Give Your Parent a Lesson

One of our favorite educational series events at La Jolla Montessori School is called “Give Your Parent a Lesson“. At this event, each child has the opportunity to show their parents/guardians how they work with their favorite materials in the classroom.  Many of our materials are game-based and interactive which gives families a chance to play with their child!

Here’s how it works:

Parents and children will have a 30-minute window to work together.

• • Each sibling should have their own time with their parents.

Guides will work with the children to think about their favorite materials they want to show you.

• • For many children these favorite materials may still be practical life work: caring for themselves and the environment, the kinds of activities we classify as ‘art’ (painting, pasting, punching, etc.).
  • Some children may be quite literal about giving you a lesson.  When they receive practical life exercises from the Guides, the guides generally do not talk during the presentation!  This enables the child to concentrate on what the Guide’s hands are doing.
  • When the lesson is over the Guides will say the magic words: “Now that you have had this lesson you may work with this material any time as much as you like.”  When the lesson is done, the child may want to put the material away to show you something else OR they may want you to practice.

Older children may want to show you a language or mathematics material they feel particularly proud to have received.

• • If it was a new lesson, they may make a ‘mistake’ and you may be tempted to correct them. Remember, most Montessori materials are process-oriented.  Resist the temptation to correct them.  Over time, your child will learn to correct themselves.
  • If it is a writing lesson, your child may spell out words phonetically.  Since are learning to become bilingual, they may interchange vowels that make different sounds in English and Spanish.  Again, resist the temptation to correct them.  As children move through the language curriculum they learn more about phonograms and correct spellings and they learn to correct themselves.  Focus on their accomplishments – isolating the correct number of sounds and combining them to write words.

The rules of the environment need to remain consistent:

• • We only work with materials we have received a lesson.  Guides will be in the classroom observing.  The only time they will intervene is if your child chooses a material they have not worked with yet.
  • We work with one material at a time.  If your child moves to choose a second material to show you, please remind them: “We need to put this one away first.  Can you show me how to put this material away?“
  • We take turns with materials.  Some materials are popular.  Your child may need to wait to show you the material.  If they are disappointed reassure them: “It’s OK, we have time.  Let’s ask ____ to tell us when they are done.”
  • Cleaning up is the work of the child.  Resist the temptation to clean up for your child.  If your child shows frustration at having to clean up, you can offer to help: “Would you like me to help you clean up?”  Then use prompts to guide their clean-up:
    • “What do we do first?“
    • We carry items on the trays. “Let’s put the materials back on the tray.” 
    • We roll protectors and aprons. “Would you like me to roll the protector or the apron?” 
    • We carry one item at a time. “How do we carry this?“

We look forward to seeing you at our Give Your Parent a Lesson event on April 20, 2023 (4:30 – 6:30 p.m.)!