A Glossary of a few Montessori Terms

The Absorbent Mind: This is the way Montessori describes the minds of young children.

Their minds are like sponges soaking up information from their environment.

Just think about how much a child learns I the early years: how to talk, walk, understand social cues and relationships, objects, laws of nature (like gravity), and even the rudiments of reading. Much of this learning is unconscious because the brains of young children have been hard-wired to absorb information automatically and effortlessly

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Control of Error: Children make mistakes as they learn. Maria Montessori recognized that it was vitally important the children not lose motivation or become discouraged with mistakes occur. So into each didactic material she built in a way for the child to recognize if his work was done correctly or not, along with the ability to make it right—a control of error. As a result, no one criticizes his error or circles his mistakes with a bit red pencil for the entire world to see. If a child is putting the lids on bottles and one top does not fit, he knows he’s using the wrong sized lid without having to be told. 

Cycles of Activity: Allowing a child to become deeply engaged in an activity is crucial for learning. In a Montessori Classroom, a child is never interrupted during the work period (the time the child is focused on working with a material). For a normalized child, the cycle of activity is usually about one and half hours in length or even longer.

The basic concept behind the cycle of activity is that is allows the child to become absorbed in and complete the task to satisfaction. Children who complete the cycle of activity emerge feeling happy and refreshed because, as Maria Montessori said: “A child who concentrates is a happy child.”

Didactic Materials: Montessori didactic materials are designed to be aesthetically pleasing and to teach through the senses. The child progresses through the curriculum by repeatedly handling and manipulating these materials. Each one is scientifically designed to teach one concept only. There is also a specific order in which the materials are presented to the child: for instance, in the geography area the sandpaper globe showing the difference between land and water is presented first. The globe of the world showing the continents is shown second. Then a round blue ball of clay is cut in half and pressed flat to explain how we arrive at a map. Finally, these unique didactic materials (you won’t find them anywhere except a Montessori classroom) have

a control of error build right into them.

Individual Liberty-Children have the ability to move around and make choices about which materials they will use, where they will use the material and when they will do a job.  Individual Liberty is not to be confused with "license" which is the ability to behave anyway they please or to choose to not work.

What does this term “Normalization” mean?

What does this term “Normalization” mean?

www.puremontessori.com/

Normalization is a term that causes a great deal of confusion and some concern among many new Montessori Parents.  Normalization is indeed not the best choice of words!  It suggests that we are going to help children who are not normal to become “normal.”  This is definitely not what Maria Montessori meant.  Normalization is Montessori’s name for the process that takes place in Montessori classrooms around the world, through which young children learn to focus their intelligence, concentrate their energies for long periods, and take tremendous satisfaction from their work.  In his book, Maria Montessori: Her Life and Work, E.M. Standing described the following characteristics of normalization in the child between the age of three and six:

• A love of order
• A love of work
• Profound spontaneous concentration
• Attachment to reality
• Love of silence and of working alone
• Sublimation of the possessive instinct
• Obedience
• Independence and initiative
• Spontaneous self-discipline
• Joy
• The power to act from real choice and not just from idle curiosity

Kay Futrell in her classic little book, The Normalized Child, describes Dr. Montessori’s amazement when the 60 frightened and ill-disciplined inner-city children of her first Children’s House began to respond to the new environment.  “What followed seemed incredible even to Dr. Montessori, for the deprived children blossomed under this freedom, and the possibility of doing work suited to their needs. They revealed to her not only their enormous capacity for intellectual accomplishment, but a strange character of sweetness and serenity.  They displayed a truly uncorrupted spirit, scorning rewards and punishment, and finding their joy in the prodigious work which involved them.  They came from these labours refreshed, as from a creative experience, and as they worked, they grew in inner discipline and peace.  The sight of these children, who displayed the truly “normal” characteristics of childhood, was the force which motivated Maria Montessori for the remainder of her life. This secret of childhood she pursued with great vitality, and from her tireless observations and efforts, evolved her perception of the child’s psychic personality.  As she travelled from country to country, lecturing, training teachers, helping to establish school after school, this same phenomenon was observed wherever conditions promoting its growth were perfectly realized.  This normalized child is the image which Montessori teachers keep uppermost in their minds.  This is what we are striving for, what we hope to achieve.  However, this child will only appear if we conscientiously prepare ourselves and our classrooms and if we can build on the proper preparation in the child’s home.  Normalization is another word for what we call Montessori’s JOYFUL Scholars!

