Dr. Maria Montessori was a well-rounded individual with a vast array of experiences. She was an advocate for the rights of women and children and a vocal proponent for peace. She was a teacher and a mother. She was also a scientist. Asking questions, forming hypotheses, experimentation and observation were instrumental in the discoveries she made about how children develop and learn, and she incorporated the careful observation of how children engage in the classroom into the training every Montessori teacher receives.

Still, when I think about science experiments, I automatically envision wearing safety goggles, standing around a Bunsen burner and pouring concoctions into glass vials, hoping for the correct reaction. For our Toddler students, the world is new and exciting, brimming with experiences and opportunities to experiment. They ARE scientists. Watering a classroom plant is about more than caring for our indoor environment. It's an opportunity to observe the plant, ask questions and use evidence to form a hypothesis.
 

While we travel to the Maker (STEAM) Studio each week to visit Paula and share in incredible experiments, Room 4 also sets aside one day each week to focus on exploring science during our work time. Food tastings are a fun way to introduce new foods to the students, as well as to experience a variety of flavors, smells and textures. It is an exercise for all five senses. Cooking projects introduce mathematical concepts like measurement, give children the chance to build fine and gross motor skills through mixing and pouring, use a step-by-step approach to constructing the final result, and encourage both questions and problem-solving ideas. Our woods walks are moments to learn more about the great outdoors. We observe insects, compare different kinds of leaves, feel the bark on the trees and test out theories about what kind of animals live there. We track what sounds we hear when we're very quiet, collect and categorize leaves, and observe what the water does in the creek. Our classroom experiments during work time are some of our favorite activities. We combine different textures to create "Gak," use milk and food coloring to explore color mixing, and freeze vinegar into cubes, placing them on top of baking soda, to watch what happens. These hands-on experiments are engaging for the students, prompting them to ask questions and to practice taking turns.

 

In The Montessori Method, Dr. Montessori writes, "What is a scientist?...We give the name scientist to the type of man who has felt experiment to be a means guiding him to search out the deep truth of life, to lift the veil from its fascinating secrets." Toddlers, too, are searching for clues to help them figure out this world and how it works. As we follow each child on his or her journey to discover themselves, it makes sense to incorporate science into helping them to discover those truths.