Welcome to the KLDF Montessori Education project journal. For news, updates and announcements on Khom Loy's continued work with local partners and communities on the Thai/Burmese border.
Loikrathing is a traditional ceremony in Thailand on every lunar month (mid-November). Our Montessori classrooms celebrated the Loikrathing festival in different styles at their schools. The peak of this event was marked by the making of the Krathong which is made of the banana leaves decorated with fresh colourful flowers, candles and incense sticks. Later the children enjoyed floating them at various waterways and rivers near their schools as they made a wish!
Ban Phuko CDC and Mekorn Sch. children floating their krathong
On Friday the 11th, after a long day school, we gathered together for some yoga. We started our session with a presentation by Patricia Solar about the importance of diet and exercise in our daily life. It was surprising to find out the amount of sugar intake we consume daily from different food sources without being aware!
Soon we were treated with stretch-up exercises before we embarked on our 8th Anniversary celebrations since the Khomloy foundation began. So far we are proud of our achievements, and we also realize that we still have lots of works in front of us. It’s happy birthday to Khomloy and we wish ourselves many successfull years to come!
We are happy to share with you KLDF's newest video , featuring our Montessori project--including why, how, and where Montessori makes a profound difference for ethnic minority and migrant children living in Thailand.
Special thanks to Tony Rieck, a very talented and thoughtful film producer, for working with us on the project. Feel free to contact Tony with any commercial video requirements you may have at rieckstudio@gmail.com .
October was a very busy month at our Montessori resource center. For 2 weeks, we conducted in-house Montessori Basic Training, which was attended by 12 participants from different organizations and schools. The first week of training was focused on the Montessori philosophies and some basic presentations in the learning curriculums. The second week, we engaged the participants in the materials making. What a mess! But we also had so much fun creating bead materials, Thai Sandpaper Letters and other materials.
During the month we also completed setting up 2 more Montessori classrooms in Chiang Rai area - Ban Mekorn and Ban Rim Lao. Early next month, we will also be setting up our pilot Montessori classroom at Hsa Mu Taw migrant school in Mae Sot. We are in the process of doing our final preparation and renovating the classroom. At the same, we are welcoming our new Montessori volunteer Diyanti (Silo) from Indonesia who will based in our Mae Sot Montessori program.- Please check out our blog for more postings on the progress.
Last month, we held our three day in-house Montessori mathematics workshop. This workshop allowed the resident teachers in our converted Montessori classroom to refresh the knowledge they already have and renew their enthusiasm and further develop their skills in Montessori mathematics.
Thanks to khru Somsak a resident teacher at Ban Huay mae sai CDC for expressing his views on this workshop. This is what Khru Somsak said:- " The mathematics workshop was quiet energizing as it enabled us review on the work we had learned earlier. The addition strip board material will help the children learn the addition facts and find the answers themselves"
We reviewed on the basic in-depth of the Montessori mathematics curriculum and the presentations from concrete to abstract. We also looked at the foundation that molds the child for mathematics introduction in the Montessori environment, and linked the sensorial and practical life areas with mathematics.
The teachers were truly inspired on the value of each piece of material. Thereafter, we engaged ourselves on the making of the Addition strip board.
We used a hard- cardboard for the usual wooden board and measured 2cm by 2cm for each square represented and also attached it with an extra lighter board to give it an extra weight before we could seal it with a clear plastic paper as shown below.
Cardboard addition strip board and the corresponding control card
Dr. Montessori observed how the children interests were drawn to the daily activities that the adults performed.
At Ban Pangkorn School, We added the banana cutting Practical life activity on our shelf and the children have been happily performing the activity, as they refine their movement, hand and eye co-ordinationand concentration.
We provided them with the necessary child sized materials along with detailed proper presentations to enable them participate in the daily activities of life and achieve success.
First the child washes his/her hand, rolls up their sleeves, peel the banana and dispose the peel into the provided dish. Then slice the banana into small pieces and uses a fork to transfer the pieces into a serving bowl. The child eats the banana without interference and sometimes they choose to share with their friends. Later, the child washes the materials and replaces ready for the next person.
Towards the end of June, we took our long awaited three-day long journey to Mae Sot, Thailand. As we approached the Tak hills we were welcomed by cooler weather with rain showers and the woolly mist that covered all the scenic features.
Our colleague currently residing there had versed himself with details pertaining to our visit. The following day, he took us to various migrant schools and we were met by a warm “Mengalabaa”…….the Burmese phrase for greetings. Our mission was to visit schools/child care centers in the area and learn about how the preschool migrant children spend their day in school.
Soon we entered one of the classrooms; a group of children were reciting names of fruits after the teacher in both Burmese and English language. Right behind them some were laughing and giggling as they enquired our names repeatedly in English. Their eyes shone brightly with eagerness to learn. This quickly reminded us of Montessori’s words: “Free the child’s potential and you will transform him into the world”.
