A Trip To Briley's Farm

We skipped out on Briley's Farm last year an opted for a pumpkin patch near our family. We decided to go this year and let Lucy experience the farm for the first time. The weather was perfect and both girls enjoyed themselves. 

Ava got a butterfly painted on her face. She is her mother's child. 

I love how Ava's holding and protecting Lucy.

Jumping in the hay.

The girls and daddy inside the hay maze.

Ava's favorite part of the day.

Someone's getting sleepy.

The horse was "twickling" her hand.

This calf was adorable.

Hayride to go pick out her pumpkin. 

Go, Car, Go!

I had some time to go through more of Ava's old toy boxes and came across this EverEarth Jr. Size Ramp Race. I wasn't for sure Lucy would be interested in it right now but decided to give it a go. I demonstrated how to place the cars at the top of the ramp and followed them with my hand to the bottom. Lucy's face lit up and she started saying, "meh" which is "me." (Typically what she says when she wants something or a turn.) I gave her a car and of course it didn't go on the track smoothly but after a few tries she managed to get it going. Here are a few pictures.

Her cheese face hehe

Lucy's Imbucare Box

Lucy needed something new to do and has been very fascinated with opening and closing. She has made sure that the fridge and bathroom doors and every cabinet within her reach have been shut. She is also keen on placing smaller objects into larger ones. With these fascinations growing I decided to move Lucy on from the object permanence boxes to her first Imbucare Box with the large cylinder.

This work allows the child to practice hand-eye coordination, learn their geometric solids, and experience opening and closing. This set of Imbucare boxes progresses to other geometric solids such as a cube, triangular prism, and a rectangular prism.

Her face lit up as soon as I sat the work on the ground. I presented the lesson once and then let her have a go at it. She tried a few times before she finally got the cylinder in the hole. Then she settled for tasting it haha (caution: the cylinder even though it's large is still very small....please sit with your child while they are working on this activity for safety purposes.)

A Little Addition

Addition Video

Ava's grandma purchased this math work for her. It's very Montessori because it gives the child something to put in their hand to add and subtract. We have started doing addition with Ava and she  understands the concept rather well. Here is a video of Ava giving addition a try. (Also, Ava knows what the number 11 looks like but the numbers are all single digits with this work. And don't mind my 1 year old constantly saying "me" haha She wanted to do the work too!)

The typical way a Montessorian would explain addition is by taking two small numbers to make one big number. An example of the language we use would be:

4 "together with" 3 "makes" 7.

Math You See Part 1

Ava has really been interested in counting objects around the house and even when we're out and about. She has been practicing her number recognition and knows 1-20 solid. We have done a few works that not only gives practice with number recognition but their quantities as well. I made a post over the summer on a work Ava did with Seashell Counting. I started with numbers 0-5 and Ava has clearly passed the use of this activity. We have moved on to bigger quantities. With that being said, I want to share a few Math works that Montessori created to give you some ideas you can use with your child. Part 2 to follow!

Numbers 1-10

Montessori Math works start with concrete materials that allow for hands-on exploration of a concept. The Red and Blue Rods allow for hands-on exploration with numbers 1-10 and their quantities. If you're interested to see how we present the Red and Blue Rods check out this video on presenting the rods and this video about the rods and the matching numeral. ( I'm not sure why in the second video the lady doesn't keep the coordinating colors the same but the concept is the same.)

I was looking at some DIY alternatives for the Red and Blue Rods and came across Totally Tots great use of legos. Of course it's a mini version but the same concept. 

Next we introduce Sandpaper Numerals. This work not only teaches number recognition but allows the child to put into muscle memory what each number is and how they would write it. 

The Spindle Box is another work for practice with numerals and their quantities. As a grown up having a standard public school education I can appreciate this work because it allows the child to use their hands to feel the quantities of the numerals. Here is a great spindle box video of how to present this lesson. 

When the dollar won't stretch to buy these amazing works I'm all for DIY ideas. Here are a few that I found. 

Mi Escuelita Montessori made these spindle boxes from inexpensive plastic baskets,  straws,  and  computer-generated numerals.

Montessori on a Budget used toilet paper rolls, board, hand written numerals and sticks. Can't get much easier than that. 

54 Stitches made a portable Spindle "box" with fabric and wooden spindles. Wish I could sew! 

Numerals and Counters is where I got my Seashell Counting extension idea from.