Montessori's secrets to succesful learning

The Visionary*

Maria Montessori was born in Italy in 1870. After spending her youth committed to learning, she would emerge as the first female in her country to graduate from medical school in 1986.

It was working with young children diagnosed as "unteachable" that her fascination with the learning needs of children emerged.  She would go on to open a children's home for underpriveleged children who would blossom under her dedicated tutelage - her methods became a model for schools around the world. She was nominated for three Nobel Peace Prizes. 

Her success lay in her ability to create environments that suited the needs of children - furnishings that were just their size. Tools that fit easily in their hands. A place where children were in control and could easily initiate activities on their own. 

Child-Centered Environments

Montessori wanted teachers to create pleasant sensory experiences for children. She also believed that if their play was beautiful, orderly and matching their small bodies, children would learn better.

She said early childhood teachers should:

- provide real tools that work (sharp knives, good scissors, woodworking and cleaning tools)

- keep materials and equipment accessible to the children, organized so they can find and put away what they need

- create beauty and order in the classroom

Competence and Responsability

- Montessori encouraged educators to let kids do as much for themselves as possible

- Also, that repitition creates a sense of confidence and a real chance to develop skills

- The teacher's role is to prepare the environment and then step back for the children to go ahead and do what they will

Accordingly, educators should:

- give children the responsability of keeping space clean and orderly

- offer big chunks of time for free work and play, where children structure their own time

- offer children lots of opportunities to do "real" work, and to "help" as they so often ask to do

- help build skills -- increase a child's competency

Secret ingredient for any succesful educator:

OBSERVATION: Take time for careful observation and reflection and use these observations to guide your environment and curriculum planning.

CHILD-LED learning sums up Montessori's approach to a tee.

Thanks for reading! The next profile will be of Erik Erikson - stay tuned! 

*Summaries derived from Theories of Childhood: An Introduction to Dewey, Montessori, Erikson, Piaget and Vygotsky, written by Carol Garhart Mooney.

Students need real civics lessons: educator

Current teaching methods don’t encourage critical thinking

 By Joanne Laucius, The Ottawa Citizen, March 26, 2009

 

OTTAWA-If you want to know education researcher Joel Westheimer’s opinion of civics in the school system, just check out the title of his recent paper and a lecture he will be giving Thursday night: “No child left thinking.”

Westheimer, who holds the university research chair in democracy and education at the University of Ottawa, will speak tonight at Lisgar Collegiate Institute on “testing, accountability and the threat to Canadian democracy.”

While North American schools talk about good citizenship, they have done little to kindle critical thinking, he says.

“The kinds of goals and practices commonly represented in curricula that hope to foster democratic citizenship usually have more to do with voluntarism, charity and obedience than with democracy. In other words, ‘good citizenship’ to many educators means listening to authority figures, dressing neatly, being nice to neighbours, and helping out at a soup kitchen — not grappling with the kinds of social policy decisions that every citizen in a democratic society needs to learn how to do,” he wrote in No Child Left Thinking.

Sure, it’s important to feed hungry people and act morally and ethically, says Westheimer, who taught grades 6, 7 and 8 — what he calls a “crazy and amazing age” — in New York City during the ’80s. But the next step is the harder one: find the source of a problem in society and think of ways to solve it.

A community food drive illustrates the three types of “good” citizen. The “personally responsible” citizen will contribute if asked. The “participatory citizen” will organize the drive. The third type, the “justice-oriented” citizen doesn’t see charity and volunteerism as ends in themselves and instead asks why people are hungry. That type of citizen is rarely nurtured in the schools, he says.

(For the record, yes, Joel Westheimer is the son of that other Westheimer, sex therapist Dr. Ruth. “It’s less interesting than you might think. She wasn’t Dr. Ruth when I was growing up,” he says.)

After Westheimer left the classroom in New York, he headed for Stanford University. He taught at New York University, and has lived in Ottawa for the past seven years.

In the past two decades, civics have become more formally woven into the curriculum along with increased standardized testing.

It’s not necessarily a good thing, says Westheimer. The focus on literacy and numeracy have forced other kinds of learning to take a back seat.

