“The gifts of nature are the most satisfying toys of the child.” Dr. Maria Montessori
We love summer at The Montessori
Center, so it is with great pleasure that the staff carefully prepares a unique
inside and outside environment that takes maximum advantage of the
beauty and wonder of the summer season.
MORNINGS ARE SPENT IN A “NATURALIZED” OUTDOOR ENVIRONMENT
Adults
typically sense nature as a background for what they are doing.
Children experience nature not as a background for events, but rather as
a stimulating experiential component of their activities. Nature for
children is a sheer sensory experience. They judge a natural setting
not by its aesthetics, but rather by how they can interact with the
environment.
The Montessori Center South Bend The Montessori Center South Bend The Montessori Center South Bend The Montessori Center South Bend The
Montessori Center’s outdoor environment is designed to facilitate a
child’s connection to nature and to satisfy an inherent need for
freedom, discovery and independence. During their time outside, children
can explore and roam, tend the garden, discover insect life, create
animal and insect habitats, and feed the creatures of nature who share
their space.
IN THE TRADITION OF MONTESSORI,
A WIDE VARIETY OF ACTIVITIES ARE PREPARED FOR THE OUTDOOR ENVIRONMENT.
UNDER THE SHADE OF A BEAUTIFUL MAPLE TREE, THAT UMBRELLAS THE AREA, CHILDREN DISCOVER:
• Practical life activities set up to rake, scrub, sweep, clean, order and maintain their environment.
The Montessori Center South Bend The Montessori Center South Bend The Montessori Center South Bend The Montessori Center South Bend • Container, as well as several in-ground garden areas, that allow them the opportunity to live with the flowers and vegetables that they plant and tend. • A “Peace Garden” to tend, and also to experience, the unique tranquility that solitude in nature brings.The Montessori Center South Bend The Montessori Center South Bend The Montessori Center South Bend The Montessori Center South Bend • Nature activities to learn about, as well as to feed and care for, the wild life that share the environment with them.The Montessori Center South Bend The Montessori Center South Bend The Montessori Center South Bend The Montessori Center South Bend • Ground to dig in, as well as a sand box, to enjoy the pure joy of manipulating a shovel. The Montessori Center South Bend The Montessori Center South Bend The Montessori Center South Bend The Montessori Center South Bend • Large and small manipulative activities to develop fine motor skill.The Montessori Center South Bend The Montessori Center South Bend The Montessori Center South Bend The Montessori Center South Bend • Beautiful wooden play and climbing equipment to increase physical strength and development of large
motor skills. The Montessori Center South Bend The Montessori Center South Bend The Montessori Center South Bend The Montessori Center South
• A well-designed art and craft area in which to explore their creativity through a variety of media.
The Montessori Center South Bend The Montessori Center South Bend The Montessori Center South Bend The Montessori Center South Bend • An inviting book corner on a blanket under a tree.The Montessori Center South Bend The Montessori Center South Bend The Montessori Center South Bend The Montessori Center South Bend
IN THE AFTERNOON AN ENHANCED NATURE CURRICULUM
ENRICHES THE SUMMER INDOOR CLASSROOM.
The Montessori Center South Bend The Montessori Center South Bend The Montessori Center South Bend The Montessori Center South Bend
Since afternoons are often sweltering, summer camp moves inside during the heat of the day. The core Montessori curriculum is enhanced by a science area that literally comes alive with the miracle of life. The children live with:
• larvae transforming into lady bugs and butterflies
• eggs developing into silk worms and praying mantis
• tadpoles slowly growing into frogs
• ants busy at work in their colonies.
The afternoon is also an opportunity for the older children to reinforce their budding reading and math skills, while the younger children satisfy their need for order and real life activities in the Practical Life and Sensorial areas. GROUP NON-COMPETITIVE GAMES, PICNIC LUNCHES, IN HOUSE FIELD TRIPS,
WEEKLY ART CLASSES, AND WEEKLY FIELD TRIPS TO PRAIRIE WINDS FARM,
ALL ADD TO THE MONTESSORI CENTER'S CELEBRATION OF SUMMER.