Chaffee Co Montessori

There’s a debate that rears up every so often and gets communities in an uproar. It involves changing our beloved educational calendar and usually the root cause is economic. The debate? Year-round schooling. Folks wax poetic about the “lazy, hazy days of summer,” while teachers plan the first six weeks of their fall academics with review sessions to remind students of the lessons they learned the previous winter and spring. Forgetting over the summer is NOT a hotly contested debate…that part’s for real.

We’re lucky, here in Chaffee County, that there are so many opportunities for continued learning during our incredible Rocky Mountain summers. If you pick up the free Rec Guide, it is filled with things to do that will keep your children’s bodies and minds active. Our Salida Regional Library takes on a new look with its Summer Reading Program.

Thanks to Becky Nelson, the awards hang from the rafters with names of hundreds of local children who literally read volumes during their less-structured summer months. Programs provided by large community organizations like the Salida Hot Springs Pool and Boys and Girls Club keep children moving and gathering with their friends all summer long.

But there’s another layer of opportunity for Chaffee County children offered by local schools, preschools, and learning-focused organizations that you may know less about. These are summer programs that design a continued learning experience in settings that incorporate the classroom and the big outdoors during our great-weather days.

At the Salida Early Childhood Center, Kathy Wardlow heads up a program designed just for two-year-olds. Kristina Madden plans a summer program for infants through 5’s at Three Cherry Trees, a Waldorf-inspired preschool program that emphasizes imaginative outdoor play, gardening and natural crafts.

Chaffee County Montessori School’s Summer Day Camp program for 3 through 10-year-olds integrates the arts, history, science and gardening/sustainability in week-long sessions that have children learning both inside and outside the classroom. The Crest Academy offers an 8-day Summer Science program that keeps middle school students thinking and problem-solving through practical science experiences. Guidestone Farms offers programs in Salida and BV that emphasize our rural heritage, teaching children farming and ranching skills that connect children with our food sources and good ol’ Yankee ingenuity.

In the end, it’s our resourcefulness and inventiveness that is the foundation of problemsolving and the subsequent learning that occurs. And that is what makes us happy human beings. Before your children start to complain about how bored they are this summer, take some time to find a great summer learning program! They and their teachers will thank you for it!

By the time your child reaches age 3, you may be contemplating preschool and whether it is an investment you are ready to make for your child. This is no small decision, for your child’s experience will lay the foundation for her future learning. With all the programs available, how do you choose the program that will best fit your child and your family?

A three-year-old is quickly learning about himself and his connections to the world around him. As he builds a community outside his family, he is developing social skills and a growing sense of who he is in the world. Your child’s preschool will become his new learning community outside his home, so it is important for it to be a place that reflects the values you hold dear. When you visit potential preschool programs, be sure to ask about routines that are followed, how children are encouraged to treat one another, and how they are disciplined.

You will also expect your child’s preschool to teach academic and social skills appropriate for her age. Your three-year-old’s brain is still forming connections through her senses. The more in depth her senses are developed at this time in her life, the more she will be able to use them to make future learning connections. The preschool classroom needs to allow for great freedom of movement as well as learning through all the senses. Touching, tasting, hearing, and smelling new “information” are as important as “seeing” and will develop a creatively thinking brain that can use a variety of inputs to understand the world that is unfolding before her eyes.

Finally, you will want to see how much free choice your child is offered in the activities of the day. Even at three, your child is developing his ability to make decisions. When a program offers many options for individual choice, your child will reveal his interests and be supported in his growing focus on the things he loves.

So where do you begin? The Chaffee County Early Childhood Council can be a resource of the preschool programs we have in our valley. From in-home programs to programs in childcare centers, Chaffee County has many rich and varied options for your child’s preschool experience. Contact Janine Pryor at 719-530-5734

By Rebecca Adelman, President and Claudia Mann, Head of School
Chaffee County Montessori School; Salida, CO

Your family anxiously awaits the arrival of your baby. You’ve probably immersed yourself in the details of labor and delivery and both mom and dad are prepared for the events leading up to the arrival. You’ve discussed parenting a newborn: how you will feed, clothe and comfort the new person about to enter your world. Perhaps you’ve assembled the bassinet, crib and changing table and put all the diapers away in readiness for your bundle of joy. Information and advice abound with lists of how-to’s and must-do’s for having a baby.
Setting up the physical environment is just one aspect of preparing your environment for the arrival of a new family member. A fully prepared environment also includes the atmosphere of the home and the rules that govern the environment and those who use it…including your newborn. Your preparation of this greater space can have a huge impact on your child’s smooth transition into your family.