“We can test math and reading skills, but it’s harder to test critical thinking,” he says. “We end up caring about what we can measure instead of measuring what we care about.”

In Ontario, civics is now a mandatory course in Grade 10. Westheimer believes it actually turns students off civic engagement because it’s dull.

“Kids really want to get involved. But they’re involved in such superfluous ways, they get disengaged.”

Two years ago, Ontario also mandated “character education” for all schools in the province. In an editorial for Orbit, the magazine of the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, the writers noted that research in the U.S. has demonstrated character education has a positive effect on student discipline and achievement. Teachers are also happier because student behaviour and the tone of the school is improved.

Maybe character education improves discipline, but so does beheading, jokes Westheimer. Critical thinkers are not easy to teach. “Everyone likes to teach critical thinking, but no one wants to teach a class of critical thinkers.”

He argues that the time and resources spent on character education would be better spent in creating a stimulating curriculum. When students are engaged, then discipline problems are reduced.

“They’ll cause trouble for the right reasons,” he says. “Some forms of trouble are the engine of democratic society.” 

Quick primers on pioneering theorists of early childhood education: Part 1

Sound exciting? 

It actually is.  Read this, and upcoming posts, and you'll discover that it's fascinating to understand the roots of modern thinking around early childhood education. Here is the first profile of five that will explore the thoughts of some of the most influential thinkers on child development.* 

John Dewey (American, born 1859; PhD in philosophy, significant contribution to education - "My Pedagogic Creed", a document published in 1897 by the Progressive Education Association)

Quotes:

-"[T]rue education comes through the stimulation of the child's powers by the demands of the social situations in which he finds himself."

- "The school life should grow gradually out of the home life. . .  It is the business of the school to deepen and extend the child's sense of values bound up in his home life."

- "I believe that education, therefore, is a process of living and not preparation of future living."

- "I believe, finally, that the teacher is engaged, not simply in the training of individuals, but in the formation of a proper social life."

Dewey believed that teachers must:

- have a strong base of general knowledge as well as knowledge of specific children

- be willing to make sense of the world for children on the basis of their greater knowledge and experience

- invest in observation, planning, organization and documentation

Advice:

- Observe children closely and plan curriculum from their interests and experience.

- Don't be afraid to use your knowledge of the children and the world to make sense of the world for children.

When planning activities, teachers need to ask:

- How does this expand on what these children already know?

- How will this activity help this child grow?

- What skills are being developed?

- How will this activity help these children know more about their world?

- How does this activity prepare these children to live more fully?

An experience, according to Dewey, can only be educational if:

-It is based on the children's interests and grows out of their existing knowledge and experience.

- It supports the children's development.

- It helps the children develop new skills.

- It adds to the children's understanding of their world.

- It prepares the children to live more fully

How can early childhood educators use Dewey's criteria?

- Do not accept "it's fun" as a justification for curriculum, but ask how an activity will support the children's development and learning

- Invest in organization and documentation of the children's work.

*summarized from "Theories of Childhood: An introduction to Dewey, Montessori, Erikson, Piaget and Vygotsky", written by Carol Garhart Mooney

What every parent should realize when it comes to their child's education

One of the great scholars of Islam, Imam Abu Hamid Al-Ghazali said it best when he described the child as "a trust (placed by God) in the hands of his parents,
and his innocent heart is a precious element capable of taking impressions."

With these thoughtful words in mind, Muslim parents know
they face an important responsibility in guiding their children on a path of
learning that will impress upon their hearts sound knowledge.

Where are they getting that knowledge? Muslim students are attending all sorts of classes in a variety of environments. The majority of Muslim students in Canada attend public schools where there is little opportunity for Islamic learning. Other Muslim children and youth are taking classes in Islamic schools and high schools. Here in Ottawa, for example, there are
Muslim elementary schools as well as one of Ontario's few Muslim
high schools (Ottawa Islamic School) and a small minority of Muslim
children are at home, taught by their own parents, which is legal in Ontario.

So who among our children is gaining sound knowledge?

