Learn and Play Montessori

Deciding where your child is going to go to preschool is a big decision. If you’ve been seriously looking into Montessori schools, there’s a chance you have a few questions. Let’s take a look at a few of the most commonly asked questions about Montessori schools.

How Many Students Are in a Montessori Class?
Any Montessori preschool, daycare, kindergarten, or grade school, strive to have small classrooms. This is because the values of the Montessori approach are perceived better in a smaller setting. Day cares for infants and toddlers tend to range from 10 to 15 students. This gives the teacher more of a chance to get to know your child as an individual rather than just one of their pupils. In public schools, the student/teacher ratio was 16.1 in 2013, but in a Montessori school, the ratio is much lower.

How Do Students Learn?
If you’ve been doing some research on Montessori programs you’re probably familiar with the idea that students aren’t given a set schedule, but rather are free to learn on their own. Many people may be questioning how a child is able to learn without any structure, but it’s actually quite helpful. A child that doesn’t follow a curriculum is given the chance to fully understand one concept before moving on to the next. This gives a child a better understanding of what’s going on and allows them to do things on their own.

Why Aren’t Students Graded?
The Montessori approach believes that grades are virtually pointless for a child and their learning. It says that motivation comes from within, rather external reinforcement. Even though grades aren’t assigned through a Montessori approach, the student is observed in terms of their progress and readiness to move on to a new lesson. Most Montessori schools will hold a conference each year for the family so they can see what their child has been doing and hear the teacher’s assessment.

Montessori schools are extremely unique, so parents may have questions about the approach before sending their child to one of their centers. Take a look at three of the most commonly asked questions listed above before sending your child in on their first day.

In 2004 to 2005, about 64% of two-year-olds had a highly expressive vocabulary. However, it’s not always easy to get your toddler to start saying more than a few coherent words. If you’re noticing that your toddler isn’t quite as vocal as most kids their age, don’t worry. They have plenty of time to vocally develop on their own, and they surely will with time. But there are a number of ways you can encourage their vocality and help coax the words out. Here are just a few basic ways to encourage your toddler to talk more.

Slow Down and Be Authentic
First, many parents use a sort of ‘artificial’ tone when speaking to their toddler. Though this is usually completely well-intentioned, it can actually negatively affect how the toddler perceives language. That’s why it’s important to speak to your toddler in a genuine and authentic tone. Similarly, it’s important to slow down enough so the toddler has the chance to separate and distinguish each different word.

“Talking to our babies in our regular, authentic voice (but a little slower) reminds us that we are talking to a whole person. It’s easier and not as likely to induce headaches…It models for babies the natural tone and language we want them to adopt. The more they hear language spoken properly, the sooner they will learn and try speaking it,” writes Janet Lansbury.

Don’t Pressure
Many parents think it’s encouraging to ask their child questions about words, colors, numbers, or anything around them in hopes of getting them to ‘perform’ for relatives and friends. Again, while this is usually well-intended, it makes the child more likely to get nervous and freeze up. This can have a negative effect if you’re asking your child questions too frequently. So, instead of coaxing (“say ‘cookie’ for your grandma!”), let your child develop their own natural dialogue.

Ultimately, there are countless ways we can encourage our toddlers to open up and be more expressive — it just takes time, patience, and understanding. Of course, it’s also always a good idea to start looking at preschools in Danville California to get your child interacting with others their own age. For more information about daycares and preschools, contact Learn and Play Montessori School.