talk to me about the 3 hour work cycle

[tatermom]

I am in the process of finding a Montessori school for my just-turned 3 year old for the fall. There are four schools in our area, two of which are very close to our house and these are the two I visited today. The closest one, within walking distance, turned out to be only "kind of" Montessori-- lacking a lot of good M materials (had things like Melissa and Doug puzzles on the shelves and only a few things I would consider genuine Montessori), and also only had a work cycle of about an hour and a half. The second school I visited seemed much better-- only "real" Montessori materials and things the teachers had put together themselves, and I like the atmosphere of the place and all. But it too only had a 1.5 hour work cycle! Is this a deal-breaker? Do you consider the 3 hour work cycle to be crucial to Montessori? The other 2 schools I'm considering are much more "hard core" Montessori but we are unlikely to get a spot at one of them (that one is a model AMI school) and the other would require about a half hour commute (that one is AMS), which I'd really like to avoid. The two I visited today are not official AMI or AMS but most of their teachers have trained at one or the other.

WWYD??

Thanks!

[MattBronsil]

It's ideal to have it. The 3 hour work cycle is actually just getting started into a deep concentration about 1/2 way through. The children enter what we call a "false fatigue." This is when there is a lot of activity happening, but not a lot of work. Children are wandering.

After that, the students develop a very deep and focused concentration.

As far as your options go, I would avoid that first school that did not have many materials and did not have the full work cycle. That makes me wonder what else may be lacking that wasn't obvious on a visit.

The 2nd school misses out on that 3 hour work cycle, but seems to provide a lot of other aspects of Montessori. It's worth looking into. Bottom line is your children will at least do better with a 1.5 hour work cycle as opposed to a work cycle where they change what they do every 10 minutes, which you will likely find in a traditional setting.

If the other 2 are just not a viable option, that may be your best choice.

Matt

[milehighmonkeys]

During this period, are they selecting from a variety of materials available, or do they focus on one task for the 3 hours? Interestingly, this wasn't even brought up when I visited our local AMI school.

[Lillianna]

I do think the 3 hour work cycle makes a huge difference in both the quality of work that you will see and the level of challenge that the children are willing to undertake. Also, given a 3 hour work cycle, teachers are more likely to include art, music, stories and dancing...and not leave these subjects to "specialists". Having separate times for art, music, etc sends a mixed message about the importance of these activities as well as turns academic work into more drilling and drudgery. Also, Montessori is "education for the whole child"...all abilities (musical, artistic, lingual, analytical) are developed and nurtured.
Sometimes you can influence a school to change the policy. Maybe there are other parents and faculty members that agree. I would suggest asking the Director about it.
Ultconsumer: during the 3 hour work cycle, the child is free to either work at the same activity or choose from many other hands-on, age-appropriate materials that are displayed at their level. If they have AMI cert, they should have 3 hours. Some of the older child will work on writing stories, doing research or some of the math materials for the entire cycle but the youngest ones are generally involved in many shorter activities and may spend a good portion of their time observing others.

[tatermom]

Thanks for the info, Lillianna and Matt. I think that we are going to enroll DS in the 2nd school for the fall but keep him on the waitlist for the excellent hard-to-get-into AMI model school so we have the option of switching eventually. I'm going to talk to the director of the other school about it, like Lillianna recommended-- who knows, maybe they would be willing to consider changing their schedule.

Thanks for the advice! I'm so excited about Montessori now-- I've been doing lots of reading and I can't wait to put DS in that environment!

(oh, and this is my post # ! )

[teagansmama]

Glad to hear you were able to make a decision that works for you - hope that space opens up at the other school!

[emmaegbert]

Originally Posted by Lillianna

I do think the 3 hour work cycle makes a huge difference in both the quality of work that you will see and the level of challenge that the children are willing to undertake. Also, given a 3 hour work cycle, teachers are more likely to include art, music, stories and dancing...and not leave these subjects to "specialists". Having separate times for art, music, etc sends a mixed message about the importance of these activities as well as turns academic work into more drilling and drudgery. Also, Montessori is "education for the whole child"...all abilities (musical, artistic, lingual, analytical) are developed and nurtured.

Lillianna, thanks for this. It articulates for me something that I find really troubling about the "special subjects" model. Ideally, in my home life I integrate music, art, observation of nature (i.e. science if you are 3), etc into my own and my son's daily life. I would love to see that carried over in school. My husband is an artist and works in a theater prop shop, my father is a musician and professor, and my mother is a painter and art teacher- so I've always lived with people for whom those "special" subjects are also daily work. (me I'm just a boring social science graduate student, but I like to sew and cook and sing and draw... just for the fun of it). I used to have this impression that Montessori was "all work no play" but as I learn more I see that this was a major misunderstanding-- and that developing the skills of observation and having the opportunity to do sustained creative work may be better integrated in the M classroom than others.

Funny, Heather and I are friends (in the real world, not online) but I just started reading the thread b/c I am interested and I am taking a procrastination break from my own 3-hour work cycle... My son is currently number 5 (or maybe 4? we heard someone else got accepted in January) on the waitlist for the "hard to get into AMI" school and I'm hopeful he'll get a spot for fall. There is probably nothing my son would love more than to have Heather's son in his class- they are great friends. (Unfortunately, if we get the good news that we've gotten one of these coveted spots, I'll then have to grapple with how to pay for it. More student loans, help from grandparents, begging for a tuition reduction...)

[Lillianna]

Originally Posted by emmaegbert

I used to have this impression that Montessori was "all work no play" but as I learn more I see that this was a major misunderstanding-- and that developing the skills of observation and having the opportunity to do sustained creative work may be better integrated in the M classroom than others.

Emma, My dh is an artist, too (ceramics) and also like you, I like to "get creative"; sewing,singing, piano...It's true, creativity comes after learning the skill and art of the craft. What is needed is training the eye to see variations in color and form, for the skin to feel texture and shape, for the hand to be strengthened, for the ear to hear tone and pitch...the "refinement of the senses" (MM).
I love how you put it: "the opportunity to do sustained creative work"...
so true.
Good Luck!

[MattBronsil]

Originally Posted by emmaegbert

I used to have this impression that Montessori was "all work no play" but as I learn more I see that this was a major misunderstanding-- and that developing the skills of observation and having the opportunity to do sustained creative work may be better integrated in the M classroom than others.

Everything just tends to come together. The 3 hour time period, the materials, the multi-age groups.... Things just flow well.

Matt

[tatermom]

Hi Emma! Funny to find you on this thread!

I'm actually thinking now that it might work out better to have DS in a half day program rather than a full day at one of the weaker Montessori schools that is close to our house because there is so much I'm able to do with DS at home that would supplement his experience at school. It would save us some money and then we'll be ready if/when DS gets a spot at the "good" school. Any thoughts on half day vs full day??

Thanks!