Beyond the Classroom: Montessori Extending Into Adulthood

Montessori: it’s not just for children. What was originally created as an educational model for preschoolers in Italy has expanded significantly over time. Today, more and more adults are noticing there is potential for application far beyond the Casa dei Bambini. Whether you’re interested in learning more for yourself, or learning more about how Montessori education is trickling into various parts of our society, plenty of interesting changes are happening around the globe.

Training and Degrees

It may surprise you to learn that many people first hear about Montessori education through the lens of being a Montessori parent. The more people discover about the method, the more they become curious about the model, and this leads to many seeking their own Montessori credentials and eventually becoming guides.

Have you thought about Montessori education for yourself? If so, there are a number of options.

To become a Montessori-credentialed guide, it’s important to enroll in a training program recognized by a major Montessori organization. Two of the most respected are AMI (Association Montessori Internationale) and AMS (American Montessori Society). To learn more about affiliated training programs, visit their sites directly:

About AMS-Affiliated Teacher Education Programs

AMI Teacher Training | Association Montessori Internationale

Are you more interested in higher education? There are a number of programs offering master’s degrees in Montessori Education, and many include online options. Here is a great list for exploring education options for adults.

Montessori in the Workplace

People all over the world are beginning to recognize that the general philosophy of Montessori is extremely applicable in the workplace. If a model works well, why can’t it be applied elsewhere? Montessori schools are effective. They create an atmosphere of joyful learners that contribute to their communities. What if we modeled our workplaces to reflect these successful classroom environments?

Digital marketing professional (and Montessori mom) Amanda Shelley has some thoughts on what effective modern workplaces look like. Perhaps unsurprisingly, she draws comparisons from the different types of schools available to our children. She shares these ideas in this article.

Sophie Bryan, another Montessori parent and award-winning HR consultant, advocates for bringing Montessori principles into the workplace in order to drive innovation and employee freedoms. She believes this benefits both employees and the organizations they work for. Bryan explains these ideas in her TEDx talk and gives her thoughts on how we might make changes in our workplaces.

Shelley and Bryan are just two of many leaders currently advocating for a shift toward more Montessori-inspired work environments for adults.

Montessori in Prisons

Brian Walsh leads education programs in two prisons in Washington State. He and his wife also own and operate a school together. This diverse experience led him to draw conclusions about the similarities between the two environments, and use those experiences to create innovative solutions.

In this TEDx Talk Walsh shares the ways in which education in prisons is a smart investment, but also how we can make it effective by implementing some of the same principles as we do in children’s Montessori schools. The whole video is compelling, but jump to minute 8:14 if you’re short on time.

What might we consider when developing educational programs for incarcerated individuals? How can we create safe and appropriate tools and environments, while giving students control of their learning? Walsh has found solutions to these questions, and has found them to be highly successful.

Montessori for People with Dementia

The application of Montessori principles to care for people with dementia is becoming more and more extensive.

There have been numerous studies and academic papers published indicating Montessori principles are effective when applied to dementia care.

AMI even has a division of their organization dedicated to this emerging branch of study.

If you are the caretaker of an individual experiencing dementia, considering basic Montessori principles will help make your life easier as well as giving the individual an increased sense of joy and independence. Strategies will naturally change depending on the development and stage of memory loss. Some thoughts:

• What needs are not being met in the environment? How might small changes create a sense of independence?

  • Label doors throughout the house with words written on index cards or sticky notes.

  • Lay out necessary items to complete a task: clean clothes to change into after a shower or items to put together and eat a simple no-cook breakfast.

• What are the individual’s interests? How might those be incorporated into the environment?

  • Leave out books and activities around the home for the person to notice and engage with. This might include puzzles, magazines, or even a broken alarm clock with simple tools to tinker with. If the person was creative earlier in life, leave out art supplies. If they loved music, make the songs they enjoyed available for them to listen to.

• What changes can be made to the home to create a built-in structure of safety? Are there simple ways to prevent potentially harmful situations? This is the application of ‘freedom within limits’. Once dementia progresses to a certain point, it’s not safe for a person to be completely independent. The key is to consider how to create an appropriate level of freedom.

What’s a Work Period? Your Questions Answered

“The mind takes some time to develop interest, to be set in motion, to get warmed up into a subject, to attain a state of profitable work. If at this time there is interruption, not only is a period of profitable work lost, but the interruption produces an unpleasant sensation which is identical to fatigue.”

