Montessori Pick of the Day

Early Readers

Margaret Hillert takes themes of folk lore and fairy tales and turns them into fun and exciting beginning to read books. Sometimes, early reading books are so boring that children are put off from reading.

Check them out at your local library. There should be some on the shelves. Here are some our favorites.

Mount Saint Helens

One of the most interesting stories of ecosystem recovery is what happened after the eruption Mount Saint Helens.  Lessons from the Wasteland explains why this area recovered so quickly.

Directions for Volcano Model

How to Make a Paper Mache Volcano by eHow.

How to Make a Playdough Volcano.

Make A Volcano

Hands on science is a great way to show concepts, such as how a volcano works. Here are some links for making a volcano.

Make Your Own Volcano

Lava Lamp or Salt Volcano

How to Draw A Beaver

Learning to draw with circles is a good way to teach about shapes and patterns. Here is a "how to draw" for a beaver.

Ugly Dolls & Hello Kitty

I guess these dolls are very popular now in D.C..

Frog Visor Craft

Plastic visors can help you build all sorts of costumes, insects, birds, flowers and frogs. Here are directions to make a frog visor.

Jumping Frogs

You can make paper jumping frogs. Here are some printouts and directions:
Make an Origami Jumping Frog
Video How to Make a Jumping Frog
How to Make an Origami Jumping Frog with an Index Card

No Sew Frog

This frog is made basically from felt, fabric glue and pipe cleaners. It has a free download pattern. The frog is bendable too.

Homemade Scrabble Game

You can make a simple scrabble game or like this beautiful one. If you want to make the game a little more Montessori, use lower case letters for younger children.

My children loved making board games. If you make a game with your children, they understand the concept of playing the game. Talk about the parts of the game and how they will be used.