"A moving child is a learning child" -Dr. Maria Montessori
Dr. Montessori believed that movement is essential to a child's learning and development and that children learn best through hands-on exploration and physical experiences. The Montessori philosophy emphasizes the importance of allowing children to move freely and explore their environment through physical activity. The Montessori home or classroom is designed to encourage movement, often with child-sized furniture and materials that are easy to move and manipulate as well as toys and activities that lend themselves to gross and fine motor movement.
Movement is also essential for cognitive development. Montessori philosophy recognizes the interconnectedness of the mind and body, in particular the hand and the brain. Dr. Montessori said, "what the hand does, the mind remembers." She observed that physical activity and hands-on experiences are critical for developing cognitive skills such as attention, memory, and problem-solving. Movement allows children to integrate their sensory experiences and develop a deeper understanding of the world around them.
Both fine motor (small movements of the hand and fingers) and gross motor (large movements of the body) skills are incredibly important. Fine motor skill development begins at birth, when Montessorians discourage baby mittens so that babies can fully experience their environment. Babies can play with materials like interlocking discs, grasping beads, and rattles to begin to develop their fine motor skills. Dr. Montessori emphasized the idea that toddler and preschoolers' hands must be strengthened and their fine motor skills refined to prepare them to later learn to write. Fine motor skills can be developed by playing with toys such as puzzles or those that require posting, stacking, beading, or threading; drawing and coloring; using stickers; using tongs and scoops; playing with play-doh; cutting; sensory play; and practical life activities like pouring, spraying, and sweeping. Recommended toys can be found here (baby, young toddler, older toddler, preschooler), arts and crafts materials can be found here, and practical life tools can be found here.
Gross motor skills like walking, running, jumping, and climbing are also very important for young children for both the development of their bodies and to get their energy out. Babies' gross motor development can be promoted by providing adequate time on the floor to explore a safe movement area, complete with toys and interesting things to look at, such as a mirror. Once children are mobile, physical activity such as crawling, running, climbing, and throwing should be encouraged (when it's safe to do so). The outdoors and playgrounds are great places to work on gross motor skills; spending time outside and letting kids explore, climb, run, and jump is one of the best ways to promote gross motor development. Indoors, gross motor skills can be encouraged by providing gross motor toys like a Pikler triangle, slide, play couch or couch cushions, wobble board, balance beam, ball pit, or a small trampoline. Items like balls for throwing, scarves for dancing, or a Sit N Spin for spinning are great inexpensive options for promoting movement. Active games such as hide and seek, yoga, tag, or dancing are also great ways to move indoors or out.
Movement can be incorporated into activities of all kinds at home, such as getting an item from one side of the room to match with a card on the other side or acting out songs, rhymes, or books. Practical life is another area that offers countless opportunities to develop both fine and gross motor skills. Whether cooking, cleaning, or caring for oneself, the child is strengthening his or her hands, refining hand-eye coordination, and coordinating his or her movements.
Infants & Movement
For infants, freedom of movement is particularly important. Infants should only spend a minimal amount of time in "containers" such as bouncers, swings, and exersaucers. They need ample opportunities to move freely and explore their surroundings. Infant movement can be promoted by providing non-mobile babies with a dedicated "movement area" with a mat or blanket on the floor and various safe toys and materials for them to explore (suggested movement area items can be found here). A long, low mirror makes a great addition so they can see themselves and their surroundings. Although floor time is very important, holding a baby and babywearing are also great ways to bond with baby, and babywearing is a fantastic way to get things done and limit baby-container time.
Many Montessori families also subscribe to a philosophy called RIE that promotes freedom of movement as well as not putting infants in positions they cannot get into themselves, such as sitting them up before then can sit or putting them in standing containers such as exersaucers or jumpers. You can learn more about RIE here.
While we didn't avoid containers completely (that would actually be almost impossible because even car seats, strollers are high chairs are technically containers!), we did limit Sophie's time in them and ensured she had much more time on the floor. In the future, I would skip some of the containers we used altogether, such as the swing. We have two large dogs, but used a multi-sectioned baby gate to block the dogs out of her movement area so she had freedom of movement but was safe. When she began crawling, we blocked off our whole living room with the gate to continue to give her freedom of movement while keeping her safe. We also avoided containers that have been shown to be dangerous for physical development, such as doorway jumpers and sit-in walkers. One of my favorite container swaps was a bassinet stroller for the first few months until she could sit in a regular stroller seat. For longer walks and outings, a bassinet is preferable to a car seat stroller. If you need to shower or get things done, a pack n play or playpen is preferable to a sit-in container such as an exersaucer. While it's not necessary to avoid baby containers, pediatric physical therapists and Montessorians alike recommend limiting the amount of time spent in them.
In the Classroom
In Montessori classrooms, children are encouraged to move around and choose their own activities, allowing them to follow their interests and engage in physical activity as they learn. Movement is incorporated into many aspects of the curriculum. The classroom itself is designed to allow for students' free movement around the room, and children may be allowed to move some furniture (such as floor tables) to where they would like to work. Both fine and gross motor movement is highly integrated into academic activities, such as tracing letters and numbers, using sandpaper letters, and walking the continents on a map. Practical life activities are also essential movement opportunities, and allow children in Montessori classrooms to both learn practical skills and develop their fine and gross motor muscles.
The Montessori philosophy recognizes the critical role of movement in children's learning and development. Dr. Montessori observed the important connection between the hand and the brain and how movement promotes cognitive development and fosters learning. At home, parents can keep in mind the importance of movement and provide plenty of opportunities for their child to develop both fine and gross motor skills.
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