— Dr. Maria Montessori, What You Should Know About Your Child

Consider, as an adult, what it takes for you to do your best work. What must your environment look like? What do you need from others? What constraints do you need to be removed in order to meet your goals?

Dr. Montessori spent years observing children as they played. She quickly recognized that immense learning takes place during play, leaving it reasonable to call it the child’s work. Left without interruptions, she witnessed pure magic.

Children, even very young children, have the capacity for intense concentration. They have the innate ability to work through problems and develop solutions all on their own. They want to do these things. And what’s even better? They do it with a sense of self-satisfaction, not because they feel pressure or expectation to.

What Montessori realized is that we, as adults, sometimes need to get out of kids’ way. We often imagine they require more help than they actually do, or that we must offer rewards or incentives to ensure they do their schoolwork, but those assumptions are misguided. What children really need is time, respect, and an environment in which they may focus deeply on their work.

Thus, the work period was born. Generally spanning about three hours long in the morning, this precious time is a cornerstone of Montessori education.

How does it begin?

The start of the work period varies, but typically it begins as children arrive in the morning. For some classes, on some days, and during some parts of the year, there may be a whole class morning meeting or circle time at the start or end of the work cycle.

A typical day begins with the child hanging their belongings on a designated hook, changing their shoes, and greeting their teacher as they walk into the room. They may say hello to a friend or two, take a moment to transition, and then select a work from the shelf. Others may be so eager to begin, they waste no time at all and go straight to the material they have been thinking about since the day before.

Prior to age six the child will likely work by themselves, but near their peers, most of the time. They may lay out a work rug, set up their material, and delve into a deeply concentrated state. They use the materials in the way they have been taught, then clean up and replace everything when they are done. 

As children older than six, due to their development and desire for social connection, the start of the day can be a bit noisier and more chaotic. They still get to work rather quickly, although it’s often in the form of group or partner work.

What do the adults do?

A Montessori classroom typically has two adults present: the guide and an assistant. The assistant busies themselves with ensuring the room stays neat and orderly and that everything the children need is available to them. If children need help or redirection, the assistant is quick to engage while still allowing the child to maintain an appropriate level of independence.

This allows the guide to focus on two main tasks: observation and presenting lessons. During the work period lessons are not given to the whole group; individuals or small groups of children work with the guide to learn or review skills and materials. This is done as unobtrusively as possible. Adults in a Montessori classroom do their best not to interrupt the work of a child. If they need to speak with a student, there is often a non-verbal structure in place, such as leaving a name tag beside the child as they are working. This alerts the child to check in with the guide whenever they complete the task they are focused on.

Do children really focus the entire time?

Not usually! Can any of us truly focus for three hours straight without breaks? We definitely don’t expect our students to, either. This is one of the reasons our environments are designed for students to meet their own needs independently, when the time is right for them. If they feel hungry, they are welcome to have a snack. If they need to use the restroom, they don’t need to ask permission. Even if they just need to get up and stretch their legs or look out a window - we do not prevent children from doing these things. Allowing for breaks lets us all focus better in the long run anyway.

There is one interesting phenomenon worth mentioning here. Sometime around 10:00-10:30 in the morning, toward the end of the work cycle, classroom communities often experience what we refer to as false fatigue. Like clockwork, the volume of the children’s voices will rise, there is noticeably less engagement with the materials, and fewer children are sitting in one place - rather they seem to be wandering around the room. The adult instinct is to ring a bell or clap and make a plea for re-engagement, but we have learned to hold back. False fatigue is a normal part of the flow of the day. If we pause, observe, and wait even two or three minutes, we will see the children find their way back into their work. It can be pretty amazing to observe.

What might one work period look like for an individual child?

This article has probably already given you a fairly good idea of what this might look like. Once the child completes their first work of the day, they begin another. This repeats for the duration of the morning, but is fractured by any number of other activities. The child will likely have a lesson or two with their guide while the rest of their classmates continue working independently. At some point, the child will get hungry, have a snack, and clean up after themselves. They may take several water breaks, socialize with friends, or even spend some time watching a squirrel climb a tree outside.

In short, the work period is a way to honor the child’s way to balance focused learning with meeting one’s own needs, on one’s own timetable. It’s a way to show the child we trust them, and our students absolutely rise to the occasion.

Curious to see what a morning work period looks like in action? We would love to have you visit. Reach out today to schedule a tour.

Plant Care: Practical Life Meets Science

Montessori students begin studying biology at a young age, usually around age three during their first year in the primary environment. This work continues throughout the course of their time with us. They explore information with more depth than you might imagine, so they end up with a strong base of understanding about living organisms.

