Creating Personal Timelines: Montessori Style

The Montessori History curriculum includes timelines. Timelines provide the child with a visual representation of history. Starting in the 3-6 year old program children participate in the creation of personal timelines. Made in many different ways, they range from pictures of the child’s life to illustrations the child makes. The child shares their timeline with the class to show their own personal history. Materials you’ll need for the Personal Timeline: Paper, scissors, tape, glue, markers, photos Personal Timeline: 1. A timeline can be as short as one page or as long as a wall. 2. To make a short time line, draw a vertical line down the middle of a sheet of paper. 3. Write your child's birth date on the left side of the line at the top of the page. On the right side of the line, write the corresponding event. ("I was born!") 4. Add other important dates and events, such as when your child started to walk and talk, whensiblings were born, when your child started preschool, when you took family trips, and so on, in chronological order. 5. To make a long time line, cut a length of paper from a large roll or tape several sheets of paper together. Draw a horizontal line across the middle of the banner. 6. Write the dates and events of your child's life from left to right. 7. Glue on photos or let your child illustrate each event. 8. Hang the time line in your child's room and add to it occasionally. Family Timeline: The family timeline can be represented by lined paper cut into strips (legal pads work well). The child counts one line on the paper strip for each year of each family member’s life. So, Dad might have a strip with 32 lines. Mom may have a strip with 31 lines. The child would have a timeline that has 3 strips and an older sibling would have a strip of paper with 7 lines. The visual representation is very interesting for the child and it also helps them to see their place in the family. The child also sees the passage of time as they add a strip of paper from year to year. Family History Albums:Scrapbooking has taken off tremendously in the past few decades. This craft is a wonderful way to work with your child to create an on-going family history. Your album can be simple pictures slipped into a book, elaborate scrapbook pages or completely crafted on your computer. If you are interested in creating a family history album with your child a great place to start is your local craft store or scrapbook store. Many offerclasses to help you begin. You can also find plenty of resources on the internet if you are interested. Maria Montessori in What You Should Know About Your Child: “For a growing organism growth itself is happiness.”