Introduction to Geography-Montessori

Introduction to geographics The initiation is learnting smaller, we now live in a global village due to our enlarged technical skills. It is at present as easy to fly from eg. Dublin to Rome as it was to drop dead from Dublin to Cork 150 years ago, Not to mention flights to the laze & nates. Geography has turned break finished to be the study of man in space. Between mass media and frequent travel the nipper is bombarded with impressions about the major planet he lives on. In todays world the child hears random words, name of countries with upheavels and wars & they get sc atomic number 18d.They really need to grapple w here(predicate) they argon, eventide on a larger scale. It is better to understand that a lot of things obtain far away and not in my neighbourhood. This will give them few sense of security. Geography is a science of earth annd its life- it includes a exposition of commonwealth, water and air. The roots of word geography are greek and it heart desc ription of the earth. When we talk about geography with 3-6 years it means pose some seeds of interest and it is not meant that we should teach so why do we have it? A child has his human tendencies for orientation exploration and order.We in addition give child name calling, which responds to the childs human tendencies for communication and metier period for language. However, the other sensitive periods also play a pull up s prosecutes and to top it all off the child also has an absorbent mind. Geography is presented as an extension of the language programme in our rooms, because it contains aural write 7 learn parts. Maria Montessori called her small geography inflexible-up an introduction to the world. It has an holistic approach, starting with the whole and ending in details (start with the globe, hence continentseventually to the place where they live).The purpose with geography is 2 fold. First you essential provide the child with activities, which second him t o order impressions and information. Secondly in primary you must introduce the child to his place in the cosmos(Universe). This will finally end in the study of ecology. As in all handle within extended language section the world could be round divided into three parts. 1. One dealing with practical life, i. e gushy with d deliver and water forms 2. The sensorial keys- the sandpaper globe and colour globe, continent map, map of Europe, map of Asia, America, Africa Ire shore up. 3. Language in its various stages i. e names of add and water forms, names of continents and oceans, geography folders- appearinging prospects from countries and people thitherin- oral, written and read language. As a practical life exercise the different land and water forms are presented as a pouring exercise. The models are do out of clay and put on small baking trays. The child will get a sensorial impression of what these water/land forms really are. Later the child will have picture tease/cla ssified cards, which will show them the same thing, a lake/an island etc. there are six pairs)and even later they will return as language extensions- first with the pictures only in he pre-reading stage and consequently with the naming and reading in the classified reading stage and even later in reading practice with the definition stages. The materials are 1. The globes the child of ? years experiences a peak in his visual sensitivity to form. Globes help him to form his impressions of the world and he move see it. We start out with a small globe with rough and smooth areas. This offers the child and chance to a. Grasp roughly what shape his planet is and . Sensorially explore by jot the land and water distri onlyion on the surface of the planet The land is rough and water is smooth. Phrases like as the world turns will take on a new meaning for the child. This globe is followed by the glum globe. It is similar in size and shape to the first globe but here the different contin ents are coloured in various colors- here we give the language of continent & ocean. 2. Puzzle maps The child will get to know their world. The eastern and western hemisphere allows the child to see the whole world at once, but flattened.The generate activity enhances the sensory recognition of the continents-initially purely sensorial but when the child himself begins to ask for names they are given by a 3-period lesson. Maps of each continent is then given-they show the political partitions of the continents into countries. We always begin with the childs own continent and then proceed by following the child, usually doing ace hemisphere at a time. To be menti mavend is that the knobs of the puzzle maps are placed where one finds the capital of each country- this is an indirect preparation for later work.The knobs also come as an indirect preparation for writing, as with the geometrical forms earlier. 3. Naming At the sensorial level names are given after the forms of the puz zles are learned. However its not uncommon for the child in Montessori schools to know the names of all the countries and counties of the childs own country/continent. At a later stage the child can also do a matching activity with flags ,and later (at reading stage) maps are provided with the names of the countries and capitals ( freeze maps).There should always be a stand with flags from the countries of the childrens own continent. They are there to give the children an idea of nations that stand for units. There are many countries in the world with many different people, but were all made from the same material. This is strongly brought forth in the picture folders weve made, which should be part of every Montessori environment. They should be colour coded, following the colours of the colour globe- with three in total for every globe. The first set shows general pictures of the continentsThe second set shows people, products, places and plants The third set is more culturally i nclined-with architecture, foods, art, and transportation etc. The prepared environment should provide all these things mentioned and also books and stories about people of the world-to help and give the children keys to the world of geography. All the materials should be kept in a picky segment of the room, on special shelves-be aware of not overloading. It is important too that the directress should make a secure rapport between the child and the material.This can partly be achieved through practical life activities, which put children into practical contact with children, e. g. how to pour land and water forms, how to dry, dusting globes, dusting maps, how to carry the globes, how to take out the puzzle maps, how to put it back and how to carry them. Later the child will learn how to put pins into the pin maps and you will show the child how to hold the flag in ones hand and carefully put it in the country where it should be and later introduce the names and main cities.You sho uld also, in the environment, have a little box with drawers for the child at reading stage. From this they can take out names of continents and countries etc. and label them on the puzzle maps. There should also be a good atlas and if practicable a large ordinary globe too. Artwork in geography could consist of making flags-using the rectangular inset of surface insets as a base for the flag( at this stage the child will be 4 4 ? years). The children can also draw outlines of the continents on the paper for the metal insets and colour them in, making a booklet of the continents.