During the first three years, your child will absorb, like a sponge, whatever is in the environment: ugliness or beauty, course behavior or gentleness, and all forms of language, whether it be native or foreign, accurately constructed or poorly. As parents, we are the first models of what it means to be human: caring, thoughtfulness, and respect along with safety, basic needs and play. If our children spend time in a childcare setting or an infant community, we must exact the same high standards we expect of ourselves.
Quality and beauty of the environment and the books and materials are very important in attracting, satisfying, and keeping the attention of the child. If the child is exposed to beautiful rattles and toys, she will help create a world with the same high standards as an adult. Toys, rattles, puzzles, tables, and chairs made of wood instead of plastic develop an appreciation for nature and quality and show a respect for the child.

Rather than keeping things in large toy boxes, it is more satisfying to the child to keep them neatly on shelves, hung on hooks, sorted on trays, and separated into baskets. This also makes putting things away much more logical and enjoyable. It is possible to put shelves in the child’s room, family room, and wherever else the child may play, before the child is born. Shelves do not have to be expensive; they can be as simple as boards and bricks. Parents can begin immediately to keep the child’s things on shelves and continually set the example of putting toys away where they belong when they are not being used.

Solid wood tables and stools, which allow the child to sit up straight with the feet flat on the floor for drawing, playing, fixing, and eating snacks are very important. Not only will good posture be developed, but also she will be better able to concentrate and focus in this position. As your child grows in skills, low shelves in the pantry can hold snacks, drinks and dishes for preparing her own food when she is hungry. You will teaching self-reliance as well as making her environment a place that says, “You belong here.”

A low bed is preferred so she can easily climb in and out of it. A comforter makes it easy for the child to make her bed. Learning to care for herself not only allows the child to become independent in constructive ways, it also sends the message that she is a contributing member of her family, whose work is valued and useful.

The ideas stated here are reflective of those first taught by Dr. Maria Montessori more than 100 years ago in Rome, Italy and now being offered in schools world-wide. Dr. Montessori used her keen scientific eye to closely study children in a variety of countries and from a number of different cultures and backgrounds. She came to the conclusion that the human mind is constructed to organize and learn from the environment. Based on this recognition, Dr. Montessori developed a “prepared environment” carefully designed to support the young child’s “absorbent mind" and to assist their complete development.

Purposeful Parenting: Infancy
Claudia Mann
The months before your child’s birth have likely been filled with tremendous amounts of learning. Along with diapers, bassinet and Burley, you have acquired your philosophy of parenting and re-designed your life to include an unknown person. When your little one finally enters the world, you likely already have an image of how you will now fill the role of parent, including how you will introduce the world to your child throughout her infancy.
During the first months of life outside the mother’s body the infant develops foundations of emotional health and security. Dr. D.W. Winnicott suggested that how an infant was introduced to the world could reach far into the adult’s emotional future. His work was at the foundation of gentle birthing practices and careful expansion of the infant’s world so that he could perceive it as a safe and trustworthy place in which to grow and develop.
Dr. Maria Montessori’s work led her to similar conclusions about the significance of calm and quiet early experiences. She developed best-practices for infants based on a clear picture of the characteristics that would prepare the child for later social, emotional and academic learning. Her idea that the infant brain was perfectly designed for incredible amounts of learning during the first 3 years of life was new and unique when she first professed it in the early 20th century, yet how to develop that potential in today’s world may still be illusive. Montessori’s ideas are firmly rooted in careful and thoughtful preparation of the physical and emotional environments which the infant experiences.
The following are five basic Montessori best-practices for the infant whose rapid growth is keeping pace with her social and emotional learning. Your responses and interactions with your baby can have a positive influence on progression from phase to phase.

