Math Day - a day of inspiration

​Every spring, we welcome parents into the Elementary classroom for a celebration of math. Every spring, students present their favorite math lessons to their community. And every spring, we emerge from Math Day feeling inspired and re-invigorated!
 
Montessori Elementary math is a unique and wonderful experience for kids. It truly builds solid skills foundations, love of math, and deep understanding of concepts. This has been proven over and over again in studies and in personal lives. As teachers, we are the guides, focused on leading students toward discovery instead of teaching them. This is a fine distinction rooted in the fact that Dr. Montessori knew that children need to be given the tools to construct their own understanding. We see a lot of "a-ha" moments in our classrooms and they are always a complete joy.
 
What is always remarkable to me is how the children talk about their math experiences, and how articulate they are about what makes these experiences unique and important. This year, students created this list of important things to know about Montessori math:
- Students choose their own lessons
- Independence!
- Math is hands-on - there are things to touch
- "Freedom to do what you need to do."
- FUN
-Everybody learns at their own pace.
-Visual and hand-eye coordination come together
-Materials are colorful
- Moving from concrete to abstract
- Complex math is made simple
- Variety of different kinds of math
-Going at your own pace means taking your time
-Reasonable due dates and reasonable expectations
-Children teach themselves lessons and make their own discoveries
-Teachers are guides
 
We hope that Math Day brought as many "a-ha!" moments to our parent participants and to our students as it did to us.
 
Nicole Champoux
Elementary Program Director
Upper Elementary Teacher
Montessori Children's House