Best materials for home?

[KBecks]

I feel that private school M tuition is out of reach for us, but I would like to try a few M materials in our home as toys.

Any suggestions on what may be the most appropriate? I am working through a few M books now.

My older son is 2.75 and my baby is nearly 1.

[MaryCeleste]

Originally Posted by KBecks

I feel that private school M tuition is out of reach for us, but I would like to try a few M materials in our home as toys.

Any suggestions on what may be the most appropriate? I am working through a few M books now.

My older son is 2.75 and my baby is nearly 1.

If your children are going to use them as toys, I wouldn't suggest getting authentic Montessori materials. They're designed to be used in a specific sequence and manner, often have small pieces that can get lost or swallowed, and tend to get chipped if not carefully handled. Lauri and Haba make some excellent "Montessori-ish" toys that are considerably less expensive, and very durable.

Practical life activites are extremely popular with one- to four-year-olds -- much more so than the wooden manipulatives, in my experience. It's simple to make up your own trays with things you have around the house. Any of the popular books on using Montessori at home will have plenty of ideas. They'll also have suggestions for language and math activities you can prepare yourself, such as "sound pouches" or counting games. (My favorite book along these lines is Tim Seldin's "How to Raise an Amazing Child the Montessori Way.")

I hope you and your little ones have fun!

[KBecks]

I'm not really sure how we'll get started. I have several books I'm looking through, including how to raise an amazing child.

I realize I should start with baby steps, but I also have a desire to set up a M playroom/classroom at home. That would be a big project. My oldest is 2.75 so he's not quite ready for many of the activities. I think it would be interesting to select a few of the introductory practical life, sensorial and math experiences.

I've looked at M homeschooling sites and don't feel anything quite fits what I'm envisioning. I would like to experiment with maybe 4-6 M materials and then see how DS responds and then take next steps from there as he takes to it.

Need to give it a little more thought. I desire a pink tower but that may be more for "me"!

[MaryCeleste]

Originally Posted by KBecks

I've looked at M homeschooling sites and don't feel anything quite fits what I'm envisioning.

Do you have access to some good-quality primary teachers' albums? These are the manuals that teachers write during their training. They have detailed descriptions of the steps involved in presenting each material, and they also explain how each one fits into the overall curriculum (purpose, sequence, etc.). IMO, they're a must-have if you want to move beyond the "pouring beans" types of activities.

Shu-Chen Jenny Yen's free online album pages are quite bare-bones; some people use them, but I find them confusing and hard to visualize. These ones are much better, IMO, and not too expensive (around $20-$30 per subject area):

Montessori Matters (available from Nienhuis) - B/W illustrations; covers multiple subjects in one volume
Montessori Research & Development albums - lots of detail; few illustrations

Need to give it a little more thought. I desire a pink tower but that may be more for "me"!

Yes, they are lovely. After we bought ours, I didn't introduce it to DD for a while, but I kept taking it out of the box to gaze at it.