like Anne’s were forced to flee or go underground. Today, that little girl’s diary has become one of the most harrowing descriptions of the terror and mistreatment suffered by people during the short reign of the Third Reich.

Montessori’s Effect on Technology

Quite a few of the people involved in the technology behind today’s internet attended Montessori schools in their youth and attribute at least some of their success to the Montessori method. Here are four famously successful people who have played a hand in modern technology:

·        Jeff Bezos - The founder of Amazon, a major player in online shopping, began his education in a Montessori preschool setting. Today, Jeff is among the most successful men in the world.

·        Will Wright - Will Wright learned the importance of combining play with education from the Montessori method. He would go on to design the popular SimCity games, as well as The Sims, and Spore.

·        Larry Page and Sergey Brin - The founders of Google both attended Montessori schools in their childhood. Today, their creative brainchild, Google, is consider the #1 best company to work for in Canada, and ranks #2 for the same title in the United States. Google’s unique algorithms have transformed how we search for information, use maps, and among other impacts on internet technology.

Creativity and the Montessori Method

Montessori’s focus on creativity and personal application has also led to successful roles in music and acting. Two examples of creativity inspired by the Montessori method are Sean “Puff Daddy” Combs (also known as P. Diddy), and actress Dakota Fanning, who credits Montessori education with learning to read at the early age of 2. Julia Child, a world famous cook, once said that Montessori taught her that it was okay to make mistakes so long as you never stop trying.

Montessori and People With Global Influence

Credited with influencing the direction of modern literature, Nobel Prize winner Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s autobiography discusses Montessori education and how “its teachers stimulated the five senses by means of practical exercises, and taught singing.” Montessori is also admired by royalty, such as Princess Diana’s children Princes William and Harry, as well as Prince William and Kate Middleton’s children, Prince George and Princess Charlotte.

Montessori education has a profound and lasting effect on those who attend its school, specifically starting at a young age.  Maria Montessori believed in education children with skills and lessons used throughout their lifetime, methods still used by the Montessori School of Pleasanton today.  To learn more about Montessori education and our programs, contact us today.

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How to cook like the pros and master your knife skills

A home cook can make mouthwatering meals without ever learning to cut properly. Many adults lack proper culinary knowledge, especially when it comes to knife skills. And because the knife is the most used tool in the kitchen, it’s important to master your chef knife skills. Enrolling for large group cooking classes is a great way to start learning how to cook like a pro and enhance your cutting speed and techniques from the ground up. Here are key reasons to learn how to use knives like a pro.

Safety

By learning the tricks employed by professional chefs, you can protect your hands and fingers as you cut food. Many people with basic knife skills tend to use the knives very slowly, dragging preparation time for a recipe or try to cut too fast and injure themselves. In a cooking class, you learn how to properly hold the knife and curl your fingers in order to cut food without the knife slipping and cutting your fingertips.

Speed and Efficiency

The chef’s knife grip has evolved over the years to increase efficiency and speed. The grip lets you use the weight and sharpness of the knife as well as your body weight to move the knife instead of the arm or hand. And professional chefs rarely peel food before cutting- they use the knife to carve off the sides. You can learn to chop and slice faster, which saves time and makes for even cuts. The pros have to be very fast so as to get food ready within a reasonable time. If you learn how to grip the knife like a professional, you can likely increase your speed and efficiency when cooking.

Make the Food Better

Taking large group cooking classes in professional knife skills can improve the result of the meal. Learning better chopping and slicing techniques allows you to cut your pieces in the same size. Uniformly cut and shaped pieces cook evenly and at the same rate. The final dish can have a prettier look.

Choosing a Proper Chef Knife

Learning professional knife skills also involves exposure to different styles of blades. Knowing how to choose quality knives for different applications is paramount to your speed and preservation of the knife. For instance, if you’re always using a serrated knife instead of a meat cleaver, you could end up running the knife or injuring yourself. The force you have to use for a knife that can’t slice through efficiently will cause the knife to slip or break. In a cooking class, you will also learn how to choose the right weight, size, length, and blade thickness of the knife.

