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Nurturing the Years of Wonder ( Forum Locked)
4Real Forums : Nurturing the Years of Wonder

Topic: Comprehensive List of Materials, Tools...

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Meredith
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Posted: June 12 2007 at 6:23pm \| IP Logged

Mackfam wrote:

BTW...I downloaded Lori's Comprehensive list of Materials, Skills, and Concepts and they are so worth the $$$ to me. After printing and viewing I was so excited to find the visual order I had been looking for. Everything is listed in the order it should be presented, so I can just plan ahead here and print different presentations off the web as we move through her checklists. Just thought I'd mention it here in case anybody else was having a hard time putting a big picture together like I was.

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Meredith
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ALmom
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Posted: June 13 2007 at 3:02pm \| IP Logged

Thank you, thank you, thank you. You just made my life so much easier. I cannot wait till dh comes home and we can link here and get a better start on planning our next year. You saved me tons of searching time, even if I did know to go to Montessori Lori's site, I would have spent hours searching and wondering if I'd gotten what she mentioned. I am so excited. This is the first time I've seen anything for the 9 - 12 yo, too. Happy dance from me!

Janet

Mackfam
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Posted: June 13 2007 at 3:45pm \| IP Logged

Janet - You're welcome. I went back and forth for a couple of weeks deciding whether or not to download. I have plenty of presentations, but I was really having some difficulty putting it all together in my head. Like you, I was looking for a little more guidance for our 10yo. These are perfect. There's more here than you could ever cover in 3 years, but it's all in order so there is some guidance as to what order to present various materials. The 3-6 and 6-9 guides are just as exciting! Naturally, I have every age category

. These are a real treasure for me! Glad you like them too. In addition to downloading practically everything Lori has on her site

I also downloaded the Research Guide Collection which I also like very much. If you'd like to see any of her cards, research guides, or just about anything else she has

let me know and I can bring it Monday so you can take a look.

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Jen Mackintosh
Wife to Rob, mom to dd 19

, ds 16

, ds 11

, dd 8

, and dd 3

Wildflowers and Marbles

Jordan
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Posted: June 13 2007 at 3:45pm \| IP Logged

I just ordered it for the 3-6 group! Thanks for the tip.

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Jordan

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Mackfam
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Posted: June 13 2007 at 3:46pm \| IP Logged

Oh - you were posting while I was Jordan. You're welcome!!

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Jen Mackintosh
Wife to Rob, mom to dd 19

, ds 16

, ds 11

, dd 8

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Wildflowers and Marbles

AndreaG
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Posted: June 13 2007 at 4:30pm \| IP Logged

Thanks for sharing this- I think I wil be downloading quite a few things from Lori's site- if I ever get my printer working.

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Andrea
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Meredith
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Posted: June 25 2007 at 1:32pm \| IP Logged

Mackfam wrote:

In addition to downloading practically everything Lori has on her site

I also downloaded the Research Guide Collection which I also like very much.

What exactly do these contain, can you help me out here a little, they look really intriguing and I'd love a little sampling of info from one of these and maybe *how* you plan to use them. Thank you for sharing as the resident "download" Queen, which I am quickly becoming myself

Blessings!

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Meredith
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AndreaG
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Posted: June 25 2007 at 1:55pm \| IP Logged

Ooh! I want to hear about the research guides too! I am most likely going to order them as well.

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Andrea
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Read Through the Catechism in a Year- For Moms!

Mackfam
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Posted: June 25 2007 at 2:19pm \| IP Logged

the download queen huh?

allright - if you could see my desktop and all of the downloads from Montessori Materials...

but they were free

Ok - lemme get to the meat of your question - The Research Guide Collection...

First, here's a list of all the subjects covered in the collection:
1.Plant Research
2.Animal Research
3.Geography Research (including state, country, continent, and geographic features)
4.Astronomy Research (including planet, earth, sun, moon)
5.Geographic Features Research (including island,volcano, coastline,mountain)
6.History Research (including calendar, time line of life, rocks and minerals, ancient civilization)
7.Biomes Set 1 (including desert, ocean, rain forest, grasslands)
8.Biomes Set 2 (including wetlands, woodlands, tundra, savanna)

If a research subject is broken down (#'s 3,4,5,6,7,8) it has only one card of questions. Plants and Animals offera beginning research card with simpler questions, and an advanced research card for older students.