Any Muslim parent or educator would agree that first, and
foremost, a child must understand what it means to be a Muslim. At the
outset, this is a simple exercise, but the goal is to raise a child who is
aware of Allah Subhana'wa Taala in every action and who looks to the
final Messenger, Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) as an example.

This kind of outcome can only come about through constant
effort by parents regardless of where the child spends the school day.

To be aware of Allah Subhana'wa Taala requires knowledge of
the Quran. Islamic tradition encourages children to memorize the Quran
between the ages of 7 and 9. It may seem like a daunting task to adults;
however, most children are quick to absorb information. The Prophet
(peace be upon him) said that on the Day of Judgement, crowns of light
await the parents of a child who has memorized the Quran.




Memorizing and understanding the Quran would require
knowledge of Arabic; an important skill for anyone who sincerely wants
to gain sound knowledge. But are Muslim parents placing as high an
emphasis on learning Arabic as say, learning French?

Compare these two assessments of the Quran by two British
men. Marmaduke Picktall described the Quran as, “That inimitable symphony, the very sounds of which move men to tears and ecstasy."

On the other hand, Thomas Carlyle dismissed it with the following words: "As tedious a piece of reading as I ever undertook, a wearisome, confused jumble, crude, incondite --
nothing but a sense of duty could carry any European through the Koran."

In his anthology of Islamic literature, historian James Kritzeck wonders
and then concludes,

"How could two sensitive and intelligent men
of very similar backgrounds differ so markedly concerning a book which
everyone knows is a wold classic? The answer is complicated, but it can
be made simple: Pickthall read Arabic and Carlyle did not."

Learning Arabic also opens up many new worlds to our children,
because vast tracts of Islamic literature remain untranslated from
Arabic. It offers the student an opportunity, too, to read the words of Prophet Muhammad, (peace be upon him), in their original form.

Sources: Anthology of Islamic Literature "From the Rise of Islam to Modern Times" selected, edited and introduced by James Kritzeck, 1964 Canada, Holt, Rinehart and Winston of Canada, Ltd. Western Education vs. Muslim Children by Khadija Anderson at www.jannah.org/articles/ westernedu.html

This article first appeared in the Muslim Link, Sept. 2003.

Fun times at free fair this weekend

Check this out:

http://ottawagogreenexpo.com/visitor/features/kids.html

"Hey Kids, let's SORT - Start Organic Recycling Today & Reverse Global Warming with Earth Worms . . . . ."

Worms? Who could resist? Making your own house out of recycled materials? Why not?

New website launches out of UK

http://www.islamichomeeducation.co.uk/

What it contains:

*   Nine years worth of articles on all aspects of homeschooling. There is a wealth of information in those articles written by sisters who are home educating.

*   A free forum where you can meet other sisters who homeschool or who are considering starting and discuss everything pertaining to home education.

*   Plus a children’s gallery on the forum to upload pictures of your children’s work.

*   Children's competitions, and updated newsletters

New book series that puts our kids in the stories!

In the name of God, Most Merciful, Most Kind,

* * *

Storytelling is hugely important in the lives of our kids. I could go on and on about this, but I think most parents know instinctively that their children appreciate a good story - and that it is a chance to help shape their understanding of their place in the world.

So, el Hamdullilah, I was delighted to discover a new book series homegrown in Canada, that tells fun stories about children that look, talk and think like our own kids.

The books are as well-produced and as well-written as any mainstream book, but simply incorporate simple phrases and images that reflect an Islamic identity. Here's an example of the cute rhyming and subject matter, though as you see in the image above, the pictures in later books are even better.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RL6xzw7kKN8

And check out the website for their available titles: www.kidswillbekids.org

I'm hoping to bring these books to Ottawa, so email me if you are interested!

homeschoolingmuslimah@gmail.com

Neat site

Assalamu Allaykum sisters,

The website is called homeschoolfreebie - and today, Friday the 13th - Rabee' al-Awwal 16 -  they've got a neat and short little booklet on time management available for free download.

If you miss it, just sign up for email notices to catch future freebies!

