Spring time can be an exciting time in a Montessori classroom!  This is the season we can combine the beautiful botany and zoology materials with real samples from the outdoor environment.  The early spring months bring gorgeous budding flowers and trees as well as various crawling insects that fascinate young children.  This is a season that can help you bring your classroom lessons to life! It is important to provide nature activities that promote a love and basic understanding of the world of nature.

We can understand Montessori’s view on nature and the young child when we read The Secret of Childhood:  

 “A part of the normalizing process is to help the child understand and be comfortable with the things of nature.  Working with growing things--planting bulbs, collecting and identifying leaves…..is an important part of the extended Montessori environment, (The Secret of Childhood, p. 99)

Every child should experience the joy of planting a small seed, watering it and observing its growth.  Each spring I read books on plant growth, the spring season and of course insects!  The reading of non-fiction books can enlarge the child’s scientific and nature vocabulary.  In addition to reading non-fiction books I give lessons on the growth of a plant, dissecting a seed, dissecting a flower, leaf rubbings, and magnifying glass observations.

Maria Montessori felt very strongly that children should plant and nurture living plants.  Many Montessori schools have beautiful gardening areas but that is not always possible. 

“..what most develops a feeling of nature is the cultivation of living things,…it will always be possible to find a few square yards of land that may be cultivated, even a pot of flowers at a window, can if necessary, fulfill the purpose.”       Maria Montessori, The Montessori Method. pages 160-161

For as long as I can remember teaching, children in my classes have experienced planting a tiny seed, watering it, and watching it grow.  You can begin your gardening in almost any container…a glass jar, cup, or egg carton!  We have planted sunflowers, tomatoes, and watermelon outside which over took our first playground!  It was fun to watch those sunflowers grow taller than the children, and to harvest some very tasty tomatoes. 

Each year I introduce the magnifying glass to the children with a shelf work and small book that teaches them how to use a magnifying glass. I encourage the children to practice observation skills and compare, describe, and explain what they see on our nature tray.  Demonstrate to the children how to look through the magnifier up close and then move it further away.  Encourage them to look at objects from a variety of angles.  Try creating a nature table or tray with objects they can touch and view.  The nature area is a wonderful way to bring the outside world inside!

A favorite activity for all the children is a simple nature walk.  Each child is given a little brown paper bag in hand to pick up and store all of their little goodies that they find along the way! The nature walk is followed up with a sharing time when the children are allowed to share what they found.  We discuss and name the items then place them on our nature tray or table with a magnifying glass.  This is a GREAT VOCABULARY BUILDING EXERCISE.  A few of the items we have collected are:  twigs, pieces of bark, leaves, acorns, rocks, blades of grass, flower petals that have fallen, gravel, an old bird’s nest, a bird’s feather, a snail’s shell, and many different types of leaves.

Another spring time experience is the viewing of butterflies that fly around flowering plants.  We have often purchased the butterfly garden and watched the metamorphosis from a caterpillar to a beautiful butterfly.  Just last year, I was with my grandson and he saw a small caterpillar crawling on the drive way.  We quickly ran inside and retrieved a small glass jar.  We gently picked up the caterpillar with a twig and placed him in the jar with the twig, leaves and a little cap of water.  In a few days the caterpillar began the process of spinning his cocoon.   Then in about a week, the beautiful butterfly emerged.  It was quite an exciting experience for the adults and my grandson! 

Placing a bird feeder outside a classroom window or just outside of the playground fence is another great opportunity for children to view nature up close!  These simple experiences such as planting seeds, nature walks, a nature table with magnifying glass, the butterfly garden and bird feeder are concrete learning experiences that bring a deeper understanding to our Montessori Botany and Zoology lessons.  The possibilities of studies on nature are endless!  I hope you enjoy spring time learning with the children in your life.