Playful, meaningful connection with the world outdoors needs to be a fundamental ingredient of every childhood. An integral part of the Montessori philosophy
is the belief that children learn through personal experience. The summer at
Montessori Children’s House focuses on increasing the child’s awareness,
particularly in the area of life sciences. The summer is an ideal time for
exploration of our natural areas, bird life and other animal life surrounding
our school. The children plant and maintain their own garden of flowers and
vegetables. Many practical life
activities like washing, scrubbing and polishing are moved outdoors. The
program is designed to involve children in environmental education through
interactive stories, songs and games. They create arts and crafts
projects and conduct experiments and scientific studies. Regular cooking
classes take place in our summer kitchen and feature healthy products picked from
the garden. Outdoor exploration includes nature walks and scavenger hunts as
well as tending our MCH garden and creating a mini-Farmer’s Market and lemonade
stand.
A special
session in late summer focuses on increasing
the child’s awareness, particularly in the area of music learning. Parents recognize the earliest signs of
musical interest when children begin to capture portions of songs and move in
response to music. To reinforce a child’s spontaneous musical activities leads
to enhanced natural development of communication, expression, and cognition. It
is also a lot of fun! Along with the American Orff-Schulwerk Association we at
MCH are united in our belief that music and movement—to speak, sing and play;
to listen and understand; to move and create—should be an active and joyful
experience. 
Summer programs at MCH are open to current, past and future families who seek a nature based play environment where their children can explore and learn in a community of friends. For more information visit our website or call 645-2445.
