Montessori Sunday: The Prepared Environment (part 2)

This is slight continuation of my earlier post about the prepared environment. Like I said in that post, it is a huge topic (trust me on this, I wrote a 20 page paper on the subject and still only hit the high points) so I thought it deserved a second post. Last time I focused on the arrangement of materials and how this made it easier for the children to navigate the room. This weekend I want to really delve in to what it means to have things be child sized and accessible.

Child sized seems obvious. Most preschool provide chairs and table that are small enough for children to sit at properly. They often provide hooks or cubbies that are also at the child's level. Montessori does all this and adds having all the shelves be sized for the children. One will not likely find high shelves containing things for adult use only, rather everything will be at least within reach of the average 6 year old.

A Montessori room will also have a sink (or 2!) down at a level the children can reach for themselves. Ideally each classroom will have a bathroom in it, or at least very near by, that contains a child sized toilet and sink. Windows will go down almost to the floor so even the youngest child can look out without stretching.

Photo Courtesy of Montessori Services

Beyond these physical components though, a Montessori guide will ensure that all the objects in the
room can be handled by the child. A job concerned with pouring water will contain a pitcher that is the right size for a young child's smaller hands, not an adult. Cloths for wiping up spills will be small enough for the children to fold neatly and wring out if they get too wet. All the dishes for preparing and eating snacks will be smaller than normal, and light enough for children to carry easily.

The standard Montessori materials available for purchase are obviously designed for use by children, though it is still up to the guide to make sure there are appropriate trays and/or baskets to store and carry them in.

Child sized might also be re-interpreted as child accessible. A pitcher with too tight of a cap is not useful to a child because they cannot refill it themselves. Beads stored in a container that requires adult strength to open is simply asking for children to try themselves and either fail or create a huge spill. Aprons for activities obviously need to be sized for the child, but it important to have Velcro or snaps rather than the standard ties because most younger children are incapable of tying bows on their own yet.

Of course having something be child sized is not always an option. Doors need to be of normal height for safety reasons (and the comfort of the adults who need to use them!). While some well planned schools may be able to have two doors to solve this problem, most will not. Instead the doors should be light enough for children to push them open easily, with handles that turn easily for smaller hands.
Light switches may also be out of reach of children and should have extenders attached to them so children can independently turn the lights on and off.

Most important to preparing the environment for children though is to observe them using it. Simple things like angling a shelf or swapping out a tray for a basket, can make a huge difference in accommodating children's development.