Along with zoology, botany is one of the earliest subjects explored. We give our students lessons about plant life and there are supplemental materials on the shelves for them to explore. The learning doesn’t stop there. When it comes to biology, we believe having living examples present whenever possible is one of the best ways to spark genuine interest and increase understanding. Plants are one of the easiest ways to do this, and within our classrooms and throughout the building you will find many beautiful examples of this type of life.

It’s important to note that the plants we keep are not just for display and observation. Our students - even our very youngest students - take an active role in caring for the plants.

The Practical Life Angle

When we think of practical life, all that we teach generally falls under the umbrella of three categories: care of oneself, care of others, and care of the environment. The more we participate in this type of work, the more we realize how connected the categories are.

Plants are one of the best teachers of practical life skills. We keep living specimens in our classrooms intentionally - and for many good reasons. Studies have shown the presence of plants to have a positive effect on peoples’ moods, they are helpful in filtering the air, and they contribute to the natural beauty of our classroom environments.

But - rather than just letting a bunch of pretty plants sit there and be cared for by the teachers, we engage our students in the important work of plant care. The children in our classrooms learn how to properly water living plants. They learn to dust their leaves. They learn to recognize that some plants need more sunlight than others, and that it is up to us to ensure we place them in proximity to windows accordingly.

Beyond the potted plant, our students learn to appreciate the art of arranging flowers to beautify the classroom. They plant gardens, tend to their seedlings, and harvest their own vegetables. They take on a sense of responsibility for living things that are reliant on them. The original Montessori Erdkinder model for adolescents is based in part on students running their own active farm. This still happens in some schools, but others (where an actual farm is not practical or possible) find ways to engage similar types of experiences.

We believe teaching students how to care for plants has numerous benefits. Well-cared-for plants beautify the learning environment, bringing a sort of energized calm into the atmosphere. Plants are also a wonderful introduction into learning to care for something beyond yourself; they have the ability to teach both empathy and responsibility.

The Science Angle

Starting in Montessori primary classrooms and continuing on throughout their school career, our students study botany each year. The skills start simply and are often accompanied by gorgeous wooden puzzles, but our study of plants is always rooted (don’t mind the pun) in living examples.

The content covered is wide-ranging and often intertwines with other subject areas. Here is a general idea of the scope and sequence of our botany curriculum:

• Parts of… (a plant, a tree, a flower, a seed, etc.)

• Identification of various leaf shapes

• Evolution of plants on Earth

• Types of plants

• Plant reproduction

• Plant respiration

• Categories with the plant kingdom

• Botany experiments

• In-depth studies of types of plants and parts of plants

• Native and invasive species

• Plants’ roles with ecosystems

• Interactions between people and plants

• Plants’ roles in economies

There are opportunities throughout your child’s time at our school to engage in “research projects” about plants. Sometimes young children may choose to write or draw about what they’ve learned, while older children might take an interest in a particular species, looking up information and writing reports to be shared with classmates.

Exposure to botany beginning at such a young age, coupled with an understanding of how plant life has evolved over the course of Earth’s history, leads Montessori children to appreciate and understand more about this kingdom than many of their peers. They are encouraged to explore their own interests more as they get older, and it’s often amazing how many of them choose independent exploration of this particular subject.

Bringing It Home

Parents often ask us how they can support the Montessori curriculum in their own homes. While we do not advise families to purchase Montessori materials, as they can only be used correctly after receiving specific training, caring for plants in your home is a wonderful way to bring your child’s school experience into your home.

Start simply! This might even be just picking up a bouquet of flowers at the store, or gathering wildflowers near your home, then asking your child to show you how they learned to arrange them at school. Provide your child with a pair of scissors, a vase or two (or even just empty glass jars!), and access to a sink. If they are still learning, you might guide them in making sure they trim stems at an angle, and explain how this allows the cut flowers to absorb more water. Allow your child to display the flower arrangements inside your home.

If you’re ready for more, engage your child in the care of your existing houseplants, or perhaps purchase one or two for them to take charge of. Teach them to recognize that different types of plants have different light and watering needs. Remind them to mist or dust leaves occasionally, not only to make the plants look nice, but to help them be more efficient in their photosynthesis.

If you’re feeling really ambitious... spring will be here before you know it! January is a time when gardeners delight in huddling inside their warm homes, thumbing through seed catalogs and planning out what they will do during the upcoming seasons.

We hope this article has provided you with both helpful information and maybe a little bit of inspiration. As always, we would love to hear from you! If you have questions or want to see what this looks like in our schools, please reach out and let us know.

