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There are many math resources available online and in bookstores. So where do you start when you want to learn more about fresh approaches to providing mathematics support to a student?
A quick search on You Tube, for example, will yield all kinds of math topics. Watching a video is a fresh way to review basic math principles. You can also search by topic.
A recently launched series of articles about why math matters (published in the Vancouver Sun) is a good place to start when considering mathematics and how students and parents can approach the topic.
Dr. Gupta (the author of most of the articles) suggests the following:
Websites
Math.com
Coolmath.com
Mathplayground.com
Games
Set (online version)
Set Daily Puzzle
Set Card Game
Sudoku
Minesweeper
Lemmings
Books
The Colossal Book of Mathematics
The Colossal Book of Short Puzzles and Problems
Great Book of Math Puzzles
Further to Dr. Gupta’s suggestions, if you’re interested in how math is taught in Singapore, you can order these books online.
If you struggled with mathematics in school, the hardest challenge will be to face math with a fresh attitude. Enthusiastic support from math lovers such as Dr. Gupta is always a good support.
Information about articles attitudes towards mathematics
Ken Ken (A new numerical math puzzle from Japan)
Girlstart.com (Girlstart is a non-profit organization created to empower girls to excel in math, science, and technology.)
Math Book Helps Girls Embrace Their Inner Mathematician
Math Doesn’t Suck: How to Survive Middle-School Math and not Break a Nail
Image source“The importance of a child’s infant and toddler years cannot be overstated, for this is when the development of the personality occurs. Today, care of young children is increasing provided by people other than parents. These infants and toddler specialists need to be aware, knowledgeable, and qualified so that children will develop the skills, strengths, and support systems they need to create the foundations of the adults they will become; and the kind of world they create tomorrow.” – Virginia Vargus, CMTE NY, AMS Master Teacher Trainer
If you live in Vancouver, British Columbia, and you’re interested to work in a daycare for children from birth to three years old, you will want to know about the Montessori Infant Toddler’s training course being offered by the AMI Training Centre in British Columbia. For one time only (or at least in the foreseeable future), this course will be offered from 2009 to 2010.
The centre’s brochure provides more information about this exciting programme.
I have had a chance to visit three infants centres in Japan. (See reference to the Takane nursery under NAMTA DVD/Videos.) They are beautiful places and offer inspiration to professionals currently working in non-Montessori daycare centres. There is still much to learn and much information to share in relation to the early years!
A Mother’s Perspective
Information about the Montessori Infant Toddler programme and ideas about the birth to three years can be hard to access. A writer on a Montessori topic blog has provided her observations about this programme based on her training and experience raising her own children.
Commentary on Chapter 11 of Dr. Sylvana Montanaro’s book “Understanding the Human Being”
The Stage 2 Child (one to four months)
The Stage 3 Montessori Environment (The first few months and how a home environment is set up based on Montessori principles.)
The Stage 4 Child (Age eight to 12 months) Further notes re stage 4
The Stage 5 Child (12 to 18 months) and further notes and more notes
The Stage 6 Child (18 to 24 months)
The 2 to 3 Year old Child
*****
Other Resources
*Infant Toddler Training
If you cannot attend a longer, full-time programme, consider the North American Montessori Centre’s distance education programme.
* Creating a Montessori Home Environment
The Prepared Montessori Environment
Simple Montessori material for the infant toddler
Simple Montessori material – part 2
Simple Montessori material – part 3
Age Appropriate Toys (Birth to three years)
Montessori Floor Bed and More notes
Montessori Hanging Toys (From Pink House at Etsy)
More Montessori results from Etsy (some of which may inspire you to make your own items)
The famous Michael Olaf catalogue: Montessori for birth to three: The Joyful Child (includes numerous articles about the zero to three years (PDF versions).
* DVDs/Videos from NAMTA (See description below)*
In a Montessori Home: A Parent’s Guide to Preparing the Home for Children Birth to Three
Three families introduce how the Montessori philosophy is in practice in their home. The DVD covers the preparation of the home from birth to three years and describes the four main areas to be prepared in a home: sleeping, dressing, eating, and playing. As you meet Alexis (4 months), you learn how her parents have prepared her home to maximize movement opportunities and create interest at her level. Ian (7 months) is home with his father, where he is beginning to eat solid food and seeks out the different areas of the house prepared with his exploration in mind. Oliver (15 months) and his older brother, Edison (3 years), introduce you to their shared room and how they participate in family life. Learn how these families have embraced Montessori principles in their daily lives and see practical ways to incorporate these same principles into your life. (2008; 17 minutes).
A companion book by AMI Assistant to Infancy Sarah Moudry (full color, 36 pages, 11 x 8.5 inches) is also available.
| Montessori Under ThreeAn introduction to the Montessori infant program chronicles early infancy, the parent-infant class, and scenes of the infant-toddler community. (1987; 24 minutes) |
|
 Edison’s Day
“Help me to do it by myself!” Every event in the day offers 20-month-old Edison an opportunity to live naturally, to discover the everyday tasks and activities of life in the home. Getting up in the morning, eating breakfast, going to school, having friends over, going out in nature, helping around the house, preparing dinner-Edison blossoms with his myriad of joyfully accepted responsibilities. The message is gentle; the accomplished level of what Edison can do is understated and unthreatening to parents who are thinking about children participating in the home for the first time. (2006; 29 minutes) |
Japanese children are depicted in prepared environments demonstrating the fullest potential of infant-toddler communities. This video makes an excellent parent education film as well as a
* Other Videos*
Bringing Out the Brilliance In Your Infant – Home Tools
“In the Beginning: The First Years of Montessori” is an American Montessori Society program for parents. The full programme is available from www.edvid.com.
