Birthday celebrations at school can be more than just cupcakes and candles.

A child’s birthday is an opportunity to practice such behaviors as grace, courtesy, and respect while exploring more abstract concepts like time and the solar system. For each child at Princeton Montessori School, it is truly a special day.
 
PRINCETON, N.J. - Aug. 20, 2013 - PRLog -- Children’s birthdays are milestone events. They are eagerly awaited as the time draws near. A new finger will be added to the group of fingers that children hold up when asked their age.

At Princeton Montessori School, classmates, and possibly parents and siblings of the birthday child, sit expectantly in an ellipse on the floor on the appointed day.  In the middle is an ornate mat with a brightly colored wooden sun and a candle burning in the center.  In each corner of the mat, a painted design represents each of the four seasons.  Four, five, or six photos, one from each year of the birthday child’s life, are spread in the “summer” section of the mat.  A small, Montessori globe perches in her small hands.  Even though the lights are out, there is a glow in the room that seems to emanate from the children’s excitement.

Clearly, a birthday celebration in a three to six year old classroom is more than just cake and singing.  Teachers at Princeton Montessori School view a child’s birthday as an opportunity, not only to celebrate the child, but to practice such behaviors as grace, courtesy, and respect while exploring more abstract concepts like time and the solar system.  For each child, it is truly a special day.

The school’s birthday celebrations are in keeping with the Montessori philosophy that traditions help to foster a sense of community.   Beyond that, though, each celebration provides a jumping off point for a small child to explore and discover her own, unique place in the universe. The photos of the child help her to feel rooted within the classroom and her family.  They represent her life so far!  But as the singing of “Happy Birthday” comes to a close, she walks around the candlelit sun, one orbit for each year of her life; the assembled children count off the years as each orbit is completed.  She is the earth, and her journey around the sun connects with the time that inevitably passes with each revolution.  As she completes her journey, her teacher says softly, “Five.  Today you are five years old.”  The other children gaze at her in wonder.

This connection of tangible to intangible extends now to the ritual of sharing a treat with classmates.  During this time, the birthday child serves her friends.  She may choose a helper or two to pass out plates and napkins.   “Thank you,” each child says as he receives the treat, or in some isolated cases, “No thank you.”  Everyone does their best to wait patiently on the rug until the birthday child finds her seat, raises her proud smile to her friends and says, “Bon Appetit!  Now you may eat.”  The room falls silent.  Only sounds of quiet munching can be heard.  After the birthday treats are consumed, the children may ask the birthday child questions about herself if she feels comfortable answering them, and the child’s parents may choose to read aloud her favorite book.

One experienced teacher, Ayla Sen, says of the Montessori birthday tradition, “Celebrating birthdays together helps to build our class community and helps each child to know more about his or her world.  There is a spirit of shared joy at each celebration. The birthday child will long remember the special connection she felt to her classmates, family, and universe through the years to come.”

Clearly, birthdays celebrated at school can be a celebration of much more than cupcakes and candles.
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