Develop a warm and supportive home. An infant takes in EVERYTHING in her environment by absorbing the experiences through her senses. She feels in her body the physical and emotional climate within which she is seeing, hearing, and absorbing information. “Quiet” the environment by turning down the volume on music or TV, limiting the number of objects in her visual spectrum and changing them periodically, and using soft colors and muted lighting.
If possible, breastfeed. An infant’s attention is drawn to the human face and the sound of the human voice. The perfect distance for a baby’s visual focus is the distance between his eyes and his mother’s face when breastfeeding. While you connect deeply with your infant, he is developing visual acuity and attention to the details of your face.
Aid language development through gentle talk. The beginning steps of verbal communication begin when your infant watches your lips move while hearing the sound of your voice. Repeating his gurgles and coos is a first form of talking together. Explaining what you are doing as you change his diaper or questioning his cry develops communication skills and prepares him for a verbal future.
Develop consistent daily routines. The world outside the womb is a complicated space! When you provide your infant with routine, you are helping to develop trust in the world as an orderly place.
Teach self-soothing for independence and confidence. Bedtime offers a first experience in independence. When she cries, respond slowly, using your voice to calm her, gently touching her body to let her know you are there as she settles down to sleep. Allowing your baby to calm herself teaches that she has the ability to manage her emotions.

Purposeful Parenting: Moving into the Toddler World
By Claudia Mann, Chaffee County Montessori School

At 9 months of age, life with my baby felt magical, settled in and filled with loads of daily joys. His interactions with his world and everything in it were delightful. I now realize that as he was developing his relationship with an ever-widening circle of people, places, objects, and experiences, these relationships were shaping how he perceived and interacted throughout his life.

Through her scientific observations, Dr. Maria Montessori made amazing discoveries about human development, and, more importantly, conducted experiments that led to methods of supporting a child’s development smoothly through each transition. Many modern “best practices” can trace their roots to her scientific findings. It was Maria Montessori who first developed child-sized furniture: a revolutionary idea in the early 20th century!

But what has Dr. Montessori’s work to do with the experience of children before they begin formal education? Everything! She identified those commonly accepted practices that held back a growing baby’s development and encouraged parents to take an active role in providing an environment that would not only be safer for their child, but also be supporting their child’s physical, social and emotional development based on readiness at each progressing stage of growth.

The young toddler (12 to 18 months) exerts independence mostly visibly as s/he begins to walk. For parents, this signals a time when we can support the growing independence by modifying the environment to be MORE hands-on and less restrictive. By encouraging independence within carefully planned limits, your child’s “terrible two’s” may not be so terrible!

The following tips are for making your home child-friendly instead of child-proof. The benefit for your child will be increased independence and confidence in her ability to care for herself. And for you? Imagine a child’s room with toys and clothing in place all cared for at the hands of your child!

Bedroom: Keep clothing accessible in divided shelves or bins with picture labels for each item: socks, shirts, etc. Keep the choices few and simple, rotating with the seasons. Make sure clothing is easy to put on: pants with elastic waistbands, tops without buttons and shoes with Velcro. Use hooks to hang coats and sweaters. Include a hamper without a lid

Kitchen: Make a low shelf available with healthy snack foods that your child can access independently. For the youngest toddler, this could mean setting out each item in small open containers each morning, with your child’s help, of course! Have a low drawer or bin on the shelf that contains child-sized plates, cutlery, etc. avoiding plastic. Put stools by all sinks and label hot and cold water with red and blue rubber bands on faucet handles.

Bathroom: Offer a child-sized potty as soon as your child begins to walk. This does not mean intensive toilet training, but simply having potties available in easily accessible locations. Use stools here, too, and place towels and toothbrushes on hooks within easy reach.

Toys: Keep them to just a few at a time placed on a shelf so your child knows where they belong. Choose toys of natural materials that require manipulation. Avoid passive toys and those that contain lights and music as the young child’s brain cannot process more than one sensory experience at a time

Avoid interruptions when your child is focused. Even the most well-intentioned “hello” interrupts your child and teaches her to be distracted. Internal thoughts are at the root of creativity, self-discipline and positive attitudes toward learning and work. Enjoy watching from a distance.