Life After Montessori

One of the most frequently asked questions parents have for Montessori schools, especially after their child has been enrolled for a year or two is:

How will my child transition into other schools once their Montessori career is complete?

Some families are just curious about what the transition is like. Others worry that their child won’t be prepared for “the real world”. Either way, we love this question, because our answer is straightforward and definitely puts parents’ minds at ease.

Staying the Course

First and foremost, we would like to emphasize that every year you give your child in a Montessori environment is a gift. We fully acknowledge the sacrifices our families make to ensure their children are able to experience this very special type of education. There is the obvious financial component, but we know parents often drive out of their way to get to our school. We know participating in our community sometimes means an extra time commitment. We know our parents spend quite a bit of time learning about their child’s education.

We are deeply grateful and recognize all your time and efforts.

We know that sometimes there are factors that make re-enrollment decisions difficult for families. That being said, we do want to express that the longer your child is able to stay in a Montessori environment, the stronger the benefits will be for them.

Most critical perhaps, is allowing a child to complete the cycle they are in. For example, some public school districts begin offering free education starting in kindergarten. If a child attends a Montessori primary program for the first and second year, but leaves before they have a chance to experience their third, they are unfortunately missing a very substantial benefit of the model. Our three-year cycles are intentional; the first year is about looking up to models and grazing new information, the second year is about practice (both in regard to academic skills and mentorship), and the third year gives children the opportunity to achieve academic skill mastery and serve as leaders for the younger children in the class.

Missing out on the kindergarten year is like cake without the icing.

The same goes for the other levels, where Montessori education is carefully structured to support the child through their specific developmental phases. They are respected and honored for who they are, their teachers are able to grow with them long-term, and they continue to experience a genuine joy of learning.

But What About Grades? Tests? Differently-Structured Learning Environments?

Since Montessori schools are structured so that children learn to focus on self-improvement and development, as well as fuel their motivation internally, things like grades and tests don’t make sense. Neither does having a teacher stand at the front of a class lecturing the same prescribed information to everyone at the same time.

When a student is college-aged and chooses their own course of study, it makes perfect sense to employ some of these strategies. The student is at a different developmental phase in their life, they have decided what they would like to focus their efforts on, and they have had sufficient time and practice to develop time management skills, internal motivation, and a strong sense of self.

As for the in-between time, when a student leaves a Montessori school and experiences another learning environment for the first time? Academically, they are typically very prepared. We often hear about our graduates feeling very comfortable with the content and rigor of their classes. Their experiences with our math materials, in particular, tend to resonate deeply as they engage in higher-level courses. As for other areas of study, our students tend to have strong reading skills, solid understanding of effective research strategies, and a general delight and excitement for learning about science and the world (and universe) around them. These attributes make for a smooth academic transition.

“As we head into Semester Two [in high school], it has become so evident that his time at HMS has put him into position to deal with whatever comes his way. Academically, socially and in virtually every aspect of his teenage life, the toolkit that was forged at HMS has provided him with such confidence and poise. We are so grateful for the dedication and commitment of the entire HMS community. What you are cultivating is truly extraordinary.”

— Parent of an Upper School Graduate

How Do Montessori Alumni Fare Socially?

Moving into any new school environment presents a transitionary period for all children. What we typically hear from most families as their child settles in elsewhere:

• The child notices differences in the way people behave in different settings.

• The child, who has a firmly-developed sense of who they are, is able to find a friend group that is supportive and like-minded.

• The child has a deep sense of empathy, which helps them navigate their way through this different environment.

• After a bit of time, Montessori alumni often tend toward leadership and mentoring roles in their new schools.

• The child becomes an active member in the new school community, taking advantage of experiences, classes, or clubs that speak to their personal interests.

Are There Long-Term Benefits?

The types of skills Montessori children gain are exactly the types of skills that set one up for a life of success. They are passionate about their work. They treat others with fairness and kindness. They care about the connections in their communities. They are independent thinkers who are capable of sorting through the information we are all bombarded with on a daily basis.

In fact, some of the most well-known and influential people in the world credit their Montessori education for their success. You’ve likely seen lists and read about many of these folks already, but if you haven’t you can here, here, and here...among so many others. 

We know our families are dedicated to Montessori education, but it’s only natural to wonder, “What’s next?”. Hopefully we have shed a little light on the subject, but if you still have questions, as always, we encourage you to reach out. We love talking to our families and are always here to learn along with you.

