The Montessori Message

The Montessori Message

Monthly Archives: October 2018

What do you need to succeed?

25 Thursday Oct 2018

Posted by Lisa Lalama in Learning

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

experiential learning, know yourself, knowing yourself, success

I’m a planner. I plot out how I will accomplish both small and large tasks, and I rarely leave things until the last minute. Over the years I have had to adjust my expectations. I used to tackle jobs with the intent of finishing them the same day I started. I no longer hold that expectation. I rarely have enough time to finish any job during the same day I began it. That would be a luxury.

So how do I reconcile reality with my preferences? How do I adapt? It’s not easy by any means. It’s hard to work against our preferences, many of which are firmly established and reinforced through experience. In work and in schools, many of the demands are placed by external forces and expectations. Most of us manage to meet the expectations because we want to do what is expected. Others struggle to meet them.

Schools, at their best, allow children to discover what they need to succeed. Are they planners or procrastinators? Do they dive in and get things done, or do they take the “wait and see” approach? Is a student more apt to work more productively alone or with a group? Where does their energy come from? All of these are things to be discovered and learned as children move through life and school. Our job, as educators, is to allow them to experiment, succeed, fail, and learn from their successes and failures. Telling them what to do and what works for us is of little help. Learning occurs best when it draws on experience.

Most of us wish we knew as much about ourselves as children as we do today. Not only do our schools exist to help children learn content – they also help them learn what they need to succeed and when they are their most productive. The best schools encourage children to be their best, learning along the way what that means for each of them.

Changes

11 Thursday Oct 2018

Posted by Lisa Lalama in 21st century learning, Research

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

change, education, hamilton, innovation, NFL, research, schools, theater

I love the game of football. I’m also a huge theater buff. What do these things have in common? Throughout my lifetime, and I’m sure before, both this sport and art form have changed. They have changed in their presentation to the public. The rules of the game and the rules of theater have shifted. Theater and football today are clearly different than they were 30 years ago. Suffering penalties under the new roughing the passer rules in the NFL or attending a performance of “Hamilton” highlight some of these differences. Things change.

The same is true in schools. The best schools today are not exactly like the schools of our childhood. The educational practices, curricula and even the buildings do not look like they did 20, 30 or 40 years ago. They have been adapted and changed to reflect what we now know through research, science and practice. We now know much more about how learning occurs. There are fMRIs and studies in neuroscience that allow us to actually see how the brain responds to varying stimuli and ultimately how different areas of the brain “light up” during certain tasks. There are years of data that guide educators as they make instructional decisions for students. To put it simply, we know more now than we knew then, whenever “then” was – 30 years ago or last year.

Learning brings the evolution of thought and change. What educators embraced even 10 years ago in teaching may now be dormant as other practices have taken their place. The best thing that can happen in education is to make thoughtful shifts in practice that make learning more accessible for all learners. Everything we do must be with the students, how to best serve them each and every day, in mind.

Teamwork

04 Thursday Oct 2018

Posted by Lisa Lalama in 21st century learning

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

collaboration, evaluation, schools, soft skills, team, teamwork

Everyone agrees that the rate of change in our world is faster than it has ever been. We notice it in every aspect of our lives. Schools may feel it more than other places. As things are rapidly shifting, one of the things we hear more about is the importance of “soft skills.” These are not quantifiable and typically not part of a school’s evaluation system. However, they are important when setting the stage for a student’s future.

One of those skills is teamwork. How effectively can a student work with one or more others to set a goal, do meaningful work and meet a deadline? We’ve all been in groups where some members participate more fully than others. We know the frustration in doing more than our fair share and we know the wonder when everything clicks and everyone is working together toward a shared goal. Continue reading →

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 3,024 other subscribers

Like WMS on Facebook

Like WMS on Facebook

Recent Posts

  • It’s time to leap!
  • Growing & Learning
  • It’s All Academic
  • The Art and Science of Learning
  • Teaching or Learning

Recent Comments

Gilles on What are you reading?
Manigandan on The Montessori Difference
Gilles on Do you believe in your ch…
missbritt88 on The Montessori Difference
Phillip Montessori on The Montessori Difference

Categories

  • 21st century learning
  • Camp Montessori
  • community service
  • education systems
  • Extended Day Programs
  • Learning
  • learning environment
  • making a difference
  • Mindset
  • Montessori Education
  • Parenting
  • Research
  • Schools of the Future
  • STEM
  • Teachers
  • Uncategorized
  • Wilmington Montessori School

Archives

  • February 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014

RSS Feeds

  • RSS - Posts
  • RSS - Comments

Blog Stats

  • 57,165 hits

Wilmington Montessori School

1400 Harvey Road
Wilmington, DE 19810
302-475-0555
blog@wmsde.org

Blog at WordPress.com.

  • Follow Following
    • The Montessori Message
    • Join 144 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • The Montessori Message
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar