Did you ever think about the fact that, no matter how often you have come to a PP Parents meeting, the classrooms look basically the same? The materials all seem to be kept in the same place year after year and nothing much changes, whereas in other play schools and kindergarten we see the teachers go to great lengths to create an environment which is colorful with lots of 'appealing' pictures and decorated according to the season and special festivals.

Montessori:

Children are in the sensitive period for order from the very young age of just a few months up to 3 years.

Young children need order to be able to orient themselves in their environment.

Order gives children a sense of security: whatever happens, I can find this particular thing always in the same place.

Children become angry and frustrated if their order is not being respected or if the things surrounding them are constantly changed.

Children love to listen to the same story until they can almost recite it by heart because the predictability of what is going to happen next gives them security.

Children are much more observant than we give them credit for, in seeing things which are out of order and often don't know how to express their distress over the disorder other than starting to cry.

Importance of order is not only in the placement of objects but also in the daily routine. As has often been stated, children do not really need holidays; they would gladly continue to follow their daily routine if they were allowed to do so. It is the adults and the teachers who need the break

The roots and foundation for order, which we expect the children to be able to maintain from the age of 6 to 8 and even more so as a teenager, when they strive towards adulthood, is being laid at the tender age of 6 month to 2 ½ years when in our eyes they still seem to be unable to do anything for themselves, much less make or maintain order.

The Montessori environment respects the child's sensitivity towards order by maintaining it meticulously, which is why we do not see any obvious changes in them. The child, once he knows his way around the classroom, can be sure that he will find particular objects always in the same particular place and one of the most important tasks of the Montessori directress is to maintain and to guard order in the environment. As soon as the child enters the classroom, he will be involved in the care of the environment and in the maintenance of order which will in turn help him to become a part of it and to develop a sense of belonging.

If we could bring ourselves to involve children in the care of their home environment their attitude towards their belonging and those of others would change dramatically. They would be strongly rooted and stand on firm ground from where they would feel free to move towards the unknown without fear. Once they develop a sense of belonging, of security, this cannot be taken away from them.

Involvement in the care of the environment either at home or at school also helps children to develop respect for those people who actually help us maintain order and to not take their service for granted.

CHRISTINA GROSS
TEACHER
PRE-PRIMARY.