Enjoy!

http://www.homeschoolfreebie.wholesomechildhood.com/

Nurturing Learning: March 10 Meeting

Bismillah Al Rahman Al Rahim

* * *

About eight moms and a huge pack of children ranging in age from five months to 13 years, gathered at a local community centre on Tuesday morning. It was the first meeting of the reinvigorated Ottawa Muslim Homeschooling Network - full of the "new generation" of homeschooling mommies, receiving much needed advice and guidance from the veterans amongst us. Here's the rundown of what went on. Special thanks to the young gentlemen and ladies who took care of the little kids in the room next door, and did a great job - providing lollipops and crafts. Also, a thank you to the bakers amongst us who supplied both kids and moms with delicious treats, masha'Allah.

Start of the meeting

Introductions kicked off the gathering - most moms who were present listed their children as being under about six years old, however two moms also have teenagers - a subject that deserves a whole session of its own, joked our presenter, Sakina.

The super-busy mother of six then began sharing her experiences with getting organized for the school year. Sakina is currently homeschooling four children (including a friend's), while her eldest opted for school a few years ago, in grade 5 (which, although with its own set of challenges, is a mercy says Sakina because it would have been otherwise too difficult to keep up with her daughter's studies, while homeschooling the littler ones.)

Sakina's TOP TIPS

1- Name your homeschool: This will help give homeschooled children a sense of place, and a confident answer when inquiring minds want to know exactly where they go to school. Sakina's was called 'Flowering Hearts', though now that her learners are mainly boys, it may have to change to something a little more manly.

2- Decide what to teach - Moms - figure out your abilities and resources. Don't teach Slovackian if you don't know it.

3- Be flexible - let children follow their interests. Sakina's five-year-old loves to draw so she just lets him go and he is teaching himself how to write with very little guidance - simply because he wants to be able to describe the pictures he draws.

4- Look at where you live, where you hope to live. Check homeschooling laws.

5 - Plan subject by subject, level by level. Assess your children's abilities through gentle ways - no exams, please : ) .

6- Be fluid. Children will grasp information at their own pace, so work with them at their own level with a general outline of where you want the child to get to.

7- Figure out ways to teach a subject to varied age groups, eg. water wheels - teaches one child about renewable energy, other children about water sources & energy, etc. Simultaneous learning would make it easier for moms teaching multiple ages.

* * *

How to plan for Learning: Sakina's method

Plans for 3 semesters each year, each consisting of 8 weeks.
Roughly plans the entire year - in a very basic way, based on Ontario curriculum
Then breaks it down by semester goals
Then by weekly goals and schedule
Then daily -- where creativity comes in to prepare lesson plans/ resources to use

Related points

Languages : Combines oral, written elements of a particular language in the same day, ie. Arabic Day will have conversation in the morning, later on there will be written work in Arabic, etc., to keep it together, and in the minds of children instead of spreading out subjects in the same language throughout the week.

Setting Goals: Children are different in what they can achieve. Think of different ways of imparting knowledge. For example, Prophet Muhammad, may peace be upon him, would touch people when he wanted them to listen well. It works wonders on children to get them to pay attention. (One sister mentioned a study on touch therapy and its positive effects.)

Use affection to help teach, esp. when a child is struggling.

Let go: Sometimes it is important to remind yourself of your own hang-ups on a subject and figure out how to teach it without letting your own feelings about it creep into the experience. Sakina had to pretend to love math, when she didn't at all - and now, masha'Allah, math is her daughter's favourite subject!! Make it fun!

Flexibility: Do what you can, but don't force anyone to do what they don't like. Leave a lesson for a few weeks, let the child enjoy the experience. Don't make them dislike it.

When to start teaching: Whenever kids are ready.

Thoughts & Reflections

Sakina mentioned the saddest thing she heard from her school-going daughter was when she replied that "I don't need to know it", about learning more on Canadian government. Sakina wants kids to LOVE learning and want to know more, not to think about education as a list of items to be checked off, one by one, to meet school requirements.

"My goal is to have children ENJOY learning."

Quick tips for The Learning Day

- Start with Quran - lots of blessings, helps children retain / receive information, improves memory

- Be prepared at least the day before

- Teach subjects that are relevant to their lives, like social studies/ French

- And, most important of all, build relationships with your children.

