Hands-On Learning
by Cynthia Dahl and Regan Becker
“At some given moment it happens that the child becomes deeply interested in a piece of work; we see it in the expression on his face, his intense concentration, the devotion to the exercise.” — Dr. Maria Montessori, The Discovery of the Child
Recently, Lighthouse Montessori lead teachers hosted a Parent Education Night about Hands-On Learning. One hundred fifteen years ago, Dr. Maria Montessori invented many of the didactic, concrete materials that Montessori students still use to this day. These materials are self-correcting and provide the child independence to review and repeat learning until it has solidified.
Practical Life: Preliminary Movements — Folding
Our goal is to work with the children by providing lessons on the materials in the environment – along with verbal lessons called Grace and Courtesy, lessons that assist a child in knowing the expectations in the environment. In Montessori lingo, “normalization” is a unique process of child development in which children are able to concentrate and work freely in a learning environment within the classroom norms. One sign of a normalized classroom is that adults are highly observant, not reactive. The teacher observes by watching what work the child chooses, how often the work is chosen, how long it takes the child to complete the exercise, and when the child is ready to move on to the next lesson.
In 1990, psychologist Mihalyi Csikszentmihalyi coined the term “flow” for this same mental and physical state of focus and engagement in which “people are so involved in an activity that nothing else seems to matter; the experience is so enjoyable that people will continue to do it even at great cost, for the sheer sake of doing it.”
Sensorial: Color Tablets 2
Montessori classrooms serve the child, and adults in the Montessori classroom “follow the child”. The culture of the Montessori classroom respects the child’s exploration and interests. Children engage in individual and small group work by receiving lessons, then working independently. Work is presented at a just-right level of difficulty – what psychologist Lev Vygotsky called “the zone of proximal development.” When children are allowed freedom in a learning environment suited to their needs, they blossom. After a period of intense concentration, working with materials that fully engage their interest, children appear to be refreshed and content. By focusing on work of their own choice, children grow in inner discipline and peace. This is normalization in action.
The four curricular areas of the Montessori Primary classroom are Practical Life, Sensorial, Math, and Language. Practical Life materials encompass everyday routines (such as preparing food, dressing oneself, and cleaning), which become sacred to the child. These daily habits empower the child toward purposeful activity, honing of fine and gross motor skills, hand-eye coordination, concentration, and independence. It is through care for the self and care for the environment that children develop a sense of responsibility.
Language: the Movable Alphabet
Sensorial materials in the Montessori classroom encourage children to use their senses in order to study their environment. By using the carefully crafted didactic materials, learners consciously obtain clear information that helps them classify their surroundings using various sensory input: visual, tactile, stereognostic (three-dimensionality), auditory, gustatory, and olfactory. These hands-on activities become stepping stones for children to organize their intelligence through executive functioning. As well as providing a foundation for geography, geometry, art and music, Sensorial materials give children the ability to adapt to their environment.
Montessori Language materials at the Primary level focus on sounds, phonics, and phonemic awareness. During this period of time between ages three and six, children can experience an explosion of language. The Montessori classroom is abundant with vocabulary in all curricular areas. In Language specifically, children work on correct articulation and enunciation. Children experience different modes of language and learn how to hear and tell stories.
Math: the 5 Cube Chain from the Bead Cabinet
In Montessori, Math concepts are first presented in concrete images of quantity and move toward abstraction. The Montessori Math materials are beautiful and attractive to children, from:
the Golden Beads to …
the Small Bead Frame to …
the Bead Cabinet with strands of color-coded skip chains to …
the Stamp Game with place values color coded – green units, blue tens, and red hundreds!
Children are drawn to these materials, which solidify numeracy and operations comprehension. The Primary Montessori Math materials provide a solid foundation for concepts such as algebra through cubing that continue into Montessori Elementary.
