�It seems to him, at this stage, a particularly vital matter that everything in his environment should be kept in its accustomed place; and that the actions of the day should be carried out in their accustomed routine.� � E.M. Standing, Maria Montessori: Her Life and Work, p. 123
Understanding the Child�s Sense of Order in the Montessori Environment
When my son was a toddler, he would line his shoes up just
right in his closet. They had to be perfectly straight and even. On his bed,
all of his stuffed animals had to be placed in exactly the same spot each morning,
and all the trucks and trains had specific �homes� when not being played with. We
laughed over his desire to have everything in its place, but he really would
get upset if something was out of order.
�... nature endows a child with a sensitiveness to order. It
is a kind of inner sense that distinguishes the relationships between various
objects rather than the objects themselves. � Such an environment provides the
foundation for an integrated life.� � Maria
Montessori, The Secret of Childhood,
p. 55
My son�s need for order was not limited to things. Daily
routines had to be carried out in the same order as well: Eat breakfast, wash
face, brush teeth, and get dressed. Growing up in the cold and snow, he used to
fight his short-sleeved spring shirts, trying to tug the sleeves down to cover
his arms.
�... the presence of this sensitive period is perhaps more
clearly shown by the obstacles that a child encounters, and it may well be that
most childish tantrums are due to this sensibility.� � Maria Montessori, The
Secret of Childhood, p. 50
Interruptions to family routines were difficult, too. A
planned trip to the circus could bring on tears because it didn't follow the
normal weekend routine. Trips to the store were met with pleas to stay home. And
he cried when I excitedly showed him our new car, demanding that I take it back
and get the old one.
My son was also frustrated by his inability to coordinate
his fine muscle movement. He disliked coloring in a coloring book because he
could not color within the lines. Cutting was challenging for the same reasons.
Dr. Maria Montessori realized that order and predictability play
a critical role in first three years of life. She understood that there is an
external order, which relates to the child�s perception of the environment, as
well as an internal order, which relates to the development and refinement of
the muscular system.
A friend sent me an article a few weeks ago titled �Spring
cleaning with kids (or not)� by Amber Dusick. The author talks about how
invigorating spring cleaning can be � until she enters the family room.
She asks her readers, �Does that �after� picture look the
same? That�s because it is the same. Nothing ever changes.� And while the clutter
on the floor is enough to make any good Montessorian cringe, it did make me
think about the sensitive period for order. There is a comfort in knowing that
things don�t change. The anticipation that a toy will be in the same spot,
favorite shoes will always fit, parents come home from work at the same time
each night, and a favorite bedtime story is read for the 356th time that year,
help a child learn about and master the world around him.
The Montessori environment, be it home or school, recognizes
this internal need for order and establishes a calm, orderly environment where
the child can expect to find things in their proper place and in their proper
order. It is here that they feel safe and secure with themselves and the world
around them.
Works Cited
Dusick, A. (2014, March 7). �Spring cleaning with kids (or not).� She Knows: Experts Among Us. http://experts.sheknows.com/post/parenting/spring-cleaning-with-kids-or-not
Montessori, Maria. The Secret of Childhood (trans. Joseph Costelloe).
New York, NY: Ballantine Books, 1966 (first published in 1936).
Standing, E.M. Maria Montessori: Her Life and Work. New York, NY: New American
Library, 1984 (first published in 1957).
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