I finished my charts for the First Great Lesson!
In Elementary Montessori, for ages 6-12, the Great Lessons are the structure of the entire curriculum. The first one, called “God with No Hands”, is the creation story. Though it mentions God, it is not exactly a religious story, and is used in all Montessori schools, even public ones. It can be changed a bit to conform to the beliefs of the teacher, or as she (or he) should be called in Montessori terms, the guide.
The presentation consists of the story, told dramatically, several experiments that demonstrate scientific laws introduced in the story, and posters that illustrate ideas presented in the story. It is a very exciting presentation for the children, and also for the guide!

The volcanoes and the clouds
Chaos on the newly formed earth, as a skin forms on the surface, and hot elements trapped inside burst out
Ideally, this story is told to the children on the very first day of class. Since this presentation requires quite a bit of preparation, and as we switched to Montessori mid-year, it didn’t work out that way for us. We’ve had to wait until I was ready! But it is very important to present the Great Lessons as soon as possible in the 6-12 classroom.
I will tell you more about the story and the presentation soon; for now, I’ll show you the other materials I’ve prepared!

Materials for the fifth demonstration, the volcano, using ammonium dichromate and sulphur for an impressive explosion

You must use a metal cup in the mouth of the volcano in order to use the chemicals. The volcano has also been painted with five coats of polyurethane in order to be able to clean up those chemicals.
The only thing left to do now is to give the lesson!
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