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How Does That Work?
December 2, 2008
The goal of early childhood education should be to activate the child’s own natural desire to learn.
-Maria Montessori
-Maria Montessori
"When children notice and become interested in something, they can explore it in a variety of ways. They can push and pull, poke and tear, touch and feel textures. They may interact with a substance or material briefly, or they may persist for long periods in their investigations....
"In safe locations, children can observe closely, imitate, try out actions, and respond to reactions. With help, children can design experiments to test their ideas. They can take things apart, mix things together, and combine objects to tell a story. They can ask adults to show and tell them things and they can listen to explanations. Children seem especially interested when familiar things are explained to them in detail.... Adults can help them see beyond the surface of things.
"Children can appreciate the value of counting, measuring, dismantling, and putting things in order. They can see which things belong together and which are different in important ways. They can talk with each other about what they are observing so they have more to think about as they explore.
"The world has so much to offer when adults can help children investigate interesting things and extend their understanding."
One late night after a long day of meetings, sessions, and receptions at NAEYC in Dallas, I told Bonnie that I had a book I thought she should see. Her response was, "Can't it wait? I just need to sleep!" But being the sensitive guy I am, I handed her the book. She reluctantly started paging through From My Side: Being a Child, and then, captivated, spent the next 20 minutes pouring over it. This book is now going to be our holiday present to many of our friends, and we think you should give it a close look as well. It tells a great story of how children learn through over 200 spectacular photos of children from around the world.
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ExchangeEveryDay is the official electronic newsletter for Exchange Press. It is delivered five days a week containing news stories, success stories, solutions, trend reports, and much more.
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Comments (1)
Displaying 1 Commentretired
Claremont, CA, United States
We need to do more of this kind of activity in our programs. At one point children in our program at Mt.SAC spent several weeks taking an old washing machine apart. When a father came in a plopped a car engine in front ofthe fireplace, it was the center of attention for a long time. Two thoughts come to mind that complicate the issue. Computer elements in cars and in household appliances are not so 'take-apartable' now and elements in them are toxic or not safe. Children are working with computers that cannot be safely taken apart. How do they get to the nitty-gritty of things in this day and age?
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