Prepare
Goal: Prepare the Environment
The prepared environment isn’t just the classroom, but is any part of the school that the students use: the courtyard, the library, the classrooms, and the aftercare building. Even the vestibules and bathrooms are part of the prepared environment. The term is exactly what it seems: an environment that has been purposely prepared for the students that use it. Maria Montessori, being a scientist, understood the importance of the environment and the impact it has on the students.
"So the first thing his education demands is the provision of an environment in which he can develop the powers given him by nature. This does not mean just to amuse him and let him do as he likes. But it does mean that we have to adjust our minds to doing a work of collaboration with nature, to being obedient to one of her laws, the law which decrees that development comes from environmental experience." Maria Montessori, The Absorbent Mind
In each plane of development, the environments are designed to meet the developmental needs of the children/young adults of that plane. For example, in the primary classroom, most spaces are designed for individual choice. In contrast, the elementary and adolescent environments are designed to encourage collaboration and group work.
As you work in the different parts of the school this week, consider how each piece meets the needs of the students you care for. The environments should be beautiful, comfortable, designed for the students, and clean. They should encourage the students to independently explore their world and connect them to the discovery of their cosmic task.
Reflective Challenge:
What is my role in caring for the environment?
How is this role important?
What part of the environment(s) seems to call to the students?
Are there parts of the environment that aren’t meeting the students' needs?
Want to learn more? Check this blog out.
