Montessori Practical Life Curriculum

As every parent knows young children want to be with adults and to take part in the activities of daily adult life. The Montessori Practical Life materials allow them to do just that. The Practical life area provides the link between home and school.

In the classroom, with child sized tools that really work the young child is able to perform the same

activities he has seen adults do: pouring, sweeping, ironing, polishing, scrubbing etc. The

pace is unhurried and an adult is nearby to help if required but not to interfere.

A three year old is of course, more interested in the scrubbing motion of washing a table than they

are in ensuring the table is clean. The motion helps them gain gross motor control and hand-eye

co-ordination, which will enable them to successfully perform more precise tasks in the

future.

The purpose of the Practical Life curriculum in Montessori is to improve concentration, co-ordination, control, independence and order which lay the foundation for learning.

Concentration

Watch a child who is pouring beans from one jar to another. As they pour, they become transfixed by the look of the beans emptying, as well as the sound of them hitting the glass jar. It is a satisfying, almost calming sound that they strive to repeat over and over again. They focus intently on the task at hand, developing those concentration skills that are necessary to observe the world around them, and to focus on later learning.

Co-ordinationA degree of coordination is required to successfully pour those beans without spilling them. Balancing beads on a spoon, sewing a button, picking up rice with chopsticks, all require great dexterity and strong fine motor skills. All activities in the Montessori Practical Life curriculum exercise those finger muscles and develop fine motor skills. Co-ordination is necessary when learning writing and art skills, balancing while walking, and performing everyday tasks like tying shoes.

Practising Control

An element of control is necessary in co-ordination skills. Control also encompasses the ability to manage the amount of force used when driving a nail into a piece of wood, tightening a screw, stopping when pouring liquid so as not to spill any liquid, or shutting a door quietly. The child also needs control over their muscles as they walk across a room or around a mat, as they carry items or a tray to and from a shelf, and as they roll up a mat.

Fostering Independence

Young children's main goal in life is to develop independence. How often does one hear the cry of a young child, "I can do it myself!" The Practical Life curriculum teaches children how to perform everyday living skills that enhance their independence. They learn how to pour and use different utensils, prepare and serve food to themselves and others. Care of self skills, such as the Dressing Frames, allow them to get themselves dressed. Care of the environment skills, such as the various cleaning tasks, allow them to look after their own room and or toys.

Order in the EnvironmentChildren crave order in their environment and lives. The Practical Life area is set up with a definite order. Activities are placed on the shelf from left to right and top to bottom. This is because one reads left to right and top to bottom. Activities themselves have a definitive order in which steps are performed. A favourite Montessori saying is “It is the process that is important not the product". It is more important that the proper steps are followed when washing dishes than the dishes actually getting cleaned, as the process will ensure the desired product.

Practical Life encompasses four main areas.

1. Care of SelfChanging Shoes, putting on slippersDressing frames:- Zip, Velcro, Buttons, Press Studs, Hook & Eye, Buckling, Bow Tying, Lacing

Polishing Shoes & Folding ClothesBlowing Nose & CoughingCare of Teeth, Nails, & HairHand washing

2. Care of the EnvironmentDusting, Sweeping, Polishing, TidyingUse of Clothes Pegs, Washing upScrubbing of Tables, Floor,Care of Garden,Picking fruit/vegetables from gardenCare of Indoor plants,Planting SeedsCare of Pets

3 .Development of Social Relations The Grace

& Courtesy exercises including:-Greeting People,

Interrupting with ‘Excuse Me’Coping with an offenceConduct with a visitorSpeaking to a Group

Behaviour on Outings,Apologising

Waiting turnsTable Manners and Use of Eating Utensils

Serving and Sharing Foods

4. Control of MovementDevelopment of Fine Motor Skills – pouring,transferringOpening & ClosingThreading, Cutting, Sewing, FoldingWalking on the linePlaying the Silence Game

Montessori : Practical Life at Home "Any child who is self-sufficient, who can tie his shoes, dress or undress himself, reflects in his joy and sense of achievement the image of human dignity, which is derived from a sense of independence.” Maria Montessori

Success in life is directly correlated to the degree in which people believe they are capable as well as independent. And how do we learn to be capable and independent? We practise the skills that are necessary until we no longer need help and can act and do accordingly in the Montessori classroom and at home.

