The Fourth Great Lesson in Montessori education narrates humanity's transition from oral to written communication through three vignettes. From the first cave paintings to cuneiform. This foundational story connects with children, aiding them in understanding language's evolution and its role in human progress, setting the stage for subsequent lessons in the Montessori Elementary curriculum.
This bundle is everything you need to teach the Fourth Great Story (The Coming of Language)It includesPowerpoint and ScriptKey Vocabulary wordsChoice boards...
Today I told the boys "The Story of Communication in Signs" sometimes called "The Story of Writing," "The Story of the Coming of Writing," "The History of Writing," or something else I can't think of at the moment. I keep all of our materials for this story in one of our nifty drawers in our blue hardware cabinet. This is some of what you'll find in the drawer. You'll see that I have not one but two bound booklets labeled "The Story of Writing." I tell this story to my kids twice. The first day I tell the story and show the charts given on the Moteaco website (the contents of one of the booklets). The second day I tell the story and show the charts from the Keys of the Universe album (the other booklet). I find the Moteaco charts illustrate the progression of picture writing pretty clearly and the charts are very simple and easy to understand. The KotU charts are a little more detailed and are fun as a "second layer." The story I tell itself is a combination of the two. The stories are very similar to one another. The KotU story is more beautifully written but the Moteaco presentation does a better job of indicating when and how to use the charts. I tell a Frankenstein-blend of the two and add a few of the sentences to better connect "The Story of Writing" to the story of the Tower at Babel. The Tower of Babel ties the "Story of Writing" back into the story of human history and the seven major events in the timeline of man we used along with our Third Great Lesson. Instead of teaching the boys that learning to talk and write was something that cavemen did over millennia, I teach them that these are things that nearly everyone had to learn to do in the wake of the events at the Tower of Babel. Here is a fun read to go along with that: How was Moses able to read pre-Tower of Babel Texts? (More on religion and the Great Lessons here.) Getting back to the above photo and the contents of our "History of Language" drawer, below is a photo of just one of the Moteaco charts as bound in our booklet: And below is a photo of one of the KotU charts in its booklet: Some of the other resources are intended for further work into development of alphabets. The booklet labeled "History of Language: Nomenclature" is full of charts from the Mid-America Language album (see example below). They show the development of a single letter over time. The album suggests that they be printed as cards and used along with the BC/AD timeline. Another of the booklets contains charts that are also from the Mid-America album showing single letters and full alphabets (Irish Miniscule, Gothic, Hebrew, Thai, Russian, Greek, Roman, Phoenician, Arabic, Chines, Tuareq, Hieratic) When we came to the part in the story regarding papyrus and Egyptian hieroglyphics I had few artifacts I could pull out. My husband took a trip to Greece, Egypt, and Israel in 2000. He returned with many souvenirs, but one of the papyrus sure came in handy today. He also brought ME a very special gift. At the time we had been dating for about six years. When he returned he called right away to see me and said he brought me some souvenirs. When I opened the first package and saw the t-shirt I briefly had one of those "my boyfriend travels abroad and all I got was a stinkin' t-shirt" moments. He also brought me a necklace with hieroglyphics on it: I assumed it was my name, but when I tried to translate it with the shirt (not quite how these hieroglyphics are supposed to work, but never mind) it just wasn't working out and I realized that the necklace spells "MARRY ME." He must have been sure I would say "yes" because he also stuck a slip of paper with a prayer on it for "our long and happy marriage" into the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem which I can only imagine has since been collected and buried in the Mount of Olives. The boys didn't know this story until today. I reminded them about Daddy's trip and let them translate the necklace themselves. They were pretty tickled and I think they'll remember the lesson. Also in our "History of Language" drawer are two- and three-part cards from ETC Montessori. I'm pretty mad at myself because intended to make the two-part cards into a control booklet for the three-part cards. However, I laminated them and forgot to stack the images and definitions back-to-back. It will be too thick to comb-bind this way. Perhaps I'll turn it into an accordion book instead. At any rate, Me Too found them attractive as is: Kal-El was inspired and too busy for cards. He was off digging through the encyclopedias looking for the Korean alphabet. He says that Korean is one of the languages he plans to learn in his life. He wasn't happy with what he found in the encyclopedia and asked me to print him an alphabet for Korean like the other alphabets in the alphabet booklet. He spent the rest of the day practicing writing syllabic blocks on squared paper. Me Too was captivated by the Maritime Flag Alphabet on one of the ETC Montessori cards. He asked me to print him one, frame it, and hang it in his room. I printed one, laminated it, and told him to use it as he wished. He studied it for a long time and then wrote me a secret message (it said, "I love you," sort of). Today's lesson reminded the boys of some books we have upstairs in our "home research library" and they announced their intention to bring those downstairs tomorrow. We have (and I can recommend): 26 Letters by Oscar Ogg The Story of Writing by Carol Donoughue The History of Making Books: From Clay Tablets, Papyrus Rolls, and Illuminated Manuscripts to the Printing Press Revisiting these should segue nicely into making paper, exploring other kinds of writing, etc.,
The Montessori Great Stories each have a different main theme that help start discussion, learning and create connection with the community the child lives in. They are a centre point of Cosmic Education in Montessori 6-12. They help children answer spiritual questions like -Who am I? -What is my role in the world? -W
The Fourth Great Lesson in Montessori education narrates humanity's transition from oral to written communication through three vignettes. From the first cave paintings to cuneiform. This foundational story connects with children, aiding them in understanding language's evolution and its role in human progress, setting the stage for subsequent lessons in the Montessori Elementary curriculum.
