Words From Effica

A child and a lady are strolling through an apple orchard. The child sees a delicious red apple on a tree and asks for it. The lady considers picking the apple and giving it to the child.

She ponders for a moment.

Then, the lady lifts the child higher, lowers the branch from where the apple hangs and lets the child pick the apple. The child is joyous, and says, “I did it! I picked the apple all by myself!”

In the Montessori environment, the goal is to have the child experience this feeling of competence and independence in each task the child accomplishes.

The work of a Montessori teacher is to prepare the learning environment (the orchard); encourage and guide the student (lift the child higher and lower the branch); and invite the child to direct his own unique learning experience (pick his own apple).

This creates a feeling of profound accomplishment, and the accumulation of such experiences will heighten the child’s efficacy of learning, and love for life itself.

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