* * * **
To all of you

Jazak'Allahu Kheiran to everyone who was able to attend, and to those who were with us, without being physically present : )

Next meeting will be at the same location, on April 14, Rabee'ath thaani, from 10 a.m. to one p.m. The subject will be Resources - how to plan lessons, and a closer look at curricula options.

Housekeeping

El Hamdullilah, we were also able to start a lending library of books, so please bring your borrowed materials to next meeting, and anything you would like to share with other Moms & their children.

Future plans include a meeting about the differences between girls and boys when it comes to learning; and a plan to organize a community conference related to homeschooling. Sugar Bush visit also in the works, Insha'Allah.

* * *

All goodness is from our Most Merciful Lord; It is He Who Taught Humanity by the pen, what we knew not. We praise Him and Thank Him for His Kindness, that is immeasurable.


اللَّهُمَّ انْفَعْنِي بِمَا عَلَّمْـتَنِي وَ عَلِّمْنِي مَا يَنْفَعُنِي
"Allâhumma infa‘nî bimâ ‘allamtanî wa ‘allimnî ma yanfa‘unî" {Oh Allah! Make useful for me what You taught me and teach me knowledge that will be useful to me.}

In this month's ML newspaper: Organizing playtime for Muslim kids

Yet another relevant story from our favourite community paper (see our events section for the precise details):

"Playgroups can be a great
opportunity for pre-schoolers
to meet and play with other
small children and develop their
personal and social skills. But for
many Muslim mothers in Ottawa,
ensuring that their little ones have
Muslim playmates is tough. Most
mothers have little choice but to
take to their children to city-funded
playgroups where their children,
sometimes only a few months
old, are exposed to unIslamic
influences.
One young mother is hoping
to change that, however. The
Muslim Link spoke to Hala
Adam, the coordinator of a new
Muslim playgroup at Outaouais
Islamic Centre in Hull. "

To read the full article, go to:

http://muslimlink.ca/downloads/09mar.pdf
page. 8

From the pages of. . .

. . . here's a snippet from an article that appeared in our community newspaper last year, but is still fun to read:


Learning on Mom's Lap

Members of the Ottawa Muslim Homeschool Network discuss home-based learning

Nine-year-old Zaahid wakes
up to a cup of hot chocolate,
six days a week. It's a
pleasant way to ease him into
a morning of Quran
memorization. A little while
later, he relaxes before
plowing through his math and
English worksheets so that he
can later indulge in his love of
books.

His younger brother,
Isma’eel, aged 7, has his own
leisurely breakfast before
spending half an hour playing
outside, burning off some of
his endless energy. Later, he
snuggles onto his teacher’s
lap for phonics, which he is
still struggling to master.

Two children, same family,
same basic philosophy of learning, yet two very
different learning programs. Welcome to the world
of homeschooling.

For full article, go to
http://www.muslimlink.ca/downloads/07sep.pdf
page 14

Mom of the year - to all the OMHN moms

A special award to all of us!

Here are the rules of this tag:

1. Admit one thing you feel awful about (involving being a mom). Once you have written it down, you are no longer allowed to feel bad. Remember you are a good mom!

2. Remind yourself that you ARE a good mom, list 7 things you love about your kids, you love doing with your kids, or that your kids love about you.

3. Send this to 5 other moms of the year that deserve a reminder that they are too the best moms that they can be. Remember to send them a note letting them know you have selected them, and also add a link to your post that directs people back to the person who nominated you.

* * *

1.

Sometimes I feel awful that I desperately need to do things just for me.

2.

1. I love being close to my kids, watching them grow.
2. I love doing my best to nurture their good traits.
3. I love when my girls are excited about what the day will bring.
4. I love it when my child internalizes what we’ve learned — “Allah can make anything happen, He just says ‘Be!, right mom?’”
5. I love it when they talk about how much they love Allah Subhan’wa Taala and His Prophet.
6. I love it when they are happy.
7. I love it when we pray together.