“We couldn’t be happier with our choice to enroll our daughters at Hollis Montessori. In addition to a very solid academic preparation, they learned how to be independent, organized, the value of friendships, a love for the outdoors, and a desire to contribute to the greater good. Now they are thriving in college and graduate school. We feel that Montessori gave them an incredible foundation for their lives.
”

— Parent of Upper School Graduates

What is Montessori? 5 Main Points

Pretty much anyone reading this article knows the answer to that question is not a simple one.

Are you new to Montessori? Have you found that anytime you ask the question you are amazed by the utter depth of the answers?

Have you had a child enrolled in Montessori for several years? Do people ask you to describe it and you find yourself unable to summarize it into a brief conversation?

You’re not alone. It’s challenging to squeeze an entire philosophy into a five-minute conversation.

Today, we’re giving it a try anyway, with what we feel are five main points that summarize the essence of Montessori education.

Montessori considers human development and aims to meet people where they are.

Human development lies at the core of Montessori. Dr. Montessori spent years observing children and their behaviors, noted their individuality and variety, then categorized and summarized typical growth patterns. She called these the planes of development, and they span across the first 24 years of life.

Does everyone develop at different rates? Of course. Are there patterns that are seen in the development of most children? Absolutely. By developing a deep understanding of human development Montessori was able to create an entire educational system that honored children’s needs at different times in their lives. From the age groupings to the materials used, the physical environment and the very manner in which lessons are presented: everything is intentional. Everything is about meeting the child where they are in order to best support their needs. 

Instead of delivering standardized information, Montessori hopes to guide students as they travel their path themselves.

You will never see a Montessori guide standing at a chalkboard at the front of a classroom lecturing students sitting in rows of desks.

In fact, you’ll never see a Montessori guide lecturing at all.

Is there a Montessori curriculum? Absolutely. Do modern Montessori schools take the time to ensure the curriculum continues to cover skills necessary for today’s students? They sure do. The major differences lie in the delivery of this curriculum.

Our youngest students (0-6) are taught almost exclusively via individual lessons. They each progress at their own pace, and while they are all working their way through the same materials and lessons, they don’t have the pressure of doing that at the same time as their peers. They also have the benefit of leaning into areas that interest them more deeply.

As our students get older, they do receive more group lessons, although the main driving factor for this approach is the older child’s need for peer connection. They still get to move at their individual pace, and they still get to explore areas that they feel particularly connected to.

Education should never be one-size-fits-all or even fits most. Our guides understand the importance of mastering critical skills, but they also know that there cannot be a forced timeline when it comes to getting the job done.

Independence, from the start, leads to confidence and excellence.

That subheading really says it all. Infants in Montessori programs are allowed and encouraged to move freely; they aren’t confined to cribs but rather lie safely on floor beds. Toddlers learn to dress themselves, take an active role in their toileting progress, and begin to learn how to care for their environment. The gradual release of independence continues through adolescence, with Montessori teens learning to run their own businesses.

We believe in the capabilities of young people. We honor and respect their abilities to do things by and for themselves. We support them as they work toward independence, and the results are astounding.

When you are trusted to be independent, you feel respected and confident. That sense of confidence builds on itself with each experience and develops children into adults who are not afraid to take appropriate risks because they know that they can achieve what they set out to do.

Social interactions are a critical part of our growth, and social learning deserves as much attention as academics.

‘Educating the whole child’ is a phrase that gets thrown around a lot. It’s an admirable goal - critical, even. The problem is, most modern educational systems don’t actually support teachers in achieving this goal.

Montessori does. We know that’s a bold claim. We wouldn’t make it if we didn’t believe it was absolutely true.

When educators or families transition from a conventional school to a Montessori school, one of the most stark differences is that of the daily schedule. Montessori school days are not rigid or organized by subject matter. They have long blocks of time that are flexible and able to be used for all kinds of learning. Sometimes this means a child spends an hour working on large multiplication problems. Other times it means they sit with a friend and a teacher and talk about mediation skills.

Social learning is not taught in isolation in our classrooms; it’s an underlying theme that runs throughout. We have the benefit of being able to truly teach in the moment, so when conflict arises, it can be approached as a learning opportunity.

Society stands to benefit from a system of education that teaches students about the universe as a whole, as well as the interconnectedness of everything on Earth.

The Montessori curriculum was very intentionally created to nurture compassionate and active community citizens. When we teach children, our goal isn’t to prepare them for the workforce (although we do that as well). Our goal is to prepare them for life.