Here are a few of the questions from Beginning Plant:

1. What is the name of this plant?
2. What region does it grow in? Choose one: torrid, frigid, temperate
3. How does it reproduce? Choose one: seeds, spores, cell division
...

From Advanced Plant:

1. Choose a plant to research. What is the name of this plant? In what kind of biome (ocean, woodland, rain forest, desert, grasslands, tundra) does it grow?

2. Where does this plant fit on the Plant Kingdom Chart? For example, is it flowering or nonflowering? Be as specific as possible.
...

Each set of guides comes with brief instructions. The questions are so self-guiding to me that they don't leave the indecisive child just sitting there going "HUH?"

Ok - how I plan to use. I hope to arrange them to coordinate with my introduction to topics throughout the year. I meant for my 10yo to use them primarily to provide penmanship and writing/grammar practice while delving into an ongoing topic of study. Primarily I will set them out on science trays or baskets, or set the geography cards out on the geography center.

I wanted the geography cards to stretch the potential in the geography materials.

The science cards are to be set out with corresponding materials, for example, the astronomy set will be set out with a our astronomy books, our rotating planetarium, binoculars for viewing celestial objects, nature journal, clay for making planet models, clay for making earth with different colors for the earth core (visible when we cut planet in half,) phases of the moon chart, materials for making pinhole camera, planet nomenclature cards, and I'm going to look for some phases of the moon nomenclature cards and it would also be neat to find a set of nomenclature cards with sun phenomena on them - can you see all the potential??

The cards really facilitate independent learning, and they fit the idea of the science trays that Katie suggested on another thread. It is my hope that I can set up my own science and nature study centers with the help of these research cards that should guide the research.

I hope this helps some Meredith - there is a lot of great potential in these cards for the older child, but having looked at them they are really suited for the child who is reading very well. I am going to try to have my 6yo work with the beginner cards, and I may make my own for him to use in the basket along with the more advanced cards in the other subjects. Let me know if you're looking for any more specifics?

...your download queen

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Jen Mackintosh
Wife to Rob, mom to dd 19

, ds 16

, ds 11

, dd 8

, and dd 3

Wildflowers and Marbles

Meredith
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Posted: June 25 2007 at 2:38pm \| IP Logged

Jennifer, this is so great!! SO, so helpful as it's a bit hard to tell from the site, but they just seem like such great springboard material and I totally *see* how they are helping you to organize!!

This is JUST the direction I needed!

And you know I'm just teasing

Thank you so much, I know this will be useful for many here

Blessings!

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Meredith
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Mackfam
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Posted: June 25 2007 at 2:49pm \| IP Logged

Of course Meredith - I knew!

I hope you didn't think I was offended! I can take a joke - especially if it was spot on - really...you ought to see my desktop!

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Jen Mackintosh
Wife to Rob, mom to dd 19

, ds 16

, ds 11

, dd 8

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Wildflowers and Marbles

lapazfarm
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Posted: June 25 2007 at 4:16pm \| IP Logged

Those cards sound exactly like what I do with my ds, only I have been writing my own. I write ideas for projects and activities on index cards,place them in the appropriate center (where he can find all the materials he needs), and he chooses which to do. It works really well and he loves it. One problem I see with the pre-made cards is that they would not be as tailored to my son's interests as the ones I have been making myself. Another would be that they do cost at least a little money and mine are free!LOL! But I can see how it would be a nice break to get ideas from somewhere besides my own head once in a while!
I am actually spending some time this summer writing out a bunch of cards for each subject for him, so I will have them ready to go when school cranks up again.
This topic actually goes along with the science tray thread quite well. I could see folks using these cards on trays with all of the materials needed.

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Theresa
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montessori_lori
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Posted: June 25 2007 at 6:39pm \| IP Logged

Guys, I really like feedback like this. What could I add to the Research Guide listings to make it easier to understand what they are and what they do?

I don't like long descriptions, but is there something short and sweet that would help?

Search for other posts by montessori_lori

Donna Marie
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Posted: June 25 2007 at 7:20pm \| IP Logged

Mackfam wrote:

Of course Meredith - I knew!

I hope you didn't think I was offended! I can take a joke - especially if it was spot on - really...you ought to see my desktop!