* Weblogs
My Montessori House blog (covering Montessori at home and the Infant Toddler to Primary years).
Montessori Mama (Montessori education information from a Montessori teacher and Mom.)
* Helping the Developing World the Montessori Way
Montessori Around the World (Montessori programs around the world serving children in need with available resources)
* Books *
Montessori from the Start: The Child at Home from Birth to Age Three
From sleeping to eating, personal care to playing, this book helps with suggestions on how to implement Montessori in the home from the start.
How to Raise An Amazing Child the Montessori Way
Practical ways to incorporate Montessori methods in the home.
Link to complete content of “The Montessori Method” by Maria Montessori
Awakening Your Toddler’s Love of Learning
Infant Toddler Books available from the Montessori Foundation
When Will Wright took the time to explain the significance of his childhood experiences attending a Montessori school, I gave him my full attention. Wright and his colleagues have developed Spore, an evolution video game that enables the player to interact with an entire world and experience the universe. The player can control planetary atmospheric temperature and pressure and can see the results of her actions sped up over time. Wright explains that he created the game so that children (and their adult friends!) can “compress long term dynamics into short term experiences”. Spore has been described as “Pacman, Sim City, Risk, and Star Trek rolled into one mass multi-player game, with intricately modeled biological, ecological, and social phenomenons.”
Will Wright has created a style of computer gaming unlike any that came before, emphasizing learning more than losing, invention more than sport. With his hit game SimCity, he spurred players to make predictions, take risks, and sometimes fail miserably, as they built their own virtual urban worlds. With his follow-up hit, The Sims, he encouraged the same creativity toward building a household, all the while preserving the addictive fun of ordinary video games. His next game, Spore, which he previewed at TED 2007, evolves an entire universe from a single-celled creature.
While watching a documentary on the Peto Institute and their approach to working with children who have cerebral palsy, it occurred to me that it would be exciting to operate an early childhood centre equipped with both Peto learning equipment and an ECE programme such as Montessori or Reggio Emilia.
This type of education – called conductive education – is available in Canada; however, specialists must be flown in from other parts of the world.
Full CBS article
Another link for the Peto Institute
First photo source
Second photo source
(Short video featuring Montessori infant programme)
The Montessori educator’s community has, over the years, developed a strong programme for children from age 2 to 3 months to 2 years. These infant programmes offer inspiration to professionals working with infants. They are warm and beautiful environments staffed by caring and well trained professions.
The Montessori infant toddler programme is divided into two stages. The first programme caters to children up until about 14 months (when the child is walking well) and is called Nido (Nest). Nest programmes accommodate up to 9 children and have an adult/child ratio of 1 – 3. The second Infant Community programme runs until the child is age 2 1/2 and progresses to the Montessori Primary programme.
An group of Infant Toddler centres in Yokohama, Japan is a fine example of the quality of the programme and possibilities for the physical environment that can be provided. One of these centres was developed with the cooperation of the local government. Local families enter a lottery so that their child can attend the centre. The interior is purpose built with a tatami area for sleeping; special Montessori equipment; child sized furniture; and, Japanese inspired Montessori infant exercises. The landscaping of the centre includes a beautiful pond and gardens for the children to explore.
The Association Montessori Internationale, Holland (AMI)lists the following components for the training programme taken by professionals working in an Infant setting from birth to three years:
- Anatomy and Physiology.
- Obstetrics: Prenatal, birth, and postnatal development.
- Nutrition and Hygiene: Maternal care, digestive system, food preparation, and health issues.
- Child Neuropsychiatry: The Nervous System and normal psychological development.
- Development of Movement and Development of Language.
- Environment: Preparation of the home and Infant Community as an aid to human development within the first three years of life.
- Music, Art, and Spiritual Development.
- Observations: practical training for observation of children in maternity hospitals, homes and infant communities.
- Material Making: Hand made materials.
- Practicum: Work in an infant community evaluated by a course staff member.
- Preparation of reference albums and curriculum albums.
It can be difficult to access AMI training centres locally. The AMI believe that it is important for trainees to have face-to-face and hands on experience. Therefore the AMI does not support distance learning programmes.
The AMI following centres offer the Infants training programme:
Australia Australian Montessori Teacher Education Foundation West Lindfield Australia Assistant to Infancy
Japan Montessori Institute of Tokyo, location Osaka, c/o Shuji Matsumoto Osaka Japan Assistant to Infancy
Montessori Institute of Tokyo, location Yokohama Yokohama-shi, Kanagawa-ken Japan Assistant to Infancy
Mexico Instituto Montessori de Mexico A.C. c/o Mrs. S. Carbone-Singh D.F. Mexico Mexico Assistant to Infancy
Instituto Internacional Montessori Mexico Assistant to Infancy
P.R. China International Training Center of Montessori Education of China Hangzhou Zhejiang Province P.R. China Assistant to Infancy
Sweden Maria Montessori Institutet Lidingö Sweden Assistant to Infancy
East USA Montessori Institute of Atlanta Atlanta GA USA Assistant to Infancy
Mid USA The Montessori Institute of North Texas (MINT) Dallas TX USA Assistant to Infancy
West USA Montessori Institute Northwest Portland OR USA Assistant to Infancy
The Montessori Institute Denver CO USA Assistant to Infancy
The North American Montessori Teacher’s Association (NAMTA) provides general information about infant programmes.
Both the North American Montessori Center and the Montessori Centre International provide distance learning programmes focussed on the infant years.
Subject: Education / Montessori / Carl Jung
When looking for information about Montessori education, it is helpful to start with the established organizations in this field. Some of them have been promoting Montessori’s educational philosophy for almost 100 years!
What is Montessori? This video provides an informative overview of Montessori education.
