Getting my Montessori on

We are not Montessori, I don't think I would ever have the discipline and structure to be fully Montessori. Nor do I have the funds to create the full classroom. But I love a lot of their principals and styles. So where I can I try and incorporate Montessori style into our learning. I did this before I even knew what Montessori was, it is just naturally how my brain works I guess.

And so over the last few days I turned my laminated money making board into a wooden one. I love it and so do the kids. They just spend about an hour playing with it. Making different amounts of money, adding their money, reading money. Even Master N who is 4 was really getting into it.

I bought a $6 piece of MDF from bunnings and a $4 piece of trim and got creating.

First I measured up. But I totally underestimated the amount of length you loose when cutting. I almost burst into tears when I tried to fit it altogether and it was never going to work. But I just shaved all the other pieces down, so that everything fit with the size the 5c ones ended up being. Total pain in the rear, but I got there. So here is my tip, it might be easier to measure, cut, measure, cut each piece rather than measuring it all and cutting.

I was working on the plan of each 5c being 2cm (so that a 5c coin just fits), 10c = 4cm etc. The board needed to measure 44cm (you need the extra 4cm to fit the make $1 piece) plus two times the width of trim used. I used a 9mm trim. Mine ended up being shorter due to my cutting issues.

Painted all my strips the colours I wanted, The back of the white pieces are painted with chalkboard paint. Once I have time to prime them with chalk, the kids can make their amount, write it in chalk then flip over and check their answer.

Master N taking his turn. And yes I decided I couldn't be bothered printing, laminating and cutting out coins to use. I decided my time was worth $5 of coins. Although I didn't have enough and I had to buy Master I's 5c pieces at the cost of 50c each. He drives a hard bargain that boy, it ended up costing me an extra $5 to buy his coins LOL.