Your child’s Montessori daycare is more like an educational cooperative than a traditional public school. Parents play a vital role in the Montessori Method, and how well they incorporate Montessori into the home will have an impact on how readily this form of education can provide exceptional results.
- The Trinity of the Montessori Method
A Montessori daycare is composed of 3 vital players. The child must be engaged in the process, Montessori teachers need to observe and guide children to maximize their potential, and parents provide nurture and support in the form of positive reinforcement, role modeling, and more.
- Parents are the Ultimate Role Model
Parents are typically the most important role models that young children will have. Since birth, small children have been watching how their parents interact with others, find solutions to obstacles, and perform necessary routines. Through appropriate modeling, parents can encourage children to participate more openly, become more physically capable, and begin learning the academic subjects that define the world they live in.
- Montessori in the Home
Setting aside a portion of the home as a children’s house makes small children feel more comfortable and instills a sense of being accepted. In contrast, a home where everything is adult-sized and above a child’s line of sight can seem insurmountable to a small child. Your daycare teachers can offer important tips on how to create a child’s space in the home and why doing so will benefit your child.
- Parents and Teachers as a Team
When your kids see you interacting in a peaceful way with their daycare guides, they understand that parents and teachers are working together, and will be less rebellious when they are presented with directives that need to be followed. As they get older, the small children will become active members of this team effort, so making them aware of the association at an early age prepares them for their own proactive role to come.
- Channels of Communication
Montessori teachers operate by observing children and guiding them in appropriate ways to maximize their developmental potential. Periodically, parent-teacher conferences will share observances at school and at home, providing important data to assist in effective guidance. Parents who take an active part in their child’s classroom experience are a boon to the process, keeping all of the child’s major role models on the same page and working toward the same goals.
Montessori is a learning experience, and it needs the participation of parents to make that experience a fulfilling and exhilarating time. Without parental involvement, the Montessori Method is hobbled, and making progress will take more time and encounter more reluctance on the part of the child.