We teach our students about the universe, about how life has changed on Earth over time, about how each individual organism plays a part in the delicate balance of our ecosystems. We teach children about the ancient history of early humans, with a focus on how they developed skills like writing and systems of mathematics. This appeals to their own development of the same skills, and gives them a reverence for the people who came before them. It also allows them to feel a deeper sense of where they fit into the big picture.

To close, we will leave you with one of our favorite quotes by Dr. Maria Montessori herself. This idea is one that drives us to do what we do each day, and a hope we know we share with all of you.

“The child is both a hope and a promise for mankind.”

— Dr. Maria Montessori

Developing Fine Motor Skills

Developing fine motor skills is critical for everyday activities. There are many ways to help children along this process, and Montessori classrooms have specifically designed materials that are intended to strengthen the small muscles in the hands and wrists. The strengthening of these muscles allows us to make more precise movements and perform detailed tasks, as opposed to the large muscles required for gross motor activities like jumping and walking.

While fine motor development is supported at various levels in Montessori environments, we can observe the bulk of this work occurring during the primary years, when a child is between the ages of 3 and 6. Three areas of the classroom play particularly important roles: the sensorial, practical life, and language work. In this article we highlight some of the ways Montessori materials in these areas help children strengthen their hand and wrist muscles. Interestingly, these materials have other purposes as well, teaching a wide range of skills.

Sensorial Materials

The Pink Tower

A series of pink cubes are meant to be stacked vertically from largest to smallest, with the top block measuring 1cm cubed. Using this material requires a child to use their focus and carefully balance each block, using precise movements as the blocks get smaller.

Knobbed Cylinders

Wooden cylinders of varying sizes fit into a block designed for this purpose. Each cylinder has a tiny knob for children to hold onto, and there is only one way to fit the cylinders correctly. In addition to developing fine motor skills and their pincer grip, this is one of many materials that aid in developing visual discrimination.

Mystery Bags

A small cloth bag containing tiny objects and miniatures, a child is meant to feel inside, hold the objects, and determine what they are without seeing them.

Practical Life Materials

Clothespins

Montessori students learn to wash clothes or linens used in the classroom. One step in the process is, of course, hanging the cloth to dry using clothespins.

Spray Bottles

Spray bottles are used for a variety of practical life activities in the classroom, including window washing and plant care. The repeated action of squeezing the trigger on the bottle is great for strengthening hand muscles.

Crumbers and Dustpans/Brushes

Again, with a focus on precision and careful use, there are several practical life materials used for cleaning up the classroom that are also fantastic fine motor tools. Dustpans and brushes are used for cleaning up messes on the floor, while crumbers are similar sets meant for picking up on the surface of a table - after eating but before washing the table.

Cooking Utensils

A major part of Montessori practical life work is food preparation. There are countless kitchen tools that are used in this learning, and so many of them require the development of fine motor skills. Just a few of these include: vegetable peelers, knives for chopping, apple slicers, whisks, and spatulas.

Dressing Frames

One of the most direct fine motor materials, the dressing frames teach children to fasten clothing in a variety of ways. A wood frame with two cloth panels is attached in the center; children practice lacing, buttoning, buckling, snapping, zipping, pinning, and more.

Language

Sandpaper Letters

Perhaps one of the most famous Montessori materials, the sandpaper letters are small wooden tiles with textured letters in the surface. Indirect preparation for handwriting and reading, children use their index finger to trace the shape of the letter while saying the sound it makes aloud.

Moveable Alphabet

When learning how to write, children are ready to share their ideas before they are ready to grip a pencil. The moveable alphabet is a set of tiny wooden letters that children lay out on a work rug to spell words, phrases, and sentences. Organizing these small letters takes plenty of hand control.

Metal Insets

Another material that is meant to indirectly prepare the child for handwriting, The metal insets are like a stencil that children are meant to use colored pencils and trace, create lined patterns within, and follow a series of directions to recreate the shapes on paper. This is often a child’s first real experience with learning how to hold a pencil properly, and aids in developing the critical pincer grasp. Some Montessori environments even provide triangle-shaped pencils to aid in this process.

Bonus: Pin Punch

A small wooden or plastic stylus with a sharp metal tip is used to make perforations. Children will often trace a shape onto a piece of construction paper, place the paper onto a specific soft surface, and use the pin punch tool to make a series of holes along the drawn line. If they take their time and do this correctly, they are able to punch out their shape upon completion.

Want to learn more? Curious to discover ways you can support your child’s fine motor growth at home? We welcome questions and love to talk about children’s development. Contact us today.