What happens in the fall at The Montessori School?
In the vegetable garden, the tasks of the day are fun and great educational experiences for the children!
In the woods, explorations take us from one end to the other, comparing the size of the stream and the direction of the flowing water to other locations. We discovered that two streams join together . . . who knew?
If Sustainable Science is inside, the lesson might be exploring with nature items in Mrs. Baumgarten's collection, or making a contour map of the school and stream.
Join with us in our discoveries!
We planted some cool weather seeds, and watched the radishes grow. The spinach and lettuce did not make it. Next time, maybe!
Children are involved in all aspects of the garden work. First we removed weeds and planted a few seeds in September. At that time we also harvested tomatoes, green beans, zinnia, marigold flowers, and sage. Sage was able to dry in several classrooms.
There is always the joy of finding bugs, or amazingly, a salamander and a toad! Millipedes, sow bugs (isopods, pill bugs, rolly-pollies), earthworms, grubs and garden spiders are regular finds, which the children enjoy. We can hold the sow bugs, but, of course, not the spiders. The children saw how flowers need bees.
As the fall progressed, the task in the garden changed to prepare the garden for winter. The wonderful compost provides nutrition for the garden, so we emptied the compost bin, sifted the compost and added it to the garden. Some of the sections we topped with shredded leaves from Mr. Bob, and some of the sections we planted with "winter crops" of oats and peas, which will not make edible seeds, but will be turned into the soil as fertilizer in the spring.
When the Sustainable Science Vegetable Garden was prepped enough for the fall, we headed into the woods. The first walk was to get the lay of the land: where is the stream? Which areas are higher elevation and lower elevation?
We are always observing the changes in the seasons, and always looking for evidence of animals large and small. Take a look at a toad we found! On occasion, the walk to the woods takes us past Mr. Bob as he works. In the picture below, he is shredding leaves and grass.
The Township is putting a lot of work into Pine Run Park! There is a whole section that had invasive species removed and native species of trees planted and protected. Deer eat the smaller native trees, so the new trees need to be protected with a fence. We don't usually see deer, but we do find deer scat!
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