Website soon to be offering Genesis Montessori

When it becomes available, the program will be available at The Shepherd and the Vine and Garden of Francis (alternate link for Garden of Francis):

Montessori on Religious Education - Faith Formation

Added a page to the site with this information:

...A collection of Montessori religious education resources...

YES, Dr. Maria Montessori was a religious person. She was firmly Catholic, with a deep love for people of all races, nationalities and faiths. She embodied the Christian teaching to love the image of God in all people. 

Can you "do" Montessori without the faith formation? Yes and no. You might not provide "religious instruction" but living the Montessori approach of careful observation, deep respect, and providing for true needs and interests.

Books to Read: 

Quotes are not enough to get the full context. These books have Montessori's own words:
The 1946 London Lectures (chapter on religious eduation as well as additional ones on moral education, etc.)

• Lecture 13 - The Study of Man
• Lecture 26 - Truth and Fairy Tales
• Lecture 28 - Religious Education
• Lecture 29 - Moral Educaiton
• (from the index of the book) pages 95. 97-98, 133, 183, 197-199, 201-206, 220

The Discovery of the Child (the updated version of "The Montessori Method")

• Chapter 23: Religious Education

The Child in the Church 

• The whole book ;) 

Programs and albums developed in the Montessori approach:

Catechesis of the Good Shepherd

• Online training unavailable
• individuals sell albums
• adaptable to many liturgical-based Christian denominations
• some information can be found at Seeking the Plan of God
• Elizabeth Papandrea offers an Extraordinary Form version of Level 1 at Montessori Candy

Moira Farrell's Catechesis Albums

• first book is CGS-inspired; all are excellent for at-home ideas, inspiration and devotions, but are not Catechesis of the Good Shepherd
• 3-6, 6-9, 9-12

Godly Play

• Montessori-inspired
• can be used by Christian denominations with or without a liturgical calendar emphasis
• materials are available at a couple different places

Young Children and Worship

• Follow-up of Godly Play (see information above)
• books contain the current patterns for Godly Play
• materials are available at a couple different places

Faith and Play

• Godly Play extended into the Quaker faith

What did Montessori actually believe on the following: 

Evolution:

• "When Darwin published his theory of evolution, he gave us an example of what imagination could do, for it was not exactly true." (The 1946 London Lectures Lecture 26: Truth and Fairy Tales)
• "There is an order in nature. This order comes because each one does its own work in its own place; if it did not, there could be no order. Suppose a crowd was going to a circus and each began to fight for the best place for himself. This is the old conception of nature. The conception according to adaptation to the environment by heredity is like a modern circus where everyone buys a ticket.The ticket might be for the best place or a poorer place on the left side or the right side but each has his own ticket and looks for the place that corresponds to the ticket. Attendants are there to help. The help they hve is to assist each person to find his seat. This is order. ... This is the purpose of nature. Nature is not concerned just with the conservation of individual life or with the betterment of itself. It is a harmony, a plan of construction. Everything fits into the plan." (The 1946 London Lectures Lecture 12: Man and Supernature)

Fairy Tales:

• "Now, everyone who knows my name says that I am against fairy tales. Apparently I say they are dangerous to a children's mind. But you must know that I never assert anything that I have merely reasoned out, because if I did that it would just be a theory of no importance. It would be just a matter of opinion and therefore not a serious statement. Serious statements must come from observation - this is the truth. I have never before given an opinion on this subject. So, if I were against fairy tales, it would not be because of a capricious idea of mine but because of certain facts, facts observed many times. These facts have come from the children themselves and not from my own reasoning. (she goes on to describe following the children's truest, deepest interests and choices - choices for valuable work that led to a leaving behind of certain negative qualitites) The great love of fairy tales disappears too. (continues with the children walking away from fairy tale stories) This shows that children listen, or at least the older ones do, but inside they have more important urges of nature. So we do not see complete interest. If they are free to do something else, children will choose something that is more important to their development. (The 1946 London Lectures Lecture 26: Truth and Fairy Tales)

Evolutionists and 6-Day Creationists have a Similarity

Evolutionists and 6-day creationists aren't all that different:

• one group believes that all modern life descended from a one-celled creature that lived millions of years ago, with the possibility that life spontaneously arose at various times. 

• the other group believes that all life today descended from pairs of a variety of kinds about 6,000 years ago, with those kinds being created about 1,000 years previous. 

In essence both believe in something rather amazing. 

Light from the Stars - Age of the Earth

Is it possible that the universe is older than the earth?

I have been pondering the argument "God could have made things appear older than they are" (ie by moving the light from the far-away stars, closer to the earth). But God is a God of TRUTH - He is not the father of deceptions. If we find something that doesn't make sense, it is us who need to change.

The earth itself screams "6-day creation" --- but what about that light???

Is it possible He created the universe, then the earth - and on the appropriate day brought the light of the stars to the earth?

Is it also possible (in combination with the above or separate from it) that we are measuring inaccurately?

Is it also possible that the speed of light has not always been constant? That at creation, when matter was closer together, the light reached us, then as the universe expands, the light continues to reach us, but at a seemingly different rate because of this shifting?


Just some musings on a very fatiguing day.

Updates to the Genesis Montessori Project

In the background, editing is being done on the appropriate Biology album pages (while simultaneously working on a related project - a modified Linnaeus' classification); then the Geography album will be worked on. History will follow.

Learning about Baramins and hoping for a Creation scientific classification system to be publicized in the next year or so. I continue to offer prayers for those who become SO vitriolic on this topic - on either side.
 "created kind" (from Hebrew: bara, creation by God, and min, kind)

The blog has been updated to post our mission and goals (see side-bars), as well as provide a nice photo of the Cosmic Cross.

Genesis Montessori - Coming Soon!

AMI style Elementary Montessori albums that focus on God's Creation of the universe according to the Book of Genesis.

A secondary goal is to look at the AMI style Primary Montessori albums as well.


Mission: 
To provide Creation Montessori albums (presentations and guidance for follow-up activities) and Montessori Creation materials for those who believe that the Word of God is Truth.