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The transition from one state to the other always follows a piece of work done by the hands with real things, work accompanied by mental concentration. —Maria Montessori The Absorbent Mind, p. 204. The Absorbent Mind, Chapter 19: The Child’s Contribution to Society — Normalization In chapter 18, Montessori discussed two categories of character traits; those observed in children with strong wills and those observed in children with weak wills. In chapter 19, Montessori goes on to say that society groups children into three categories: those whose character or behavior needs to be corrected; those who are models of good, albeit passive, behavior; and those who are thought to be superior to others – these are often noisy, “exuberant” children whose parents think they are brilliant, even though others may not find them agreeable to be around. Montessori says that all of these characteristics/behaviors, good or bad, disappear “as soon as the children become absorbed in a piece of work that ...

It was the children themselves who showed that they preferred one another’s company to dolls, and the small ‘real life’ utensils to toys. —Maria Montessori The Absorbent Mind, p. 169. Observing Sensitive Periods in Young Children Recently, a friend of mine and her two-year-old daughter came over for coffee. Because I was moving soon, I had already packed up my few remaining infant toys. I was worried that I didn’t have anything interesting to share with my young guest until I remembered Dr. Montessori’s observation that children prefer real objects to toys. Having never visited my house before, young Ellie needed to explore her new environment. She wandered around the living room, checking out the furniture and knick-knacks on the end and coffee tables. Ellie was intrigued by the glass topped coffee table: How did it work? What held up the glass and how did objects not fall through it? And then she saw my large blue art-deco glass vase. Fascinated, she asked to see what was inside. Whe...

There are two main types of shelf work in the Montessori environment. The first is the Montessori materials themselves. The second consists of a series of cards known as command or task cards that provide follow-up work to lessons and activities. Students work with command cards to practice what they have learned. As the name implies, command cards invite the child to do something with what they have learned, showing that they have command of the concept. Command Cards for Montessori Elementary Students An example of command cards common in upper elementary programs appears in the nomenclature work. In the Montessori classroom Nomenclature Cards, also known as three-part cards, are used to learn the names or parts of objects. The material is made up of three parts: a picture card, a label card, and a control card. For elementary students, a fourth card is added that relates to the definition of the object or part. This is a picture of a typical three-part Nomenclature Card that is used...