Gripping the Knife Like a Pro

When it comes to safe, fast, and accurate knives, your grip is everything. You want to hold your knife in a manner that gives you complete control, minimizes fatigue, and provides an excellent range of motion. Holding the knife at the tang and handle creates an imbalance and increases the risk of accidental injury. It’s important to learn how to hold the knife and keep your digits out of harm's way.

Maintaining Your Chef Knife

Your knife skills would not be complete without learning proper maintenance. This includes washing the knife, caring for the handles, getting rid of rust, avoiding bent blades and dents, and steeling your knife before and after use. While basic knife skills can keep your knives in good shape, doing it like a pro could help make your knives last a longer. You also need to know how to sharpen and hone your knife. Both roles are equally important and the equipment used for each is different. These skills are not taught at home or in basic cooking classes. You can learn them in large group cooking classes that focus on professional knife skills. Mastering knife skills is a matter of practice and muscle memory. In time, you will be cutting, slicing, chopping, dicing, and mincing with speed and confidence.

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Parents: How to Support your Child's Montessori School

Montessori education is more of a holistic approach to learning, meaning that the methods used apply to all facets of a child’s life rather than just the academic ones. The goal is to produce children who are able to meld into society as well as become successful in academic pursuits. Parents play a large role in that and becoming familiar with the Montessori method may be the best way to support your child and his school.

Preschool Preparedness

Making sure that your children are prepared for the school day provides a lot of support to the student guides. Preschool children will be practicing being self-sufficiency in life - and the restroom. For this, they need to wear clothing they can put on and take off by themselves with little or no assistance. Similarly, shoes that they can put on by themselves makes it easier for Montessori students to transition from indoor to outside activities.

Help your children to select their school clothing the night before, eliminating early morning stress factors. This is a huge benefit in the classroom, as children who become anxious or stressed before school tend to carry the effects with them into the classroom.

Parental Participation

Parents can get involved on the personal level by volunteering to help out in the classroom, at special events, or by providing special skills that the classroom can benefit from. Parents are a tremendous asset for the school when it comes to event planning and having sufficient hands available during special functions, and they rely on parental involvement to keep it all working smoothly. Taking an active role may be the best support you can offer to your child's school, and it will have a positive impact on your children in the process.

Work as a Team

Keep in mind that your child’s school wants the same things you do, namely a well-educated child who is comfortable with social graces and responsibility. When attending parent-teacher conferences, remember that you are on the same team. When a child sees that his parents and teachers are working together, they have a tendency to react in a positive manner. Read school newsletters, ask your children about their day, and make learning an exciting experience for everyone.

Financial Support

Montessori schools need your assistance in order to pay for school improvements, class trips, and to purchase materials for the classroom. You can help with this by making donations, taking part in fundraising campaigns, or providing much needed materials to the school. Keep in mind that your contributions should be intended to help all of the children, not just your own, so plan your donations accordingly.

If you have questions about how you can support your school, don’t hesitate to ask. The best rule of thumb is that anything you can do to help the school will also benefit your children, so take a few minutes to chat with teachers and find out where and how you can provide the best support.  If you're unsure of ways to help your child's Montessori school, contact the teachers and staff at the Montessori School of Flagstaff Sunnyside Campus.  We value Montessori education and sharing that methodology with children everyday.

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Learning Objectives for your Preschooler

A Montessori education is a well-rounded education, and preschool is the best time to start. Unlike traditional public schools, the Montessori classroom puts an emphasis on skills the child will be able to use throughout their life, including academic subjects, real-life skills, how to interact on a social level, and the importance of personal worth. This may seem like a lot for a small child to absorb, but the Montessori approach integrates the different objectives into daily course objectives so that learning about one objective helps reinforce education about others in the process.

Basic Life Skills

Montessori is about far more than academic education, and it can be practiced in the home. Learning basic life skills gets a lot of focus in the preschool environment, including such things as using the restroom unassisted, washing hands before meals, and learning to clean up behind oneself. Mastering everyday skills like setting and clearing the dinner table helps children improve motor skills, teaching reasoning concepts and counting, and a variety of other, more abstract concepts. Teaching children how to be successful human beings is not restricted to the classroom and shouldn’t end when the school day is over.

Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math

STEM activities for young children help them become acquainted with the magic and mystery of science. While preschoolers are not expected to master rocket science, they will almost certainly be amazed by the transformation of a caterpillar into a butterfly, learning to use the technology found in the classroom, or becoming acquainted with the beauty of simple math. Preschool STEM projects may not reveal the secrets of the universe, but building hands-on, STEM-related experience may help them develop a fondness for knowledge and discovery.

Social Skills

Social interaction is vital to a happy childhood. In the Montessori classroom, care is taken to introduce children to basic etiquette and other social skills. Additionally, emphasis is put on problem solving and conflict resolution so that today’s preschoolers will be better equipped to be tomorrow’s diplomats. Sharing and working together are important skills that are crucial to the Montessori environment.

Self Esteem

Underneath the life skills, STEM activities, and social interaction, the Montessori classroom is also instilling a sense of self-worth. Children who receive praise tend to be more enthusiastic and having a high self esteem is often central to displaying care and compassion for others. It is also beneficial in helping children avoid bullying, plus the fact that once a child understands that they have the power to succeed, the doors of success are easier to open.

For the parents of young children, it is important to remember that what a child experiences in the classroom can be continued in the home. Talk to your child’s student guides about the classroom projects and look for ways to recreate similar activities in the home. If children are awake, they are learning, and it is up to everyone around them to make that an enjoyable and interesting experience.  Montessori Children's House has a Preschool and Primary program for ages 18 months to 6 years.  Our teachers work with students and parents to incorporate lessons from the school day into everyday activities.  To learn more about the Montessori method, contact our school today.

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Preschool Skills to Use Before Reading a Book

Every child learns at a different pace, and learning how to read is as unpredictable as it is important. But if you want to help your child prepare for this milestone – and continue to grow as a new reader – you can help by building some early literary skills now. After all, reading and understanding text aren’t the only skills involved in reading, and they’re not the only ways for a child to experience words and books. Pre-reading skills range from paying attention during reading time to identifying letters and numbers, and all of them help us lay an important foundation for literacy.

Here are a few early childhood literacy skills your preschooler can use before they start reading. Grab your favorite book and get started today!

Looking at Pictures & Identifying Items

Reading comprehension skills are important because kids must learn to pay attention to the details and meaning of a story. Luckily, this skill can be sharpened without even using words. Select books with colorful, clear illustrations on every page and help your child identify the most important elements. For example, your child may start by distinguishing between different colors and animals, then progress to picking out specific characters, settings, and other details.

Identifying Letters, Numbers, & Punctuation Marks

Long before kids learn how to interpret letters and words, they can tell different shapes and sizes apart. Now is a great time to start focusing on the differences between different letters and numbers, including their shape, size, and name. Start by reading alphabet books that name and describe each letter, getting your child familiar with the whole alphabet. As they learn more about the alphabet, pause during story time and ask them to identify random letters or point out the differences between capital and lower-case letters on the page.

Predicting Patterns & Plots

As you read aloud to your child, engage them in the action of the plot and encourage them to try predicting what will happen next. This helps them pay attention to plots and patterns, and it also inspires creativity and problem-solving skills by allowing them to imagine the next page. This can be as simple as pausing during story time and asking what one character should say to the next, or as complex as drawing

Telling Stories Themselves

Ultimately, reading is all about following narratives. Because strong narrative skills are helpful as your child learns to read, consider involving them in the storytelling process. After reading a book together, ask them to retell the story – or tell a story about something that happened to them. Reading repetitive books is a great starting point, because kids can rely on a predictable pattern to help them learn and retell a story. Even playing make-believe is a great way to build storytelling skills, so give your kids an opportunity to get creative.

At Montessori Children’s House, we encourage our students to embrace and enjoy reading at their own pace. Contact us to learn more about our preschool programs and see how Montessori education teaches students new skills that set the foundation for lifelong learning.

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