Don’t say “I’m sorry”…just yet!

Who among us, who spends time with children, have not had the opportunity to mediate a disagreement or bear witness to the tears or accusations of the child who has been hurt by a friend? Our hearts naturally seem to go to a protective stance, ready to scold the hitter and comfort the “hittee.” Even young children, in observing the scene, rush to the defense of the crying child. For a moment, let’s consider the emotional experience of both children.

There’s been a problem that has finally come to blows. Both children are angry and likely feeling hurt. What happens to each of the children when the adult arrives on the scene? Perhaps the adult goes to the child who is crying and begins to comfort. Where does that leave the other child? What might she being interpreting about the adult’s perception? “I am bad,” “She doesn’t like me,” or “She thinks it’s all my fault.” Even a toddler, internalizing the message that one child is right while the other is wrong, can be left feeling defensive, afraid of being “in trouble”, or justified in her behavior.

And what about the child who is crying? The comforting adult may be giving a message that says “You are a victim and need someone to take care of you,” “You are a poor, helpless individual,” or “You have absolutely no responsibility in this.” This child may learn that she has no part in the problem, leaving her without any sense of power over her own experiences.

Perhaps you, as the adult, feel compelled to get an explanation from the children and then to pass judgment on what occurred. As a final solution, you might expect an apology to be uttered, right then and there. We’ve all heard the insincere, angrily whispered or even sarcastic “I’m sorry” at the end of such a problem and known that the problem wasn’t solved and will likely occur again. I’ve even witnessed the child who starts saying sorry as soon as I walk toward them, clearly trying to stave off a conversation, a discussion or a resolution to the conflict that lay beneath the anger and hurt.

So what might we do with these two children instead? The most important thing we adults must practice is awareness of and self-discipline in our own responses, trusting that if we can provide a safe place for BOTH children to experience their emotions, their inherent goodness will prevail and a genuine and sincere concern for each other will show itself…in time. One might simply walk to the scene and comfort both children at the same time, acknowledging the pain that each is experiencing. “You must be having powerful feelings to have come to blows,” is a comment that acknowledges that each child’s feelings are big and hard to control.

As the children begin to share their experiences, allow time for each to tell her side without your judgment, just listening. You might even suggest that the children not say sorry too quickly, encouraging them to wait until their feelings have subsided. You might coach them through the moment and encourage words such as “I’m still too angry to say I’m sorry right now. I hope I can soon.” Or “I really didn’t want to hurt you, but I’m too upset to say I’m sorry just yet.” This lets the children know that their feelings WILL eventually subside and that, with time, they will return to an equilibrium that will allow for sincerity.

I often find that when I allow the space for no apology, then a sincere apology comes very quickly. A child who knows her feelings are acceptable will not need to defend, justify or be afraid of them. As those intense feelings subside, you can see the child’s genuine sorrow for hitting or pushing because she recognizes the pain it has caused her friend. An adult, who encourages a child to wait to apologize until she can speak from her heart, helps the child discover her heart and helps her develop generosity of spirit and kindness towards others because she understands and accepts her own emotions. Acceptance is a powerful healer.

Throughout the listening the adult must sincerely assert that it is not okay to hit and it is not okay to be hit. All of this requires time and attention on the part of the adult; there must be a willingness to stay with the conflict until it is truly resolved, and, sometimes it can take what feels like a very long time. The layers of learned defensiveness can be hard to dissolve, but as you help each child to be responsible and accountable for ideas that will help to handle the strong feelings in the future, those walls will tumble right before your eyes. You will have accomplished much more than “I’m sorry,” for you will have helped the children accept themselves and each other, while giving them tools for conflict resolution that will last a lifetime.

For more information or to learn how you can provide a Montessori education for your child at home or in a qualified Montessori school, please call Claudia Mann at Chaffee County Montessori School: 719.539.4887. CCMS, located in Salida, is beginning its third year offering Montessori child care and educational programs for children ages 2 ½ through 10.