I say ‘home’ because Practical Life activities have the purpose of allowing students to gain independence and self-discipline. These skills cannot be practised only at school.

What happens when a child is allowed to prepare their own snack, slice their own apples, pour their own drink, and wash and dry their own dishes in the Montessori classroom, but at home is told “Oh, you’re much too young to use a knife. You will spill that if you pour it. Let me do it for you”? The mixed message is clear. The skills that are being taught at school are not allowed at home, thus creating a dichotomy in the child’s thinking: I am capable and independent at school, but at home I am not.

Later, when Montessori teachers comment about how independent a child is, how he enjoys taking care of his environment and keeps his work area neat and tidy, the parents shake their heads and wonder why these skills are not being demonstrated at home. The answer is clear; the well-meaning and loving parents have done for the child what he is clearly able to do himself.

So, what can be done to extend the Practical Life activities in the home? First off, make sure that the materials you use are child-size. Why is this important? Well, I think about it this way. As an adult, I have several paring knives that I have bought or received over the years. My favourite, however, is the very first one I ever received, even though the tip is broken off and the blade is wobbly. Why is it my favourite? Because it fits my hands just right. The other ones just don’t “feel” right to me. This is the difference between a child learning how to work using materials that fit her just right and trying to adapt an adult-size tool to a child-size body.Remember that Practical Life activities are the routines and rituals that adults perform daily in order to maintain their environment.

Here are a few examples of how to invite your child to continue these valuable Practical Life lessons at home:

Control of MovementPouring and transferring liquids and dry ingredients without spillingUsing scissorsOpening and closing lidsScrewing and unscrewing jar lidsStirringMeasuring liquid and dry ingredientsPeeling fruits and vegetablesUsing kitchen tools (fork, spoon, grater, blunt knife, ice cream scoop, bulb baster, peeler, chopping board, rolling pin, whisk, pitcher, cookie cutters, melon baller, apple corer, etc.)Spreading (like butter, peanut butter, a mixture

Care of the EnvironmentWringing a wet clothWashing a table or countertopSweeping the floor with a broom and dustpanMopping, using a vacuum on the floorPolishing silver, brass and/or wood furnitureSorting laundry by colour and matching socksFolding napkinsIroning handkerchiefs or pillowcasesSewing on buttonsWashing dishesWatering and caring for houseplantsFlower arrangingCaring for petsCleaning up spillsPutting materials and toys awaySorting recycling materials

Care of SelfWashing hands/facePolishing shoesWashing hairBlowing nose and properly throwing away the tissueSneezingBrushing teethCombing hairTrimming fingernailsRunning water in the bathHanging up towels after useDressing oneself (including learning how to button, zip, snap, tie, buckle, Velcro)Hanging a jacket on a low hook Putting clean clothes in a drawer

The Development of Social Relations. The

Grace & Courtesy exercisesHow to greet someoneHow to answer the telephoneHow to get up from the tableHow to carry a chair properlyHow to open and shut a door quietlyHow to interrupt when necessaryHow to excuse oneself when passing or bumping into anotherHow to hand someone somethingTable mannersCarrying objects without dropping or spillingWalking without bumping objects or people

The skills learned in the Montessori Practical Life curriculum lay the foundation for the

rest of the classroom. The skills of concentration, coordination, control,

independence, and order provide the child with life skills as well as a better understanding of their learning

environment.

When we remember to present these activities with enthusiasm and break them down into sequential steps, a child will feel encouraged as he practises them independently. We must remember that:As adults, we work to finish tasks efficiently and quickly so as to move on to the next task at hand. A child, however, is working to master the activity. He will practise repeatedly to perfect his abilities and then, may turn his attention elsewhere.

“Adults work to finish a task, but the child works in order to grow and is working to create the adult, the person that is to be.” (Montessori)