reading Archives - Volcano Mama

How to Teach Reading Easily: Montessori Homeschooling Tips

Montessori homeschooling looks different for everyone. But one popular and common goal among Montessori homeschoolers is teaching reading. It’s a beloved part of the primary or 3-6-year-old curriculum and one area that I, like many other Montessori teachers, cherish. The beautiful sound pouches, the sandpaper letters, the moveable alphabet, the Montessori language curriculum for kindergarten aged children is amazing.

But, beyond the materials, as guides and parents, we must remember a few key Montessori ingredients. In my personal journey to teaching my kids to read, I’ve been reminded of them quite acutely. In this post, I’ll share how you can teach reading easily using the Montessori method and also share some of those key often forgotten nuggets of Montessori wisdom we mustn’t forget.

Follow the Child: The Secret to Reading Success

“Do you want to try writing some words with the letters?” I asked eagerly. Peanut had been working on letter sounds since the age of 3 and he could easily write a few words like “sam,” “sat”, and “cat”. But, it seemed he NEVER wanted to.

Story Retelling with Clifford {FREE PRINTABLE}

The Clifford books have got to be some of my favorite children’s books out there. Luckily, my son is also a fan. Norman Bridwell nailed it with the big red dog, his antics and constant efforts to do the right thing with a side of “oops!” These are great stories. If you haven’t read them with your child yet, I recommend you head to the library and check out a few. Then, you’ll be ready for story retelling with Clifford!

Story Retelling with Clifford

Because we enjoy so many Clifford stories at our house, it seemed like the perfect choice for story retelling work. This time, rather than paging through one of our Clifford books to retell the story like Peanut did with Swimmy, we made (drumroll)…..puppets!

Continue reading “Story Retelling with Clifford {FREE PRINTABLE}”

How and Why to Teach Story Retelling to Your Child

“Again, please!” says Peanut. “You want me to read Swimmy again?” I ask. “Yes, I like this book,” says Peanut. After about 5 times through, I’m kind of bored of Swimmy, although it is a fantastic book. I suck it up and start reading again. This time, I pause as I read, leaving space for Peanut to fill in the words, just testing to see how much he remembers. We’ve begun story retelling! Continue reading “How and Why to Teach Story Retelling to Your Child”

Books, books, books

by Rachel Peachey

Our library is growing! In late January of this year, I embarked on a project without much to go on besides personal interest and the hopes that someday there will be a real, big functioning library in the town where we live.

The small town in Guatemala where we live has a lovely, bustling market full of fruits vegetables and just about anything you can imagine, except books. I quickly realized upon arriving here that books simply aren’t a part of the local culture. No bookshelves are to be found in anyone’s house. Children don’t enjoy picture books before bedtime. The most commonly found item for reading is the newspaper, and even that is usually only found in businesses like barber’s shops and doctor’s offices where you have to wait for service.

Since making this realization, I have dreamed of opening a bookshop or library to give reading and books more presence in the community. Six years after moving here, my husband gave me a kick in the butt and told me to get started! I talked to the local priest about using space at the church for a library for children. Happily, he had the same dream! Now, we work with a group of young adult volunteers to provide a library program 3 days a week.

To give you an idea, we started with about 30 books. That’s it. A library of 30 books, you ask? Well, you have to start somewhere. Books are expensive in this economy, so we started with cheap paperback picture books. Through donations from family members and friends here and abroad, we’ve grown to include nearly 300 books and a fairly large bookshelf. Children enjoy doing puzzles, drawing and most of all, reading and being read to.

We hope to grow much bigger to expand our audience and include books for adolescents and adults as well. Once we get big enough, we’ll begin lending the books out to community members. At this point, users read on site and enjoy organized activities.

It’s been an amazing journey so far and I can’t wait to see how it continues to develop.