Last week I started my student teaching in an urban public school that is dotted with certain classes that practice the Montessori Method. As an early-childhood candidate, I'll spend 3 weeks in the Children's House (a Montessori term for a classroom with 3 to 5 year olds) and then 10 weeks in the E-1 setting (1st to 3rd grade). Eventually more and more responsibilities will be given to me, but the first few weeks will be filled with lots of opportunities to observe and practice. I specifically wanted to learn more about the Montessori method--as its emphasis on independence, multi-age and varied-ability classrooms, and peace and global education--seemed to resonate with the type of teaching/learning I'd like to do. Although Montessori was initially intended for those deemed "ineducable" (particularly those in poor and urban areas, and children with disabilities) it slowly became part of the education for wealthy people. I appreciated the idea that I could learn Montessori in the environment where it was initially intended.
Patience was the teaching trait I was reminded of this week. It seems particularly fitting as this is a trait that I believe is a key to teaching and learning. On the first day, I was working one-on-one with a student during the literacy block. She was initially quieter with me, so as she sat with her book I was unsure how to intervene when she did not seem to know the word on the page. After waiting a bit, I decided to ask her some guiding questions about ways to approach the difficult word. She eventually figured it out, but when the word came up on the next page she did not recognize it. I sat again and eventually asked more guiding questions. But there was no luck again. This time I whispered the word into her ear, thinking that she just need a bit of prompting. She quickly turned to me and said, “Hey! Don’t tell me!” I smiled and replied, “You’re right. Thanks for telling me that.” It was the greatest gift she could give me on the first day. When there are other students I want to get to in the classroom, I also need to respect the dedication and time that each student is putting into their learning and somehow balance waiting, observing and knowing when and how to prompt. During the rest of my first day and on Friday, I spent more time telling students, “I’m going to come back and check-in.” I was able to check-in with more students and see their progress at their pace, which I hopes help them realize that this is truly a learning environment. And I definitely didn't do it perfectly...when one of the teacher's step out of the classroom...quickly the classroom seemed to be much more chaotic. It became much harder for me and the kids to stay in one place...movement became much quicker. That's why I get lots of time to practice all of this :)
