Montessori Prepared Environment.
The Montessori prepared environment.
In Montessori philosophy there are three leading factors that make up the methodology: the environment, including all the materials; the directress, and the child. The prepared environment will be the focus of discussion and will underline: the principles of the prepared environment, how to set up the environment; and its importance in childhood development.
There are five basic principles that must be adhered to in any Montessori environment these are:
Freedom
The child is given freedom of movement to move about the environment of his own accord, this freedom is of utmost importance as it allows the dirctress to observe and cater for the child's needs. “it is only in an the atmosphere of freedom that the child can reveal himself to us” Montessori: A Modern Approach, by Paula Polk Lillard. The child is given the freedom to choose to work with any materials that draws his interest for any period of time, providing the selected material has been presented by the directress. The child is also allowed freedom to interact socially within the environment . The child's freedom does however have limits of basic respect and safety, i.e. the child may not run in the classroom, disturb a child that is concentrating on work, use the materials in a way the defeats the purpose of the particular activity or is damaging to the material. The child is given freedom to progress at a rate that is comfortable to his individual stage of development. Through this freedom the child learns self-discipline as an individual. “Freedom and limits: a natural path to self discipline at home and at school” quoted by Margot Waltuch. It is through this freedom that the child is given the greatest freedom of all: freedom of choice which goes hand in hand with the internal development of discipline.
Order
The child has a distinct need for order, order to place and arrange all the stimuli collected from the environment. “He needs order to organize the world
In Montessori philosophy there are three leading factors that make up the methodology: the environment, including all the materials; the directress, and the child. The prepared environment will be the focus of discussion and will underline: the principles of the prepared environment, how to set up the environment; and its importance in childhood development.
There are five basic principles that must be adhered to in any Montessori environment these are:
Freedom
The child is given freedom of movement to move about the environment of his own accord, this freedom is of utmost importance as it allows the dirctress to observe and cater for the child's needs. “it is only in an the atmosphere of freedom that the child can reveal himself to us” Montessori: A Modern Approach, by Paula Polk Lillard. The child is given the freedom to choose to work with any materials that draws his interest for any period of time, providing the selected material has been presented by the directress. The child is also allowed freedom to interact socially within the environment . The child's freedom does however have limits of basic respect and safety, i.e. the child may not run in the classroom, disturb a child that is concentrating on work, use the materials in a way the defeats the purpose of the particular activity or is damaging to the material. The child is given freedom to progress at a rate that is comfortable to his individual stage of development. Through this freedom the child learns self-discipline as an individual. “Freedom and limits: a natural path to self discipline at home and at school” quoted by Margot Waltuch. It is through this freedom that the child is given the greatest freedom of all: freedom of choice which goes hand in hand with the internal development of discipline.
Order
The child has a distinct need for order, order to place and arrange all the stimuli collected from the environment. “He needs order to organize the world