Our mission continued on the second day where we met teachers and principals from several more schools. We quickly realized talking philosophy was not going to work, as a lot of time was spent with a translator since only a few teachers know minimal English. We introduced a few of the Montessori materials we had with us, and everyone caught on the use of fingers when tracing the sandpaper letters and connected between the use of fingers and later holding a pencil. The response was amazing as they laughed through the Practical life “Spooning and Button frame” exercises which they had earlier regarded as “toys”. The good thing is they could now link them to control of small motor muscles and coordination for the hand and eye, in preparation for writing skills and having the children help dress themselves.
The last day of our journey arrived so quickly and it was time to pack our bags and go back to Chiang Rai, but before we could bid goodbye to the wonderful teachers, we visited another migrant school at Huay Ka Loke where the children and the teachers are dedicating part of their time in banana tree planting and pig rearing. This school is working with the UPLift project from Khom Loy on a natural farming project that uses fermented banana stalk to feed pigs. The pigs gain weight very quickly, and also produce compost while they are living in a deep litter. You can read more about the natural farming project at UPLift’s project journal (http://uplift-khomloy.blogspot.com/) !
Dr. Montessori believed that outdoor environment is a natural extension of the classroom. At Huay Ka Loke, banana tree planting is a rewarding activity based on the sensory experiences of nature. It is through these constant outdoor experiences that children’s mental work and physical exercises become more aware of nature and are better able to understand the needs of the world and how they can make a difference.
We learned more from our interactions with teachers in the Thai-Burma migrant schools and we came back with a different perspective on life. We are planning to return soon to continue working with preschool and lower elementary teachers towards establishing a stimulating pilot Montessori program in Mae Sot district.
This is what we have been doing this month at our newly converted environments at Ban Phuko, Ban Huaykhom and Ban Hauy Rai Bon child centers, all of which are located in Chiang Rai province.
-The children are settling in quickly, and have began enjoying the practical life exercises.
Walking on the line:
We used a taped line on the floor and we taught the children to walk on it. We observed the inner enjoyment as they walked towards perfecting their sense of balance.
We are happy to be back with these interesting updates!
Over the past few months we have been providing a basic Montessori training on material-making to two teachers from the Shan State. We made these amazing sandpaper letters in their native Shan language, which is writing similar to Burmese. We also equipped them with a Montessori three-period lesson to aid them in their teachings once they return to their communities in Shan State, Burma.
Shan sandpaper letter Muscular memory of the sandpaper letters
The environment must be rich in motives which lend interest to activity and invite the child to conduct his own experiences" --Dr. Maria Montessori
Recently we assisted Anuban Tessaban Rongkwan in Phrae province to transform their environment to one that is more orderly, beautiful, realistic and accessible. This enables students to make independent choices for their learning. See the growth timeline below:
Teacher centered environment .
Prepared environment
Independenet centered environment
"Growth comes from activity, not from intellectual understanding"- Dr. Montessori
Ban Phradu CDC has reached one year since its conversion to Montessori method, and hosting an Open House last week was a sure way to improve community spirit. The entire community was invited to tour the school and receive an overview of the benefits of a Montessori education. KLDF's Montessori team provided information and guidance through the classroom environments.
We schedule a Parents Workshop after the first four months of Montessori classroom conversion in order to give teachers and children a chance to settle into a rhythm and become comfortable in their classroom environment. Our classrooms that are three months into the process, Ban Pangkhon and Ban Pang Rim Khong, had great occasions for the parents to see the hard work that their children perform on daily basis. See pictures below.
This past Saturday, January 8th, was National Children's Day in Thailand. There were many activities afoot to celebrate the future of Thailand, as well as a chance to listen to what strikes children as important to them.
At Ban Pang Rim Korn School, one of our two expansion sites for the Khom Loy Montessori Project, there were numerous activities hosted for the students including games, a dance, and ceremonies.
Students holding letters to the King, who is referred to as "Father" in colloqiual Thai
December 5th is Father's Day in Thailand, which has a somewhat different background to Father's Day in Western countries. December 5th is the birthday of His Majesty the King of Thailand, and every year there is a large celebration of the longest-reigning monarch in the world.
There are many ceremonies to celebrate, and children get in on the action as well! This year we helped our classrooms celebrate at Phradu School, one of our expansion sites for this semester. Enjoy these pictures!
"Wai Pra Jaao Yu Hua" (paying respect to the King)
The holiday season has come and passed, and our staff here at the Khom Loy Montessori Program are refreshed and ready to take on another exciting year. Stay tuned for more updates of what we do and why we do it. And hope you have a great new year.
