The adventure begins when students read about the seasons through literature. Next, a block of time is devoted to the study of seeds and plants. By studying ‘The Tortilla”, students begin to make the connection between seeds and plants.
The fictitious character, Carlos, then takes the students on a journey where they observe the sprouting of seeds by studying the lima beans in a controlled environment.
The final lesson, El Maiz, allows the students to combine record keeping through
open-ended comparisons and recording observations. Since this final lesson concentrates
on corn, students are invited to make cornmeal pancakes.
Each lesson encourages an integrated bilingual approach, so that students learn and apply
in both Spanish and English.
Bloom’s Taxonomy is used to make certain that students understand the concepts introduced. See http://www.amonco.org/bloomstaxonomy.html for a comparison of
Bloom’s Taxonomy with the Montessori method.
To access the complete lesson plan, please visit
http://www.dpsk12.org/programs/almaproject/pdf/Plants.pdf
For additional Spanish/English resources, please visit
http://www.cantemosco.com/ - Cantemos
http://www.funwithlanguages.com/ - Fun With Languages
http://www.professortoto.com/ - Professor Toto
http://amonco.org/bookstore.html - Reading, Writing and Spelling in Spanish I
http://www.amonco.org/montessorisummergardening.html - Montessori Lessons -
A Gardening Unit Study
Enjoy1
Heidi Anne Spietz
American Montessori Consulting
