Lunch

We've been working really hard on coming up with a better lunch procedure.  My school planned a visit to Chicago to visit Countryside Montessori, and I remembered I had viewed a video of their All Year Montessori lunch procedure. I re-watched it and liked it, and decided to have my children watch it.  They liked the ideas they saw, and we are now implementing this procedure.  It is not without its difficulties, but it is working better that what we were doing, which was having each child clean their own plate, cup and flatware, and then sweep and crumb their own area.  I love the communal spirit of the new procedure.  Our children bring their own lunch to school, so that aspect is different.  We also do not have any napping children this year.  We do empty the food from the lunch boxes onto the plates, and throw any trash away before we start lunch.  We also use tablecloths, cloth napkins, a full set of flatware, and glass plates and cups.  Before we eat we say together:  "We wish for peace, food, happiness, and love for all the children of the world."  I added the Countryside video to my video bar, and also have it here for your viewing pleasure.