Montessori Fourth Great Lesson Materials & Follow-Up Family Unit. History of Language, Indigenous Language, Word Study, Maps, Ecology, & more
🍨🧁This adorable ice cream and cupcake building felt board set is such a sweet little quiet activity toy for your little cupcakes, keeping them busy and engaged in screen-free, imaginative play. Preschool and kindergarten kids will love this deliciously fun and open-ended activity, at home and on the go! 📏These dessert pieces are sized just right for little hands, and are designed to fit as a group and be played with on a Flannel Board Fun 12 x 18" Play Mat, as pictured. The pieces range from around .75" cherries to 3" cones--until you start piling the scoops on ;) This is such a unique and useful gift for young fans of ice cream, cupcakes, baking, and all things sprinkle-covered! This is a DIY Set…Put it Together. Take it Apart. 95% of the pieces are loose parts! Children ages 3 to 7+ love assembling and reassembling the ice cream cones and cupcakes, adding sprinkles, cherries and whipped cream at will! (You might be just a little amazed at the sorting, counting, color naming and other math skills that occur naturally as your children play with this set. Giggling and pretend Ice cream headaches are sure to make an appearance, too!) ❣️You've got three options from the drop-down box: Pieces w/ Play Mat Pieces w/ Envelope Just the Pieces Please refer to the photos for all the important play and storage details! 📏Details------------------------ ~Colors of buttons, handles and loops on play mat will vary. ~It's not just cute--it's handmade by a teacher. I carefully design, cut and assemble my felt goodies with kids in mind. ~Colors may vary from what is shown, but the overall look and feel of the set will remain the same. ❤️Oh, Look! You Might Like This, Too -------------------- ~Flowers! https://www.etsy.com/flannelboardfun/listing/389917662/felt-board-flower-and-garden-quiet ~Play Mat details here: https://www.etsy.com/flannelboardfun/listing/553052366/felt-board-play-mat-gift-for-kid-quiet ~Find all my kids sets here: https://www.etsy.com/shop/FlannelBoardFun?ref=seller-platform-mcnav§ion_id=21859059 📦Shipping and Packaging-------------------------------- ~Each item you order is carefully prepared & packaged to arrive safely and quickly, so kids can dig in right away! ~The time it takes to make your felt goodies is 1-5 business days. ~Once created, items are shipped with USPS First Class (or choose a Priority upgrade from the dropdown box.) 🎁Freebie----------------------------- ~Get 17 FREE Song Strips and Lyric Cards to keep your little ones moving. Copy and paste this little link: bit.ly/SongStripsFBF 👋More------------------------------- ~Any questions? I'm really nice. Please feel free to contact me: https://www.etsy.com/messages/new?with_id=92732721 ~Desktop users: Scroll ALL the way down to the bottom of this page for my SHOP POLICIES and FAQs -->> https://www.etsy.com/shop/FlannelBoardFun ~App users, visit the Policies tab on this page for FAQs and policies: https://www.etsy.com/shop/FlannelBoardFun
Today I told the boys "The Story of Communication in Signs" sometimes called "The Story of Writing," "The Story of the Coming of Writin...
These affixes are organized in 25 units (2-4 affixes per unit); these units correspond to the units in All About Affixes Practice Printables. You do not need to have the Practice Printables to use these sketch notes, but if you are looking for more structured word work for your students, you can learn more about it HERE.
A snapshot of our week, our everyday story ….. If you feel inspired to share a moment from your week please leave a comment with your link below or pop over to Instragram and use the hashtag #p52th…
PEACE STARTS AT HOME Homeschooling the Montessori way
Familiar fruits provide a real-world tool for introducing parts of a whole (early fractions). Set of 4 represents 1 whole, 1/2 , 1/3 and 1/4 . Embedded magnets hold color-coded pieces together. We're Learning Resources, and we've been helping parents and teachers build generations of amazing kids since 1984. From ABCs and 123s to fine motor and STEM skills, our educational toys offer kids the building blocks they need to succeed in school and develop a lifelong love of learning. Discover countless ways to learn through play with our award-winning products, including Toy of the Year winners Tumble Trax, Botley the Coding Robot, and Coding Critters.
