Clarifying philosophy...

Taking time during the holiday season to catch up on a few of my favorite blogs....not something I get the chance to do often. Here is one of them... sorry I can't get the link to work, you'll have to cut & paste!

http://yoyoreggio.blogspot.com

She had a post on clarifying philosophy that I found interesting....she asked the question

"Do you find yourself picking the 'best' from different systems? How do you reconcile systems or ideas that seem to be at odds? How would you describe your ideal educational philsophy?"

My beginnings of a response....

I am not a Reggio "purist" by any means, I would say it is the primary inspiration for my classroom but I also draw from Waldorf, Montessori, and general constructivist views, and every once and awhile throw a bit of (gasps of horror) academia in. My personally feeling on the matter is that there is not one "right way" for anything--each child's needs and interests are different, and part of centering the environment around the child is being open to considering options that may not fit our "ideal" view.
I have a child who absolutely loves to do math worksheets. I, who am ademantly against pen & paper work in the early years, am providing this child with worksheets. Is it a result of her time spent in a "traditional" class? Probably. But she is drawn to it, spends a few minutes on it, then moves on to something else. I don't think there is any permanant harm being done. I would, at one time, have argued that there isn't any permanant good being done--until I observed this same child conducting self-directed "lessons" in mathematics to the other children. Her confidence is amazing, her grasp of the concepts is apparent, and the other children are learning from her. Truly an exceptional example of children as the best teachers.
There are wonderful aspects of Montessori, but I too have been concerned about the lack of creative expression--particularly the emphasis on NO imaginative play (this comes directly from Montessori's viewpoints). I love the materials, and use them in the classroom to introduce concepts regularly--but it is also not uncommon to see the pink tower being used to build a barn & last year the brown stairs made an exceptional play yard for snails. Montessori, I'm sure, would be horrified--but the children weren't!

I will, I am certian, continue dwelling on this question as I eagerly delve into some of the books I've been waiting to get my hands on. Actually, this is a well-timed question since I intend to "formally" introduce some of the Montessori materials beginning in January. I've informally introduced some of them--the moveable alphabet, sandpaper letters, etc.--in reading lessons with K & P, and utilized many of the mathematical tools--spindle boxes, numbers & counters--primarily with L as we work on her developing interest in numerical concepts, but haven't utilized any form of a "structured" introductory approach.

I would never, never, tell a child they could not do something because the precursory "lesson" has not yet been introduced. However, I also see value in the natural flow between one lesson and another as they are presented in the Montessori classroom. So I may pull out my "checklist" of lessons and present them in the order they are listed.

However, I may also decide I'm already doing way too much anyway & don't need yet another checklist to distract me from what is truly going on in my classroom. Part of my learning process is accepting that I can not do everything I would like to do. I would love to have several ongoing projects, introduce every Montessori material, offer hand works such as knitting & draw in other Waldorf inspirations, pull from the state standards and make sure every child is hitting every standard, conference constantly with parents......but I only have so many hours in a week (20, to be exact, is my mandated maxium). So I do what I can, what gets done gets done, and I revisit our work at the end of the week & decide where my priorities lie. When it comes down to it I would rather L. spend two hours squishing paint between her toes than complete the spindle box work every morning...