Montessories are simple and grey, very orderly environments.There is a buzz but no chaos! The Montessori teachers days are always packed, back to back in preparing the environment and its constant upkeep.Children though work oblivious of all. There is an incident that’s narrated by E M .Standing where a visitor happened to visit the Casa on a Holiday to see for himself the great revelations that everybody was talking of, in the Tenements of San Lorenzo in Italy.The visitor was not disappointed rather the children said ” nevermind we can show what u came looking for”! All of them began to work as if it was natural for them! The same thing could be seen in the Montessori environments today , they work with joy and interest .
What is Montessori ? as educators we are asked constantly by all.sometimes The visitors seem to border on provoking ,for they Know not, for Montessorians think and talk of promoting the child than put out as an economic option . we don’t seem to care for we know our tasks and we are at it day on day. The Parents who genuinely seek the same, want it for children for the same reasons as we do. What is it that’s unique of the method? This makes us focus on our innerselves,on our interpretations of the philosophy.
At times ,we say we are unique and different . This might also distance other educators from whom we can learn . Montessori is a verb an action and not a thing. It casts its spell and acts out.Oh! am I objectifying and admiring Montessori and forgetting “The Child” we ask ourselves. In our quest to be more Montessori ,being critical we are sending the wrong message that there is only one goal and we are done with training and are montessorians at the end of nine months of training.
When living Montessori, it has different embodiments ,it is more of finding commonalities with developments to unite than to separate. Acknowledging to grow with children year after year. our Failures are the lessons learnt ,our lives like the material are self-correcting errors in our lives to be worked at. we tell the teacher trainees to follow the child, what of it ?A slogan! No, for them they need to train on observation ,knowledge and attention. Very daunting for the undrafted worker, for is it better to follow the presentations ? No, but pushing ourselves to remember what drove us as children and drives us now will help in our work .
The work of montessorians is to help reveal the powers of the spiritual embryo,proclaim for what the child is ,the father of the Man. In our quest for normalisation a condition of true nature, by focusing on this goal are we going away from our children??? each child needs compassion and empathy.when parents pamper children and do everything for them we are upset and frustrated that children don’t respond quickly. we see the crying child , children not working ,the distracted child we only see the child who is yet to come. Revering the child for her potential and respecting for the promise she holds is our vision.
As for being saints in Montessori ,The need for being in the present ,accepting ourselves,the noise ,the life and all of it with the children.we are saintly when we help each other as adults, of what children do constantly in a montessori .we are saintly when we stop doing,stop complaining ,and stop fretting ! Teachers often are immersed in the elements of the environment ,practising presentations, pouring over plans,yes all this is important but not as important as love for children. who is this child we ask ?it’s that child who cries, who throws a fit,who hides ,who is polite ,the helpful child.Each child is ‘the child ‘.All are filled with the greatest of potential ,recognising it and serving well is important.
There are many questions that plague the teachers. tasks are important and critical ,but the lived failures helps us in our journey. It’s important to find the teacher with the magic and not just techniques they are skilled at. The humanitarian ground we have chosen is the most difficult work , for each of us thought we do it better .A Montessori community with the belief and committment to its ideals by offering grace to others of what we offer to children, for its challenging by the nature, but what a party it is for all !
Speaking to teachers when on panels, most often the opinion is we choose Montessori for we love children, it satisfies the inner drive, the pieces of our own heart it fills. Teachers can go wild with all the busyness of maintaining an environment of learning. Though the teachers keep it simple with value and purpose and complete it with beauty . we do not clutter the environment any further, to not clutter the child’s mind. Interested as the teachers of the young are ,they appreciate the individuality and uniqueness of every child. We offer in a Montessori immense possibilities and options for fulfilling them knowing the strengths of our academic material, our children always get a head start early in life. Beyond our work of preparing the environment for the untouchable centre is what we design around and offer.
Despite the pressures and frustrations we want the child to learn within our time frame. But it’s not about us, for the child has walked into the sun. The world is a symphony and we always begin with a true prayer spoken.
Inspired by Dr Catherine McTamaney’s inspirational work linking Lao-tzu 81 verses, a series of meditations on the teacher’s craft of bringing a smile on all montessorians.
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