3. I tag:

fisabillilah
loving Allah and raising my kids
Teaching Mastery for the English speaking muslim child
Come share my thoughts. . .
Talibideen Jr.

omhn.blogspot.com

* * *

Why Would a Muslim Homeschool?

In different presentations and conversations I've had in Ottawa, I've gotten different opinions and attitudes from those in the community. The reactions can be summarized as follows:

-"Isn't that illegal?"
-"I thought that kind of thing was for strict Christians"
-Looking at my kids with a sympathetic face, worried for their education
-Insulted, defending the honour and purpose of our local Islamic schools

So this post I will examine each opinion and discuss how valid is each concern.

No, homeschooling is not illegal here in Ontario, although in other parts of the world it is. Alhamdulilleh the organized groups of homeschoolers have fought long and hard to make sure they could homeschool legally. One step beyond Ontario is Alberta, which offers people's school taxes back to them, if they homeschool, MashaAllah. If you don't believe me, you can check out the authority on homeschooling in Ontario and find all the legal stuff here.

As for homeschooling being left to the Non-Muslims, I say that Muslims didn't come up with chocolate first either, but that doesn't mean we can't share in the sweetness! (Expect a lot of my posts to include the word 'chocolate' by the way) For the Muslim family that can homeschool, we can bypass a lot of the fitnah (trials) that Muslim kids endure among Non-Muslim teachers, students and materials. Just imagine the difference between studying ancient pagan civilizations and making your child actually fascinated in the culture, as opposed to explaining that the culture was destroyed by Allah because of their wrong-doing and oppression of the believers and rejection of His Prophets. Imagine keeping your child away from school during the the Non-Muslim holidays or enduring Christmas coloring pages, as opposed to continuing on the school schedule, oblivious to the holiday, except perhaps with a lesson as to it's evil origin....

And the level of educational standards is the easiest point to discuss, as every exclusive, private school that produces the future leaders of the world has a small ratio from teacher to student. The larger the class size, the less one-on-one time the student has to understand the information. Now, let's take that teacher and make him or her know the student from birth, being thereby aware of his/her likes and dislikes, strengths and weaknesses, and put that child in the comfort and relaxation of their own home, and you have: homeschooling. There is also a greedy satisfaction in watching your child learn and grow under your care, and having your hand in what your children learn and how they learn it, without you ever asking yourself, "When's the last time I spent 'quality time' with the kids?"

Those who run the local Islamic schools, and those loyal to them, need not be insulted by Muslim homeschoolers. By and large, the main reason that Ottawa Muslims homeschool is because they cannot afford the tuition or live beyond bus service. There are of course those that have actually taken their children out of the Islamic schools to homeschool them, but this is still a better solution than public school.

For those reading this article with interest since you don't homeschool yet, I want to say that you can still be a large part of your child's education even if they attend school. If they are in public school, make sure to make time for Islamic studies at home, or at a weekend school, such as this one. Play tapes or CDs of Quran in the house, and reward them for memorizing new surahs outside of school time. As Muslims, we should always strive to teach what we know, and continue to learn, and the best place to start is with our children.

Math Contest

In the name of God, Most Merciful, Most Kind,
* * *

From a local homeschooling mailing list:

"You STILL have time to register your kids so they can participate in
the World Math Day. This is a totally FREE online event for all kids
around the globe!

The event takes place for the whole time it is March 4th anywhere on
the globe, so in reality it starts when it's still March 3 in the US.

In the World Math Day, children from across the globe unite in their
quest to set a world record in answering mental arithmetic questions.
This event involves more than a million students from 160 countries.

Why should your or my children participate? Well, they might love
being part of setting a world record! And it's just simple math questions!

Also good to know:

* The event is designed for all ages and ability levels.
* There are prizes.
* And it's FREE!

I registered my oldest daughter. She's enjoyed competing against other
kids around the globe. Each competition takes 1 minute and the program
finds 2-3 other kids to compete against. She also likes that you can
choose the hair color, style, and hat or other head piece for your
virtual character.
Please read more about the registration, the levels, and so on. Or go
directly to WorldMathDay. com to register. "