Variety is the Spice of Learning in LED 

We’ve all heard the expression “variety is the spice of life”. This is undeniably the case when it comes to categories such as music, books, and food, but the old adage is equally applicable to education, where variety serves as an essential source of flavour, fun, and fuel for learning.  

In her book The Absorbent Mind, Maria Montessori explained that “[in education], the essential thing is to arouse such an interest that it engages the child’s whole personality”. Providing a wide array of experiences and opportunities for learning is key to achieving this high level of engagement.  In the Lower Elementary Program, variety takes on many forms, and even though the school year is young, we have many examples to share of the widely varied vehicles for learning that have already been mobilized during month number one in LED: 

Art

Experimentation

Engagement of the Senses

We use sound to enhance experiences as well. When the children erupted volcanoes, we played explosions and flowing lava sounds over our speaker. When they arrived in the classroom for The First Great Lesson, we played ambient “space” music. When we asked the children some serious scientific questions about farts in a bath, we played them an equally serious song called “Bath Farts”. We also implement songs, chants and raps as pneumonic tools for learning, such as our weekly THRASS rap.  

HANDS-ON LEARNING WITH CONCRETE MANIPULATIVES AND VISUAL AIDS 

HUMOUR

REAL SPECIMENS

BUILDING A SENSE OF COMMUNITY 

BUILDING LIFE SKILL

CULTIVATING VIRTUES

PEACE EDUCATION

Maria Montessori created her philosophy and methodology around her passionate belief in the importance of “educating the whole child” and the necessity of guiding him to reach his full developmental potential in all realms including the physical, moral, social, emotional, and spiritual.  She saw education as “a preparation of life” that should cover a comprehensive spectrum of subject areas instead of purely academic pursuits. Not only did she view such variety in education as the spice of learning, but she also believed in its potential to be the eventual catalyst for peace on Earth, because it guides children down the path to becoming self-actualized global citizens with conflict resolution skills and a sense of interconnectedness and responsibility toward all humankind. This is why Peace Education is a formal part of the Montessori curriculum.  

It is with such great wisdom and hope for the future in mind that team LED pledges to continue throughout the school year to serve your children a healthy variety of essentials for learning such as nachos, scorpions, stone painting, and fart science (alongside hefty servings of grammar and long division, of course)!