Unless you are like me lately...I have a folder on my desktop that my ds labeled "desktop" because it was too cluttered...[LOL}

God love you,
Donna Marie from NJ
hs momma to 7dc

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Donna Marie from NJ
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Mackfam
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Posted: June 25 2007 at 7:42pm \| IP Logged

Lori,
You list the basics very thoroughly on your site, the biggest draw for me once I got the cards was that on your instructional card you list several ways to extend the lesson. This turns one set of research cards into an entire unit study that has a lot of potential. I'm also thrilled when I find something that extends the usefulness of a material I might have - like the research cards do. The research card springboards the learning on the topic and helps organize and direct the child in independent learning.

Since I am trying to set up learning centers for my 10yo in a variety of subjects that facilitate independent learning that is somewhat guided by the materials I provide, I found these research guides to be exactly what I needed.

I'm not sure if this helps you at all in adding a brief description, this is just why I found them so essential.

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Jen Mackintosh
Wife to Rob, mom to dd 19

, ds 16

, ds 11

, dd 8

, and dd 3

Wildflowers and Marbles

Mackfam
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Posted: June 25 2007 at 7:45pm \| IP Logged

Donna Marie wrote:

Mackfam wrote:

Of course Meredith - I knew!

I hope you didn't think I was offended! I can take a joke - especially if it was spot on - really...you ought to see my desktop!

Unless you are like me lately...I have a folder on my desktop that my ds labeled "desktop" because it was too cluttered...[LOL}

God love you,
Donna Marie from NJ
hs momma to 7dc

- I love this idea - the folder labeled desktop - on the desktop!! I hate visual clutter, and I have nothing but .pdf's stacked one on top of the other on my desktop! How funny! Thanks for the idea

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Jen Mackintosh
Wife to Rob, mom to dd 19

, ds 16

, ds 11

, dd 8

, and dd 3

Wildflowers and Marbles

Meredith
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Posted: June 25 2007 at 8:00pm \| IP Logged

montessori_lori wrote:

What could I add to the Research Guide listings to make it easier to understand what they are and what they do?

Jennifer spells it our very nicely here and I so appreciate the fact that they will have multiple uses, I'm sold

Mackfam wrote:

I am doing this too, and this is just the additional information I needed to finalize it for me, thanks once again!!

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Meredith
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Natalia
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Posted: June 24 2008 at 8:33am \| IP Logged

Jennifer, Janet and Meredith,

How did the Research Guides work for you? Did you use them in the way you said you would? Were they easy to use(for the kids)? Did they foster independent learning?

Could I use them even if I don't do a Montessori type of education per se?

Thanks,

Natalia

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Meredith
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Posted: June 24 2008 at 9:06am \| IP Logged

Natalia, they DID work for us very nicely and we'll continue to use them for all my dc as they get to the research stage. I stored mine in a three-ring binder by topic and it was very simple for the kids to either remove the page they wanted or just open it up and go from there. They encouraged a great deal of independet learning, more so I think than if I'd just said, "I want you to go look this up, or read about this and then tell me what you read,"...

I also really like that they are a springboard for further learning and research into areas they may not have discovered immediately on their own or with my prodding

I would use this type of set up with or without the Montessori influence, they are worth it to me

Blessings,

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Meredith
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Mackfam
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Posted: June 24 2008 at 9:29am \| IP Logged

Natalia wrote:

I liked them very much Natalia! I didn't use them up to their full potential because right after this thread, I got

pregnant and spent the better part of the year recovering. I did set out the geography cards on my geography center, and they were perfect for a Friday as a way of extending lessons throughout the week and jumpstarting either conversation or research.

My (then 6yo) really enjoyed tagging along on a research rabbit trail, so I wouldn't say he was hampered by his emerging reading skills.

They did encourage the independent research that I was hoping. I really loved the Geography cards. We never got to Astronomy last year, but that's ok since we're going to spend this year focused on the Physical Sciences - Astronomy, Geology, Meteorology, Paleontology. I just pulled the Astronomy cards out yesterday and set them out with my Astronomy studies for the year.

I did end up setting up a nature/science center where we focus on our one topic at a time, and I set out the research cards in a little easel display stand at the top of the nature center. I found they worked best when I was running out of "juice" on a subject.

And...YES! They would work just fine in any home science study. Absolutely no need to have any Montessori material or knowledge at all!

HTH, Natalia!

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Jen Mackintosh
Wife to Rob, mom to dd 19

, ds 16

, ds 11

, dd 8

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Wildflowers and Marbles

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