Your Montessori preschool is known as a Children’s House because it is an environment dedicated to young people. The furniture is chosen to match child-sized bodies, decorations are placed for the convenience of the children, and the adults play a specific role in helping children learn at their own pace and in their own way.
The Prepared Environment
Your child’s Montessori preschool is a carefully prepared environment, and the home should be as well. Adults in a child’s life are responsible for providing an environment that is both comfortable and full of possibilities. Creating a child’s space with organized work areas that consistent and easily available is an important part of the Montessori Method.
Positive Role Models
Whether you are talking about the student guides and aides in the Montessori preschool or the role of parents at home, the first order of consideration should be to provide a positive example in both attitude and encouragement. Children absorb a lot from watching the behavior of the adults around them so be sure that you are always putting your best foot forward. How you are perceived will influence how your children behave.
Nourishment and Nurture
Children need love in abundance, but a child’s diet is equally important. Love and communication help children develop a strong sense of personal responsibility and self-esteem while eating healthy foods helps them build strong bones, muscles, and gives the brain more energy to process and retain information.
Observation and Intervention
It is important that adults realize they are taking a guiding role with the kids in their care, not the role of absolute power. Watch the children carefully and you will learn about the things that motivate her personally. From those observations, you can work out positive ways to encourage her explorations and provide discreet assistance only when it is called for by the situation. It can be a tough job to watch without getting involved, but guidance is what your child needs most, not domination.
Young children are easily impressionable and the Montessori preschool environment is arranged to provide a positive and encouraging atmosphere for absorbing skills and concepts that will benefit them for the rest of their lives. They rely on the adults in their lives to give them incentives and motivation to learn and grow as responsible people.