Perfect for home. or school these follow up tasks allow your learners to explore aspects of the Montessori Fourth Great Story based on their needs and interests. Students choose activities they want to do from the provided grid. 18 different activities including: Collage Develop a collage (mix of drawing and art) that represents the Fourth Great Story If these are the answers what could the questions be? A) Cuneiform B) Temple Wall C) Alphabet D) Papyrus E) Hieroglyphics HOW TO USE THESE After the Great Story present the choice board. You might want to ask the child to complete a set number of tasks of their choice or 3 different types of tasks. Please see my other listings for choice boards for each Great Story. First Great Story Choice Board Second Great Story Choice Board Third Great Story Choice Board Fourth Great Story Choice Board Fifth Great Story Choice Board
The 8pc Owls Felt Set for Flannel Board includes 5 owls with large googly eyes, 1 long branch, 1 sun and 1 moon plus “Five Sleepy Owls” learning song. Practice counting and ordinal numbers with toddlers and preschoolers, day versus night and nocturnal animals. Use with other classic owl songs like “5 Hoot Owls” and more! This set is an ideal teaching resource for homeschool, preschools, daycare, Montessori or teaching PK-Kindergarten remotely. Made with Premium Eco Fi Felt, these Owls are made to be played with and handled over and over again. Photos and video taken on a 16"x20" flannel board, not included. All sets and songs are written, designed and handmade by me! Set is packaged in a resealable zip top bag for easy storage! 8 pc Five Owls Felt Set includes: - 5 Owls with 1 inch googly eyes approx 4.25 inches tall each (combination of tan and light grey) - 1 long branch (18 inches to fit all 5 owls!) - 1 Sun (4.5 inches) - 1 Crescent moon (5 inches) - Felt numbers 1-5 (color may vary from photo) - Song sheet: "Five Sleepy Owls" Five Sleepy Owls Written by Jasmine Kallenberg, The Flannel Librarian Tune: Five Little Pumpkins Five sleepy owls sitting in a line The first owl says, “Whooo knows the time?” The second owl says, “I’m starting to yawn.” The third owl says, “It’s getting close to dawn.” The fourth owl says, “I don’t want to go to bed.” The fifth owl says, “Let’s just play instead!” Then up comes the sun And down goes the night And the five sleepy owls Close their eyes. Watch songs and find more ways to use this set at: YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEuDXi_N2kdwQbcNvko3AMA? WEBSITE: https://www.theflannellibrarian.com PINTEREST: https://www.pinterest.com/theflannellibrarian/ INSTAGRAM: @theflannellibrarian
Teaching summarizing? Try using story element examples. When kids learn to pick them out, writing a summary is easy.
Is Cosmic Education a bit weird? What does it have to do with Montessori education? Cosmic education is the centre of Montessori 6-12 education. A really simple definition of it would be an approach to education that helps students grow an awareness that everything in the universe is connected and interdependent so t
Today I'm sharing one of my favourite tasks for building community in the classroom. Students are able to share an important aspect of themselves (the story of their name) with the class and with me, their teacher. Through this task we are also working on important skills, like reading comprehension, writing, and reflection. Day 1 To begin, I asked my students to write any name they wish they had on a sticky note. They then placed it in a mason jar. I read my class the story "The Name Jar" by Yansook Choi. We stopped at several points in the story to predict, make connections, infer, and ask questions. At one point, we paused in the story so that students could journal about the name they wrote down on the sticky note earlier: - Did they choose their own name? Or another? - Why? - If you chose another name, where did you hear that name before? Day 2 At the end of Day 1, students were given homework. (Stick around to the bottom of this post for a chance to get your own copy of this sheet.) I make it very clear, that while names all have meanings, your family may not have chosen your name for that reason. They might not know the meaning, and you can choose to look it up with your family if you wish. I also focus a lot on nicknames and your own feelings about your name. While I've never taught a student in foster care, or one who was adopted, I do think it's important to mention that this could be a touchy task in those situations, so be sure to know your students first, and modify as needed. Students use the homework task, and the journal write from the previous day, to write "The Story of their Name". Some possible options to include are: - who you are named after - the meaning of your name - a name you'd rather have - your feelings toward your name - nicknames you may have - the person (or people) who chose your name - how your name was chosen This piece of writing is then self, peer, and teacher edited, and a "good" copy is made. Day 3 I found this excellent step-by-step self-portrait from "Art Projects for Kids". I modified the task so that instead of drawing the left or right side of their face, they would draw the top half. Students find that folding their page into quadrants as she suggests is very helpful. Under the document camera I demonstrate each step, and students copy, adapting to their own facial features. Each student gets a mirror to look in to help them personalize. The final pieces are put on a bulletin board for display. Students also coloured in a bubble letter version of their names to complete the display. (I used the font KG Red Hands Outline for this.) Day 4 Once we've completed the task, the last job is to reflect on our work. I pulled some elements from our Arts Education curriculum (very relevant regardless of where you teach) for students to self-assess on. I've used the proficiency scale language our school has moved to for all reporting. A few students found it helpful to complete their reflection while looking at the finished product on their bulletin board, but most didn't need this. Want a copy of both my homework and reflection pages? Follow the image or button below to grab your copy. Take Me to the Free Download Pin this post.
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