Description
Product information:
- ISBN: 9789619667323
- Author: Chiara Piroddi
- Illustrator: Agnese Baruzzi
- Translator: Irena Tomažin
- Language: Slovene edition
- Format: 215 × 270 × 10 cm
- Recommended age: 3-4 years
- Publisher: Kalejdoskop 64
- Date of publishing: 2024
- Warning: Not suitable for children under 3. Small parts. Choking hazard.
More about the book:
The Montessori: a World of Achievement book series is authored by Chiara Piroddi, a renowned Italian psychologist, psychotherapist, and Montessori educator. The books are illustrated by Agnese Baruzzi.
For a child to develop autonomy and independence, they need to explore the world and their environment freely. Various household chores help them become aware of their actions and develop practical skills. By trying everyday tasks typically performed by adults, the child shifts from being a passive observer to actively taking part. This significantly strengthens their sense of self-efficacy, worth, and self-respect, which will support them as they grow.
Therefore, it is crucial to adapt the home environment into a pleasant and stimulating space that suits the child’s developmental stage and skills, encouraging them to be independent in daily life. The home environment offers many activities the child can master, such as developing a sense of order and cleanliness, personal hygiene, and respect for the environment. These activities also foster the development of the child’s senses, vocabulary, and arithmetic concepts.
This book is perfect for children ages 3-4 and offers suggestions on how to arrange the home according to Maria Montessori’s method, as well as ideas for play and learning activities that can be done at home.
The book is divided into five areas, each corresponding to a different part of the home: the kitchen, living room, bedroom, bathroom, and balcony. For each space, the book shows how it can be furnished following Montessori principles. The child is encouraged to add stickers depicting furniture that is typical for each room. In areas where there are pieces of furniture particularly characteristic of Montessori pedagogy (like a step stool or a bed), brief explanations of the furniture’s features are also included.
The book further offers numerous playful activities that can be carried out at home to improve the child’s fine motor skills and instill a sense of respect for their home. Through coloring illustrations, counting objects, and identifying numbers and shapes, the child is introduced to activities that help with tidying toys, recognizing and sorting kitchen items, and learning personal hygiene and cleanliness. The child will also learn how to set a table with utensils, sort clothes in the wardrobe and label them appropriately, and store toys in the right baskets. In the end, the book also offers tips on creating a small garden on the balcony or windowsill to help develop a sense of care for plants. All activities in the book encourage easy, engaging, and enjoyable ways of acquiring new knowledge and practical skills, fully integrated into the child’s daily life.
The activities are divided into:
- Graphomotor exercises, improving eye-hand coordination, motor awareness, fine motor skills, and writing development.
- Practical skill activities, such as coloring within defined areas.
- Visual and spatial awareness activities, focusing on recognition and comprehension.
- Logical sequencing and sorting tasks, promoting order and organization skills.
It is important not to interrupt or correct the child while they are focused on the activities. The tasks are designed to allow children to identify and correct their own mistakes. Thanks to colored borders and dotted lines that guide the pencil’s direction, children have strategies at their disposal to intuitively and playfully discover the correct solution on their own.
