Ayelet Montessori

A Montessori child develops a lot of personality traits, which stay with them for life. One such quality is helping others when needed. If you have a child in a Montessori environment, you’d be aware of the concept of mixed age-grouping. Younger children often take older ones to be role models of sorts.  They see how/what the older children are doing and then try to follow suit. This is a development we as directresses and guides are aware of. Last year, came as an eye-opener for me personally, as I witnessed each day, how beautifully it worked on developing children’s social skills. There are so many instances, that re-enforce my belief in this beautiful Montessori Method. Older children assisting younger ones to work with a particular material. Children reading to another child, helping others with their snacks or with winding up their work, reminding them politely about rules, etc. These incidents often take place without us requesting or telling the older child...

If you have heard about the Montessori method of education, you must’ve heard about  Grace & Courtesy.  Some of you might have an idea about what actually is grace & courtesy all about; most of you might be wondering what exactly it is.  When we meet prospective parents at Ayelet, when they tour the environment; one question always comes up around grace and courtesy, like; “How do these children work so quietly in the environment without disturbing others?” or “How do these children know how to wait for their turn?”  At times, parents get intimidated, whether their child will be able to adjust in such an environment. As generally people expect 3-4-year-old children being loud and ones who don’t follow rules. Frankly, we don’t have a magic wand which makes these little people behave like this. A lot of work and patience as well as consistency goes into this.  As a Montessori House of Children, we at Ayelet, treat children with utm...

If your child goes to a Montessori school, you would know, one thing which sets them apart is their independent streak. One of the most common question parents at Ayelet ask “How to ensure we don’t kill that spirit of independence?”  Some parents also complain that children are too independent and don’t understand when parents are in a hurry.  The 2 nd  situation only arises when parents are in a rush.  Let’s deal with the 2 nd situation first, if you know you’re in a hurry tell your children so, that’ll help them prepare in advance. Young children don’t understand rush/hurrying.  Fostering independence in children is something we work at Ayelet every single day, as parents there are a few things you can involve children as young as toddlers/preschoolers with:    Let them set their own table for meals, once finished keep their own dish back in the kitchen. After play, children can clean up their rooms.   Involv...

Parents are our partners in Ayelet, our Super Saturday sessions are organised to ensure parents are aware and informed. On the 7th of July 2018, we organised a session on  Montessori Language  Curriculum .  We understand, language development is crucial and in a Montessori environment our plan works at meeting all the needs of a young child.  We told parents about how language is interwoven in the curriculum, discuss the amazing Montessori materials, and what their child is expected to get exposed to. We informed parents about the direct and indirect preparation, explosion into  writing & reading, grammar, 2nd and 3rd languages etc.  Parents had many queries  which were also taken care of.  We ended the session by telling parents how important it is to read books to their children, communicate with them and listen to them. An enriching session with happy and satisfied parents.

We aim at making Ayelet a ‘child’s happy place’, this can only be achieved when the child feels loved and secure in his/her school. This also requires team Ayelet to partner  with the child’s primary caregivers. It’s essential parents, children and people at Ayelet work as a community for the best of the child.  This partnership starts with the admission process, where we are extremely clear about what Ayelet offers to the child and about the admission process. We don’t ‘interview’ the child, but we interact with the parents to understand how well they are aligned with the Montessori method and  with Ayelet. We also encourage prospective parents to spend some time in Ayelet to understand us better, before taking an informed decision.  We, as a school believe in being as open and transparent about the child to the parents. Our regular parent information sessions ensure parents are informed about the Montessori method and parenting, for them to partner w...

‘Normalisation’ a term which you will hear often in a Montessori environment. This very term at times confuses parents, specially the ones who don’t know much about the method. Normalisation doesn’t imply that a child or set of children aren’t normal, we are no one to say that. Then what does normalisation mean? Normalisation is a very special process in the overall development of a child. When a child is able to concentrate on an activity, when s/he works freely in their Montessori environment. These children are self-deciplined and peaceful. It is a stage where the child's will, intelligence and coordination of movements work together.   It is a very important stage of development. A child in this stage of development enjoys his/her work.  In The Absorbent Mind, Dr. Montessori says the following about normalisation “the most important single result of our whole work.” Children go through 3 stages of normalisation in a Montessori environment: A child w...

“Children are human beings to whom respect is due, superior to us by reason of their innocence and of the greater possibilities of their future.” - Dr. Maria Montessori If you have read about the Montessori method, heard some people talk about it and/or have enrolled your little one in a Montessori school, chances are you would have heard about Respecting the child. Respect is an integral aspect of the method. It sounds amazing, but is it easy to respect a little someone? Many times, adults do not think, children can be respected or deserve respect. We often interrupt when a child is talking, or tell them to “be quite”; we tell (at times force) them into doing things they don’t want to; we don’t even ask their permission before hugging them; even ignoring them is disrespect. In an authentic Montessori, from the time we greet the child in the morning to the time we say goodbye; we ensure the child is treated with respect. As a parent at home, or else where, you may ...