Abstract/Notes: Experience of the Liverpool Middle School, Liverpool, New York, provides a rationale for organizing school systems to include ungraded middle schools. If, as evidence indicates, today's youth are maturing earlier, are more sophisticated, and are capable of greater accomplishment, then the traditional grade 7-8-9 arrangement does not meet the needs of ninth grade students while elementary schools can not meet the needs of sixth grade students. It is felt that grouping students by grades 6, 7, and 8 in the middle school aided solution of this problem. By introducing a multi-age grouping of students for each subject, each student's unique qualities and individual capabilities were recognized and given full educational advantage. This ungraded system required curriculum reform and flexible scheduling which were implemented along with a system of team teaching. Problems of team isolation, friction within teams, curriculum oriented outlooks, unwillingness to regroup students, and lack of evaluation of innovations were being solved. Progress made with the middle school concept indicates its viability. (TT)

Language: English

Published: [S.I.]: Prentice-Hall, Inc, 1967

Abstract/Notes: Alternative educational concepts evolved in response to classical educational methods in which children are placed in a passive position and the transfer of knowledge is cultivated as a form of teaching. Models of alternative pedagogy (Montessori, Waldorf, Reggio, Agazzi) advocate developmentally appropriate practices which Bredekamp (1993) describes as a presence of different strategies, i.e., child-oriented behaviours of teachers and responding to the child's individual needs. In order to help each child to grow into a universal and competent individual from preschool age, it is necessary to encourage their imagination and creativity, as well as to acquire habits of cooperation and coexistence with other children. One of the activities which promote these desirable characteristics in children is handicraft. Many studies and findings in the area of neuroscience, multiple intelligences theories, and the aforementioned alternative pedagogical concepts emphasize the importance of handicraft and point out its benefits not only for children but for the entire community. However, such an approach to children's learning and activity is poorly represented in educational institutions. Therefore, the aim of the study was to examine the views of preschool teachers and parents on handicraft activities and its more frequent use in regular preschool programs. The survey was conducted by an anonymous questionnaire on a sample of 316 respondents, preschool teachers (N=141) and parents (N=175). The results of the study show that both preschool teachers and parents agree that certain elements of alternative concepts such as handicraft have a positive impact on the overall development of the child and that they are useful and practical life skills. They also agree that handicraft activities should be used in educational institutions to a greater extent. [Conference Name: 14th International Technology, Education and Development Conference; ISBN: 9788409179398; Place: Valencia, Spain]

Language: English

Published: Valencia, Spain: International Academy of Technology, Education and Development (IATED), 2020

Pages: 1511-1519

DOI: 10.21125/inted.2020.0499

ISBN: 978-84-09-17939-8

Language: English

Language: German

ISSN: 0944-2537

Language: English

ISSN: 1071-6246

Language: English

Published: New Delhi: Association of Delhi Montessorians, 1971

Abstract/Notes: The purpose of this action research was to determine the effect of fundamental movement lessons and independent movement jobs on appropriate and coordinated movement as well as focus of students. Twenty-five students from a lower elementary class of first, second, and third graders in a public Montessori school participated in the study. Data was collected over a period of six weeks using a coordination scale, student feedback, work plans, and time on task observations. Results show a positive correlation between movement intervention and student coordination, on task behavior, focus, and productivity. All students reported positive associations with the movement jobs and improvement in perceived focus. Increases were observed in concentration and productivity; coordination levels also improved. The data shows movement can be integrated into the classroom to support appropriate movement and student learning. Further research should be conducted over a longer time frame to substantiate these results.

Language: English

Published: St. Paul, Minnesota, 2017

Abstract/Notes: Montessori's first premise is that movement and cognition are closely entwined, and movement can enhance thinking and learning (Lillard, 2005). Children must move, and practice moving, to develop strength, balance, and the stability needed to fully participate in the rigors of daily life. It is imperative for young children's motor development that, on a daily basis, parents and teachers give children opportunities for physical activity. Children need time to explore, walk, run, climb, touch, smell, see, and hear the natural world. It is also imperative that teachers begin to implement opportunities for gross-motor development within classrooms. As a physical educator and movement specialist, Melani Fuchs observes children and adults in the four phases of motor development: Reflexive, Rudimentary, Fundamental, and Specialized. Here she explains that each phase lays the foundation for the phase that follows it. In this article Fuchs explains each phase and details their natural developmental progression. Having seen a need for a classroom Movement curriculum after working with special needs children within a Montessori environment, Fuchs, in collaboration with professor Diane Craft, a faculty member of the Physical Education Department at the State University of New York at Cortland, created "Movement Matters: A Movement Album for Montessori Early Childhood Programs" (Fuchs, M. & Craft, D., 2012). The album provides a developmentally appropriate Movement curriculum for Early Childhood and early Elementary programs, with in-depth explanations and illustrations of motor development concepts. As teachers cultivate an understanding of these concepts, they develop new insights and, ultimately, new techniques to assess and assist children's pathways to mature movement skills. Teachers will find practical suggestions for leading children in physical activities as well as a discussion of Maria Montessori's philosophy regarding movement. The album's lesson plans and activities are written specifically to give teachers the means to normalize movement in the classroom (to make movement a "right" choice), thus accommodating the child's natural need to move. The lessons encourage children to move to learn, to understand movement concepts, to master movement skills, to develop self-awareness, and to become joyful, healthy movers.

Language: English

ISSN: 1054-0040

Abstract/Notes: Report presented at the Eastern Communication Association Annual Meeting, Pittsburgh, April 25-28, 1991

Language: English

Published: [S.I.]: [s.n.], 1991

Language: German