What Outcomes Can We Look for If We Give Our Child a Montessori Education?

Here are eight primary aspects we normally find in children who have grown up with a Montessori education:

• Academic Preparation: Montessori prepares students both for higher education and for life.  On an academic level, Montessori helps students attain skills that allow them to become independently functioning adults and life-long learners.
• Intrinsic Motivation: Innate desire drives Montessori children to engage in activities for enjoyment and satisfaction.
• Internalized Ground Rules and the Ability to Work with External Authority: Montessori students are normally comfortable with ground rules that set the boundaries for their interactions within the school community. Because these ground rules become internalized, Montessori students normally learn to behave appropriately whether or not teachers are present.
• Social Responsibility: Montessori children tend to be quite sensitive to the rights and needs of others. They tend to make a positive contribution to their community.
• Autonomy: Montessori students tend to become self-directed, composed and morally independent.
• Confidence and Competence: Montessori students tend to become confident, competent, self-reflective, and, thereby, successful. They are generally not afraid of failure and learn from mistakes.
• Creativity and Originality of Thought: Montessori students normally become confident in expressing their own ideas and creativity. They recognize the value of their own work, respect the creative process of others and are willing to share their ideas regardless of the risk of rejection. Montessori students tend to take great satisfaction in self-expression.
• Spiritual Awareness: Montessori students are often exceptionally compassionate, empathetic, and sensitive to the natural world and the human condition. 

Fantasy vs. Reality By Miss Angela

For some time now, children have come to school sharing that they have watched movies such as Spiderman, Batman, Superman, or even Peter Pan.  They always seem to talk about the parts that scared them.  I feel parents should know that these types of fantasy experiences do not have benefits for the children at this age.  Why?  Because they do not clearly understand the difference between what is real and what is unreal. In her lecture, Reality: The Most Powerful and Integral Key to the World, Silvia C. Dubovoy, Ph.D. states, “The child must build his interior life through real experiences before he can express anything; he must take constructive material spontaneously from the external world in order to create his mind. We have to offer the child that which is necessary for his internal mental and physical life, and leave him to produce the man or woman that he or she is meant to be.”

Pinocchio’s nose growing bigger and smaller is totally believable to children under 6 or 7 years old.  It is then carried for life at a subconscious level in a fear based context. 

Young children absorb everything as real. 

Adults delight in seeing a child staring open-mouthed at fantasy stories.  But isn’t it far better to see that same reaction to real phenomena?  For example; the child can be engaged in a science experiment; a candle in limited air, or a little magnet carrying 50 paperclips. Reading a book about nature offers many options, such as; animal life or weather facts.  The young mind would surely be fascinated by the fact that no two snowflakes are ever alike, intrigued by a peacock feather or the intricacies of the parts of a flower and delighted in collecting shells at the beach. 

These foundational years (0-6 years) of a child’s life should be based on truth, situations upon which the child can rely.  He is building his world view upon which he will base future understanding of his environment and social consciousness.

A child’s consciousness can easily be contained or “boxed in” by an adult’s imagination.  That should not be the case.  Their imagination should have free reign at this awesome time in their lives. If she always has pictures associated with a story she cannot create her own unique “mind’s eye”.

Believe it or not, children love reality.  They are attracted in a healthy way to stories of family time, a boy and his dog or a girl going to the grocery store with grandma. Real stories from mom or dad or grandma or grandpa’s childhood are a great place to begin. Writing a journal on a family vacation with your child can be a great source for memories and an inspiration in the future.

The real world is what children should be given at the tender age of 0-5 years old.  By 6-7, the reasoning mind has developed (this is closer to the familiar adult mind that we know) and the child begins to know when they are being made fun of, or when things are not “real”.

In the end, it is just an issue of timing.  Parents, you can watch all your favorite fantasy movies with your child.  Just wait until they are 6 or 7 years old (“the Age of Reason”). 

