Guest platedheart Posted September 15, 2011 Share Posted September 15, 2011 hello we we're wondering if anyone knew of an affordable montessori homeschool program ..that is not too intimidating ..I'm a little overwhelmed and the internet has been less than helpful and defiantly not affordable..:lurk5: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wapiti Posted September 15, 2011 Share Posted September 15, 2011 you might try this site: http://www.montessorimaterials.org/index.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KristenR Posted September 15, 2011 Share Posted September 15, 2011 What do you mean by program? Are you looking for a box curriculum sort of deal? Or are you simply looking to find supplies for their recommended activities? I was a substitute teacher for a short time at a local Montessori school and had to take a bunch of their classes to understand their teaching method. It was pretty informative and helped steer me to homeschool. I like a lot of ideas but find myself and my girls work well off of the Classical approach. That being said there are some "montessori-esque" things I still do. Depending on the ages of your child I might be able to recommend some books to help steer you in the montessori method. It is easy enough to simulate the montessori feel inside of your own home. I found it easier to make my own materials instead of purchasing the Expensive supplies from well known montessori brands. A recently found "blogging" friend of mine has an AWESOME montessori blog where she describes hher adventures homeschooling her two boys. Her kids are young but maybe you can find it helpful. Her blog is http://mymontessorimoments.com/ Hope it helps! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
serendipitous journey Posted September 16, 2011 Share Posted September 16, 2011 I've found Montessori materials well-suited to our Geography, and plan to use Montessori sources for botany/zoology this year. You can get actual manuals from montessorird, if you have any questions just ring them: they are kind and helpful. I've been happier with their manuals than their cards/booklets, but everything is fine. I adapt the suggestions as needed ... I've recently found this Montessori Primary Guide site which also has info. useful for actually instructing. Sorry this post is non-optimal, due to fussy sick toddler. Short story: there are tons of montessori-style cards, etc. online for teaching various subjects, either free or inexpensive if you print them and, probably, laminate them. A Google search for discount montessori will turn up suppliers for puzzles, etc.; I'd run a company by the Hive before ordering from them. I've found the hardest stuff to get my hands on is how to actually teach a subject to my little one, beginning to end, which is why I've been so happy to have access to the manuals. good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristineW Posted September 16, 2011 Share Posted September 16, 2011 How old are your children? For preschool, I'd see if your local library has Teach me to Do It Myself by Maja Pitamik or How to Raise An Amazing Child the Montessori Way by Timothy Seldin. Barbara Curtis also has a few books--Mommy, Teach Me! and Mommy, Teach Me to Read. Her website is http://www.mommyteachme.net/index.htm Christine W Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
serendipitous journey Posted September 16, 2011 Share Posted September 16, 2011 How old are your children? For preschool, I'd see if your local library has Teach me to Do It Myself by Maja Pitamik or How to Raise An Amazing Child the Montessori Way by Timothy Seldin. Barbara Curtis also has a few books--Mommy, Teach Me! and Mommy, Teach Me to Read. Her website is http://www.mommyteachme.net/index.htm Christine W :iagree: these are a great place to start if you have preschoolers. None of those resources ended up being usable for us, and I was grateful to find the more pedagogical materials ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shifra Posted September 16, 2011 Share Posted September 16, 2011 Montessori materials, no matter how you slice it, are expensive. You could make some of them yourself (there was a book Montessori on a Limited Budget by Elvira Farrow that you could use as reference), you could buy them at cheaper sources, but other than that, expect to pay a lot! A classic book (it's been around so long, my mother used it in the 1970s) is Elizabeth Hainstock's Teaching Montessori in the Home: The Pre-School Years and Teaching Montessori in the Home: The School Years. They are both still in print and very good at telling you exactly what you need and how to make the equipment cheaply. A more recent book, Montessori Play and Learn by Lesley Britton, has pages that you could copy to make some of the materials, including the geography materials. I have bought Montessori materials from Montessori N Such, but their shipping is very expensive. Even Amazon.com sells montessori materials, and their shipping is probably reasonable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murmer Posted September 16, 2011 Share Posted September 16, 2011 There is an ebook called Montessori at home that I have that has some really good ideas, it lists the "have to" buys and talks about ways to make other things. Its at montessoriathome.com It is 8 dollars to download. I have really enjoyed it and feel like it was a nice way to integrate montessori with my kids. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Momling Posted September 16, 2011 Share Posted September 16, 2011 I think a lot of well meaning parents latch onto the idea of "Montessori" being about the materials. I'd start by reading some of the books suggested along with "Montessori: the science behind the genius". If you can, check out some Montessori elementary classrooms and see how the kids are interacting with the teacher and classmates. There's a really cool flow and atmosphere in a good Montessori class. I don't know that it's possible to replicate it at home, but I sure wish it was. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
serendipitous journey Posted September 16, 2011 Share Posted September 16, 2011 I think a lot of well meaning parents latch onto the idea of "Montessori" being about the materials. That's me ;) but at least it's not accidental. Or maybe that's even worse ... at any rate, the Montessori pedagogical methods were what simply did not work well with Button. Bot-bot is more mellow tempered and it would probably be fine. But my oldest was so particular, perfectionistic and had such strong ideas that he would never (really, truly never) go through a Montessori lesson as given. He would not tolerate a presentation of materials, and he would not voluntarily select a project and work through it on his own, and he also used nearly everything for purposes other than the ones they were designed for. I read Montessori's original work, the modern adaptations, tried Montessori for the Earth's ideas, and did my best to apply concepts from the Michael Olaf articles, but it didn't work well. However, incorporating language and math materials to his learning style worked very well (not all materials worked, the movable alphabet being a notable no-go for language learning but he loved playing with the letters) and using the MontessoriRD geography manual with some other materials & sources has been invaluable. I've been surprised that more parents here, who are often looking for rigorous scientific lessons, do not use Montessori methods for biology, physics, and chemistry. Having seen this thread I imagine that it is because the Montessori pedagogical methods have goals and implementations different to the classical method; but for a systematic, thorough, engaging and accurate resource the Montessori materials are hard to beat. It has taken me some experimenting but it's working well now. So I would just say that while the materials are NOT the method, that can be a good thing for some of us :001_smile: True Montessori methods, I agree, are ill-suited to the home, but I know that many homeschoolers have gently adapted them and are quite happy with the results. -- this seems like a very fruitful thread! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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