Guiding Six Year Olds

Chapter 1: The Six-Year-Old Confronted with the Cosmic Plan

As I jump back into Montessori Philosophy reading blog, I decided to start with To Educate the Human Potential. Six year olds are intrigued by nature and can use their imagination to learn lessons about earth and our existence. One thing that is difficult in this age of media and entertainment is so much exposure to stimulation where imagination is derailed towards other endeavors such as superheroes, villains, fantastical creatures, and fantasy through so much gaming and streaming. For young people it can be confusing to determine what is real. Think about how much more they would gain using their imagination to connect with our science, math, language, and sociology? Without the distraction of media influences they can absorb so much more of the actual world around them.

As a teacher it was much harder to connect with young people that lived in a fantasy world. You would actually have to meet them in their imagined world to connect with them and then try to get them interested in other endeavors beyond fantasy play. The pretend kitchen, with pretend faucets’, plastic food, pretend stoves, and useless fridges. In the outdoors these kitchens produce bark mulch concoctions that are inedible. What would they rather do? Bring them into a real kitchen. Have them help prepare real food and learn how to use a real kitchen safely with the reward of food to eat and share with others.

Chapter one starts by pointing out the difference in personality that occurs around six year olds that make them very receptive to cultural lessons. Montessori recommends sowing as many seeds of interest as possible. This way the seed is there waiting for germination later.
Another important matter for six year olds is the development of moral activity. During this time they are trying out their own judgement and trying to impose their judgements on others. “An inner change has taken place, but nature is quite logical in arousing understanding, but a claim to mental independence, a desire to distinguish good from evil by his own powers, and to resent limitation by arbitrary authority.”

Six year olds also need to participate in organized activity, mixing with others in a group. It is normal for groups to develop leaders that the others obey. It is natural for mankind to organize itself and these young people will be able to use their morality, sense of right and wrong, to be part of organized society later in life.

At this age it is also important to allow the child to learn by their own activity and allow them to follow their choices and has a need for exercising their own mind. In Montessori philosophy teachers are considered guides not dictating what it is they need to learn but giving them what they need to satisfy their curiosity. Montessori says they must have ABSOLUTE freedom of choice. This frees the teacher from syllabuses and time , but the teacher needs to be knowledgeable in every subject so the teacher can help the student in their endeavors. “We shall walk together on this path of life, for all things are part of the universe, and are connected with each other to form a whole unity. This idea helps the minds of the child to become satisfied, having found the universal center of himself with all things.”

In my experience, there are many Montessori schools that are not true to guiding students and instead impose assigned school work, worksheets, and homework. This is not in line with Montessori philosophy. I’ve had my share of sheets tracking which lessons a student has had and where they are at on their not so self led journey. In these environment I even feel a lack of freedom. If I am not free as a teacher, how can expect the students to feel they have real choices and are learning what they are wanting to learn. When I am at my best as a teacher, I am afloat watching and observing the actions of the children, thinking about what work they would want to do and looking to see how I might help draw their interest to new areas. My real work is in preparing the environment. The key to this preparation is observing the classroom.