Little Girl, Big Brain

I forget this child’s name. She was right at 2 ½ years old when she entered our Montessori preschool. I can still picture her, all dressed up and so tiny compared to the other preschoolers. Even the child size chairs were too large for her and she had to reach up to work at a table. I had to watch closely so I didn’t run into her as I walked through the classroom!

As children often do their first few days, this child stayed back, kept to herself, and mostly watched others doing activities. When she brought a material to a table she just handled it absentmindedly while watching everything around her very closely. Her eyes constantly darted all over the classroom. She had to move to different tables to see everything because she could not see over the shelves!

After she had been coming just a few days, one of the older kids started to put a material back on the shelf. Suddenly our little gal called out, “NO!” and ran over to the older, much larger child. She pulled him to another shelf and showed him where the material was supposed to go. The older child, not paying close attention, had started to put the material back in the wrong spot. He was surprised, and thanked her.

This got us thinking – how did she know where that material went? It was a material designed more for older children and went on a high shelf, almost out of the little girl’s eyesight. It was not something she had used during her few days with us.

As an experiment, we brought different materials over to this child one after the other, without letting her see where they had come from, from all parts of the classroom. She took each one back to its correct spot on the shelf. There were well over 100 materials in that classroom, and as far as we could tell, this 2 ½ year old, having done almost nothing but observe for a few days, already knew where most of them went on the shelves!

Many parents think their young child might be a genius – because they really all are! The capabilities of the human brain from birth to around six are truly astounding. From the infinite variety of sensory stimuli and emotions experienced from infancy, young children in just a few years create an ordered, coherent, functional personality; while developing the complexity of skills necessary to live in the time, place, and culture into which they are born. Amazing.

After they complete this herculean task on their own we tell them, “Now you are ready for school!” As Maria Montessori observed, in reality at that point children are simply ready to continue following the natural drive to grow and develop that is inherent in all human beings. Outside of Montessori schools and a few other programs, however, we still just don’t quite trust this inner drive. Our school systems view children as empty shells that must be filled, passive beings who must be externally motivated. They actually arrived on earth equipped with a powerful internal motivation and guidance system. When we let them follow it, incredible things happen.

What educational method can take credit for that little girl, after just a few days, identifying where all those materials went on many sets of shelves, without having even touched most of them?   

Imagine the positive effects the environment of a Montessori or other good preschool has on the rapidly developing brain of a young child. These experiences support and encourage the development that is already taking place. Parents can provide so many of these experiences right at home. I hope a day comes when providing early learning experiences at home becomes an expected, natural aspect of parenting, just like feeding, housing, and clothing a child. I believe that is when we will start to see viable solutions developed to our planet’s issues. More effective, meaningful child rearing can change the world!

NOTE: In Montessori At Home! I reference ages 3-6 because of the safety precautions on choking for children under 3 using small objects. In the controlled, supervised environment of a Montessori school, we accepted children as long as they were toilet trained and close to 2 ½. Children that age love the Practical Life and Sensorial activities, as well as art projects, etc. With proper supervision, children can do these activities at home, also.