Wednesday, February 4

Land, Air and Water

I had been debating whether or not to buy the Montessori Land and Water globe. There are so many materials I want for our room, that it makes it difficult trying to decide . I had thought about trying to make one, but since I know it will be used for a sibling down the line, I ended up purchasing. For anyone not familiar with the globe, it is a small globe with the continents made of sandpaper and the water areas painted blue. It provides a sensory experience for the child as they feel the water and the land on the globe. A three -period lesson is given (1. This is land, This is water, 2. Show me land- Show me water, 3. What do we call this?) to name the parts. I, personally , never realized how much water there is verses land until I took Montessori training classes and felt the difference on the sandpaper globe. It is a wonderful learning tool.

The three elements lesson teaches the child that the earth is made three elements: land, air and water. Here is the three elements lesson. The containers hold: water, dirt(land), and air. After the child categorizes, she can turn over the cards to see if she is correct (this is the Control of Error: a Montessori term for the way the child can check for correctness w/o having to ask an adult)


Here is a video of my daughter singing the Land, Air and Water song used when we introduce the 3 Elements lesson. The Lyrics are as follows:
The Earth is made of land, air, and water
land, air and water,
land, air and water,
The Earth is made of land, air and water
Isn't nice to see?

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

At school we have a fabulous globe that is a sandpaper continents globe - maybe you could paint yours to match the continents. It saves having to buy another globe which is why we bought this one!

Amy said...

That is a really good idea. I have never seen one before. Too bad I already got both.

Unknown said...

i'm starting to homeschool my son in a few month (18 month old) and I am wondering how to set up the furniture for his classroom. what have you found really useful and what's your overall paradigm for choosing materials/configuring the space?

thanks so much!

aimee

Amy said...

hi Aimee, For a young age, like your son, one suggestion I would have is to make sure there is not too much on the shelves. I have read the suggested amount is two lessons per shelf, so that the child can easily put things back correctly. I would try to keep practical life on a separate shelf in an area away from lang/sensorial and other materials. I always put sensorial materials near the rug since they are used on the floor. Have a table near practical life. Have all cleaning materials easily accessible near the practical life area. When starting have more familiar activities than ones that require a lesson. Introduce new activities slowly. Focus on using the rug, returning activities to shelves and the general routine. How exciting for you both!! Have fun!!