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Elementary

The Long Black Strip: A Lesson in Humility

It just might have happened like this: One hot, dry afternoon in Madras, India in 1939, Maria Montessori was talking with a group of children in the shade of a great, old Banyan tree. A boy, about ten years old, proudly proclaims the wisdom of his Indian civilization, one of …

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The Hand Chart: A Montessori History Lesson

The Hand Chart, a key lesson in the Montessori Elementary history curriculum, gives children a first look at the Story of Humans in a condensed form. This lesson helps children appreciate how early humans used their hands to survive, to invent tools, and to make important discoveries. Most of all, …

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The Fundamental Needs of Humans

One of my favorite lessons for lower elementary students is The Fundamental Needs of Humans. It is designed to help children understand that people everywhere have the same basic needs even though those needs are fulfilled in different ways by various cultures. This worldview is at the core of Montessori …

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