The following is the text from this section of the 2009-2010 edition of Child of the World, Montessori from Three to Six Years
To see other sections of this publication return to: http://www.michaelolaf.com/CWcontents.html
INTRODUCTION
Solicitous care for living things
affords satisfaction to one of the most lively instincts of the child’s
mind. Nothing is better calculated than this to awaken an attitude of
foresight.
—Maria Montessori
An atmosphere of love and respect for plants and animals in the home
and classroom is the best foundation for a lifetime of comfort and interest
in nature. This begins in the home as the child absorbs the family's
attitude toward vegetables, flowers, gardens, house plants, weeds, and
trees.
Lessons that make a deep impression come from first hand experiences
of plants; nothing can substitute for seeing, and smelling flowers in
the home, and watching the daily growth of a flower or vegetable in
the garden.
A NATURE TABLE OR SHELF
A little table or shelf, in the home or classroom, dedicated to a changing
array of beautiful objects from nature, is a delight to children. Some
suggestions are a vase of flowers, leaves, a colored leaf in the fall,
or a plant experiment (from the biology curriculum for the 3-6 class).
It is important to keep this area very clean, beautiful, and constantly
changing. A little tray with a magnifying glass could be kept on the nature
table for closer observation.
In the 3-6 classroom a plastic mat, bucket and sponge; and a small drying
towel are kept on a tray under or near the nature table. One of the favorite
activities is to carefully clean the table and the items on the table.
Lay out a plastic mat and carefully remove everything from the shelf.
If there are dry leaves or soil, show the child how to wipe them off the
edge of the table and into his hand. Next show him how to dip and wring
out the sponge, and to wipe the top of the table and the legs. With a
drying cloth dry everything. Wipe and dry the plastic mat, then clean
the sponge, hang the drying cloth up to dry and replace it with a fresh
one. And replace the items on the table, letting the child decide on their
arrangement.
Now the child knows how to carry out this activity at any time, independently
of an adult's permission. This gives the child the feeling of really caring
for the beautiful objects and not just looking at them.
PLANTS
It is important for a child to spend some time in
the outdoors experiencing nature every day—in all kinds of weather
and during all seasons. Going for a walk with a young child, if one follows
the child's speed and interest, can open our eyes to the world of nature
like never before.
Flower arranging is an important part of the ritual of beginning the day
in many classrooms and can be done in the home. A selection of interesting
tiny vases of different sizes and shapes, from different countries, is
important.
Just as with the cleaning of the nature table, a tray can be prepared
with all of the items necessary for flower arranging: small vase(s), scissors
to cut the flowers, a small pitcher to fill the vases and perhaps a funnel
if the tops of the vases are small, and a sponge and drying cloth for
cleaning up. Also a selection of handmade cotton doilies makes this ritual
very special.
Having these flower arrangements on the kitchen, living room, or classroom
tables, even if they consist of only one small flower or fern in a vase,
brings the child's attention to the beauty and variety of nature as he
goes through the day. Don't be surprised if all the flowers and vases
end up on the same table the first time.
Grass, leaves, wildflowers, or cultivated flowers all make ideal art materials
when they have been preserved in a flower press. In our home we have often
kept previously dried leaves and flowers in a container next to the flower
press ready for decorating birthday cards, or for including in letters.
If you are planning an outdoor environment for children at home or at
school, be sure to include a space for wild specimens. Some of the best
biological examples of leaf shapes and attachments, and so forth, can
be found on wild plants such as dandelions and thistles.
First we point out, invite to touch, and give the vocabulary for experiences
and concepts such as orange, red, small, long, rough, smooth, bumpy, hard,
and soft. This is a classification that even the beginning botanist can
use.
Very soon we can give more. The young child wants to know exact names
of everything. Not just "flower" but "California poppy,"
and later, after exposure has stimulated an interest in plants, we can
introduce the botanical names and further classification—such as
kinds of leaf margins or flower corollas. Exposure to plants and animals
initiates many important discussions which a wide vocabulary can enrich
and make more satisfying.
Providing garden tools and a small wheelbarrow for the child, so that
she can help to carry grass cuttings or anything else which needs to be
transported, is an excellent way to involve the child with the yard work.
Although the adult will often shy away from hard work, the young child
will welcome important real work. This is the time to introduce gardening
to children. Even one pot, inside or outside, with one plant, is better
than nothing when there is no room for a large outside garden. It is important
to show the child the end, as well as well as the beginning, of any of
these activities. Sometimes endings can be separate activities so the
child will be ready for them at the conclusion of a hard days work in
the garden. For example, show the child exactly how to hold the shovel
in order to carefully hang it up or place it where it belongs.
Wherever the adult is sensitive to the child's natural need for order,
there is a place for every tool. Children are shown how to clean and put
away the tools, how to hold the wooden handles and polish the metal. These
activities give a great feeling of satisfaction, independence, and completion
of a job well done.
Beautiful pictures of plants and flowers (photos, postcards, reproductions
of great oil paintings) can be hung on the child's wall. You may be surprised
at a child's preference for nonfiction books about nature when she has
been kept in touch with nature.
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