Smell, observe, touch, listen: so the child knows and includes a larger part of the world around him
The child develops through sensory exploration. His senses collect the main information from the environment on what surrounds it, and the natural environment is absolutely The best master for the refinement of the senses: the rough of the cortex, the smooth of a smooth stone, the cold of river water, the heat of the sand, the softness of the hair of a cat, the hardness of the rock, the scent of the rose, the flavor of a ripe cherry, the bright colors of the butterflies and those of the autumn leaves, the fruits, the sky.
Walk barefoot on the grass, on the gravel, on the sand, or on the rocks allows us to refine the psycho-physical balancealso savoring in a synaesthetic way (i.e. with a contamination of more senses) the beauty, the variety, the order of nature that surrounds us.
Natural elements for sensory experiences
We offer a child of a few months, who starts to explore the world, natural elements for real, deep, strong, interesting sensory experiences. Read the shades of color, recognize musical shades, refine the sense of smell to essences, start tactility to have a deep mastery of the gradations between smooth, rough, hot, cold … allows you to see, feel, smell, recognize and understand a larger part of the surrounding world.
In this sense plastic certainly not stain, you can’t break, but certainly it does not give such refined impressions and naturally suitable for childhood development. Plastic is a comfortable material for the adult because it is easily manageable: weightless, without smell, without heat, without danger, but so much neutral to make The experience for limited and superficial children. Here the light, unhappy plastic plate does not have the typical characteristics of the table plate, but rather it takes on those of a flying game. And that’s why we see at the table of the youngest plans during the “flying records” meals that do not break by falling and who help the air with amazing trajectories.
Mind you: The experiences that are offered should be characterized by appropriatenessorder, beauty, truth, thickness, to allow the construction of a rich and interesting mental and sensorial archive.
Nature is a teacher
The first period of life, from zero to three years, is an almost unconscious absorption period of information and sensations From the surrounding environment, necessary for the first goals that the child reaches especially on motor skills and language. During the second period of development, Between three and six years, a phase of conscious cataloging of this information begins: the child seeks order, the rule, the connections to reorganize and understand what he has collected and extend it to more complex reasoning.
With i six years, A period of active construction of the personality is completed which leaves room for cosmic education, namely to the big questions about why We are in the world and in the universe.
«A bee posed on a flower, attracted by the beauty of her colors and her intoxicating scent, and here the flower offers her nectar, that golden powder that will allow her to create sweet honey. The bee, in exchange for the precious gift, leaves him some pollen of another flower, thus allowing him to reproduce “(Maria Montessori).
Exchanges and interrelationships that are learned by observing the small or even more complex nature of the cosmos. In this research it is implemented The most philosophical part of Montessori’s cosmic thoughtin which the way to understand how each one is called to a mission that interconnected continuously, not only in relation to the individuals of the same species, but more generally with the universe itself.
It is the investigation of the functioning of the universe that leads the child to the path of cultural elevation. Nature is a teacher of calm, patience, order, beauty. There is no more enriching dimension for the child of contact with the earth and its gifts.
How to encourage this?
We allow children to spend a lot of time outdoors and favor the observation and free experimentation of the natural world, sharing with them the value of respect and patience.
The care of plants, hoe the earth, reap the fruits, tear the weeds, sow, climb the trees, collect the leaves are activities that allow the child to get in touch with the earth, working on their balance and the relationship between the inner time of each and the calm timeconstant and orderly necessary in nature.
Using the words of Maria Montessori: “true education (…) is a natural process that takes place spontaneously in the child and is acquired not listening to the words of others, but through the direct experience of the surrounding world”.
