Though your kindergartner’s Montessori elementary school may be on hiatus for the summer, that doesn’t mean they can’t continue to explore learning opportunities and the subjects they love. Using the Five Great Lessons as your guide, you can find many excellent and award-winning books to feed your child’s curiosity all summer.
The Story of the Universe
This lesson introduces a range of concepts that include astronomy, meteorology, chemistry, physics, geology, and geography, and for your summer book club, there are plenty of options for your child to go even deeper. The National Geographic Little Kids First Big Book of Weather by Karen de Seve can be a great for those kindergartners who ask questions like: How do rainbows form? What makes the wind blow? Water Land: Land and Water Forms Around the World by Christy Hale might suit your geography buff and includes tactile paper cutouts. Thank You, Earth: A Love Letter to Our Planet by April Pulley Sayre uses Sayre’s award-winning photography roam and relish in our fascinating home planet.
The Timeline of Life
This lesson is all about biology, botany, animals, and habitats: all the stuff of a great children’s book. Do Not Lick This Book by Iden Ben-Barak starts with the tiniest of creatures by exploring the world of microbes, while Tree by Britta Teckentrup looks at the bigger ones in their natural habitat. It doesn’t hurt that these books bring both humor and tactile elements to their stories. Additionally, if your book club has a green thumb too, Anywhere Farm by Phyllis Root can be an excellent companion read as you grow your summer garden.
The Story of Language
This lesson explores the development and uses of language and offers infinite possibilities in children’s books options. A Busy Creature’s Day Eating by Mo Willems uses a playful story and funny illustrations to learn the alphabet and Baabwaa and Wooliam by David Elliot is a book about a love of reading – perhaps a good book to kick off the summer book club! No book club would be complete, however, without Shel Silverstein. His book Runny Babbit Returns: Another Billy Sook uses tongue-twisters and other word games to play with language in a way that is sure to entertain.
The Story of Numbers
If your kindergartner isn’t intrigued by this lesson yet, these books are sure to tickle their curiosity in a new way. One Big Pair of Underwear by Laura Gehl is a counting book that uses animals and, yes, underwear, to encourage giggling and counting. 3X4 by Ivan Brunetti uses a similar approach as the Montessori number rods to lay the foundation for multiplication. Meanwhile, Round by Joyce Sidman will have your kindergartner spotting this shape (and geometry) in all the world around them.
The Timeline of Civilization
This lesson focuses on history, culture, social studies, and discovery and invention, all of which are rich topics for your summer book club. The books Birthdays Around the World by Margriet Ruurs and Families by Shelley Rotner both take an engaging approach to exploring the similarities and differences across the world’s cultures, while Frida Kahlo and Her Animalitos by Monica Brown introduces the artist, her story, and her work through her very cute animal friends. Additionally, as with any of the above book titles, these can be great additions to your Montessori pre-school library to get kids excited about what comes next in their learning.
In West Hills, California, Hill Point Montessori is a preparatory school for children ages 2-12. Our Lower Elementary Program consists of students aged 6 -9, who are independent thinkers that work together to further expand their knowledge.
