Montessori Family Program#
Some time ago, my daughter was born, and I started reading some parenting books. "Montessori Family Program" is one of them. Maria Montessori is an Italian early childhood educator, and the parenting philosophy named after her can be summarized as: observe the child, remove obstacles to the child's development, guide the child into a new environment, observe again, remove again, guide again, and repeat the cycle. Since each child has their own rhythm, parents need to recognize the child's traits and provide appropriate guidance.
The two aspects emphasized in the book are: observation and environmental design.
Observation is mainly conducted from five aspects: 1. Gross motor skills 2. Fine motor skills 3. Language 4. Cognition 5. Social skills
Environmental design mainly focuses on four areas: 1. Sleep area 2. Feeding area 3. Care area 4. Activity area
The reason for fixing these four areas is that children naturally like a sense of order; an orderly environment and rhythm provide a sense of security for children and stabilize the quality of neural connections. However, the environment is not fixed and changes with the child, but only a little at a time and in action with the child.
I then collected and organized the growth records of Montessori babies for reference. It is still important to emphasize that each baby has their own rhythm and does not need to be completely compared. However, it is essential to consciously pay attention to the five aspects of the child's growth and then provide guidance.
Montessori Baby 1-Month Growth Observation Notes#
Early education focus: Touch, black-and-white card tracking, conversation
Auxiliary tools: Black-and-white cards
① The Moro Reflex is a newborn reflex first discovered and described by Austrian pediatrician Emest Moro. When the baby's position or posture changes, they will quickly extend their arms outward and then return to a hugging position.
② The grasp reflex refers to any object that touches the palms and soles, which will immediately trigger the baby to make a reflexive action, clenching their hands into fists and tightly grasping the object placed in their hands.
Montessori Baby 2-Month Growth Observation Notes#
Early education focus: Lifting head (starting at 10 seconds, gradually extending), sand shaker, discerning sound sources
Auxiliary tools: Sand shaker, fitness rack
Montessori Baby 3-Month Growth Observation Notes#
Early education focus: Tracking, lifting head, rolling over, grasping
Auxiliary tools: Color cards, hand bells
Montessori Baby 4-Month Growth Observation Notes#
Early education focus: Hand switching, grasping smaller toys, rolling over
Auxiliary tools: Manhattan ball, hole ball
Montessori Baby 5-Month Growth Observation Notes#
Early education focus: Continuous rolling over, exaggerated mouth movements in conversation, teasing crawling
Auxiliary tools: Mirror, cloth book, sound book
Montessori Baby 6-Month Growth Observation Notes#
Early education focus: Sitting with support - independent sitting, learning to crawl, storytelling, hide-and-seek, recognizing oneself
Auxiliary tools: Learning table, hexagonal blocks, touch books, soft building blocks, crawling toys
Montessori Baby 7-Month Growth Observation Notes#
Early education focus: Sitting, crawling, pinching objects, clapping, tearing paper, tearing tape, hide-and-seek, recognizing objects
Auxiliary tools: Melt-in-your-mouth snacks, hand drums, paper tape
Montessori Baby 8-Month Growth Observation Notes#
Early education focus: Crawling on all fours, crawling over obstacles, repeating sounds
Auxiliary tools: Treasure box, dancing goose, real object cards
Montessori Baby 9-Month Growth Observation Notes#
Early education focus: Kneeling, pointing, knocking, mimicking actions, understanding cause and effect
Auxiliary tools: Pull-along toys, play table
Montessori Baby 10-Month Growth Observation Notes#
Early education focus: Standing with support, learning to pronounce, identifying objects, understanding commands
Auxiliary tools: Xylophone, ocean sensory bag, fishing toys
Montessori Baby 11-Month Growth Observation Notes#
Early education focus: Climbing up and down, squatting, bending over, walking with support, identifying objects, cooperating in dressing, pointing at objects
Auxiliary tools: Animal, fruit, and vegetable posters, stacking toys, water bottles
Montessori Baby 12-Month Growth Observation Notes#
Early education focus: Pushing a cart, climbing stairs, self-feeding, puzzles, drawing, mimicking sounds
Auxiliary tools: Beads, simple puzzles, building blocks, woodpecker catching bugs, busy board