Organizing the Home

by Tim Seldin 

The Bedroom

“We must give the child an environment that he can utilize by himself: a little washstand of his own, a bureau with drawers he can open, objects of common use that he can operate, a small bed in which he can sleep at night under an attractive blanket he can fold and spread by himself. We must give him an environment in which he can live and play; then we will see him work all day with his hands and wait impatiently to undress himself and lay himself down on his own bed.”
Maria Montessori

Children’s bedrooms should clearly reflect their personalities and current interests.
Even though on their own they may tend to create chaos, young children have a tremendous need and love for an orderly environment.  Everything should have its own place and the environment should be organized to make it easy for the child to maintain a neat, well organized atmosphere.
• Ideally, the young child’s bed should be low to the floor, making it easy for toddlers to get in and out on their own.  Rather than a crib, Montessori urged parents to modify the bedroom to facilitate both the child's safety and his early independence.  Consider a Japanese futon or a mattress  without the bed frame.
• By age five, you may wish to allow your child to use a sleeping bag on his bed instead of sheets and blankets. This will make it easy for him to make his own bed in the morning. 
• Mount a nice little coat and hat rack low on one wall where your child can reach them easily. 
• Decorate the walls with high quality art prints of children or animals hung at the child’s eye level.
• Mount a wall clock at the child’s level. Select one with a large easily read face.
• Modify your light switches with extenders to allow the young child to turn his lights on and off independently. 
• Hang a bulletin board on the wall at your child’s eye level on which he can hang art work school papers.
• Don’t use a toy box.  Imagine the chaos in your kitchen or workshop if you threw your tools and utensils together in a chest.  Instead use low shelves to display books and toys  Try to duplicate the look of your child’s classroom.
• Notice how Montessori teachers avoid clutter.  Place toys with many pieces in appropriate containers, such as Tupperware “boxes” with lids, basket, or in a sturdy plastic bag. 
• Use a sturdy wooden crate to hold your child’s building blocks. 
• You may want to create a model town or farm on piece of heavy plywood.  Paint it green and sprinkle model railroad “grass” on it to simulate a meadow. Placed on a low table, your child can create wonderful displays with model buildings made of wood or plastic. Add little trees and people from a model railroad set.  You could set up a doll house this way as well.
• Store Lego blocks in a large, colorful and sturdy canvas bag with handles. Sew on strips of velcro to fasten the bag closed. In your child’s bedroom the bag will serve as a sack to contain his Legos. When you travel it is very easy to pick the bag up to come along. 
• Make sure that your child’s clothes chest has drawers that are the right height for him or her to open and look inside. Label the drawers: underwear, socks, etc. 
• Flower vases: Encourage your child to collect flowers from the fields or garden for his room.
• Provide some shelf space for a small nature museum in your child’s room.  Here he can display rocks that he finds, interesting seeds, and (in small cages) interesting ‘critters.’
• Music should be an important part of every child’s life. Set some space aside for a simple stereo system and collection of recordings.

The Bathroom
• The bathroom must be prepared for your child.  He should be able to reach the sink, turn on the water, and reach his toothbrush and toothpaste without help.
• There should be a special place where he can reach for his towel and washcloth. 
• Most parents provide bathroom stools, but small wobbly stools often do not provide enough secure, comfortable space for bathroom tasks. 
• Build wooden platforms 6-8 inches high that actually fit around toilets and sinks.

An Art and Crafts Area
• Set up an art area with an easel and a spacious art table for drawing, craft work and clay.  Cover the table with a washable tablecloth.
• Children's art supplies can be neatly stored in separate tupperware containers. Depending on your child’s age, the art supplies that you prepare might include washable magic markers, crayons, paste, paper, fabric scraps and recycled household articles for making collages  You can keep tempera paint fresh by mixing it in Tupperware containers that are divided into three or more inner compartments. 

The Kitchen
• Make room in your kitchen for a child-sized work table for young cooks.
• Set aside the bottom shelf in your refrigerator for your children. Here you can store small drink pitchers, fruit, and the ingredients for making sandwiches and snacks. Use non-breakable Tupperware containers to hold peanut butter, jams, lunch meats, and spreads.  A child of two can open the refrigerator and get her own prepared snack or cold drink stored in a little cup.  A slightly older child can pour her own juice and make her own lunch.
• Use a bottom drawer to hold forks, knives and spoons.
• Mount a low shelf on a wall for plates, cups, and napkins.

Children can help around the house

If presented correctly, children from age two to six take delight in caring for their environment, dusting, mopping, scrubbing, cleaning and polishing, and they should be able to do so as easily at home as at school.  It is perfectly reasonable to ask older children to straighten up their rooms and help with simple household chore.
• Give your child his own little broom or dust buster.
• Hang a feather duster on a hook.
• Provide a hamper for your child’s dirty clothes.  Ask him to carry them to the laundry room on a regular basis.
• The bathroom should have a small bucket with a bathtub scrub brush and a sponge. 
• Folding towels and napkins is a good activity to teach the young child.