Greetings Pigeon Plum Families,
700 million. Big number. That could be some (very) lucky person’s lottery winnings. The number of packages delivered during the 2016 holiday season. Or the amount of yearly active users on Twitter. So what does 700 million have to do with children? Or Montessori education?
Before the age of three, 700 million neural connections are made EVERY SECOND. 700 MILLION. EVERY SECOND. That is half of the amount of brain synapses made in a lifetime. In just the first 3 years of life. That is such a big number that I’m not sure of the math on how many connections that equals in the first 3 years of a child’s life. With that many connections being made in the brain every second, we can see how important it is to how we react to, respond, communicate, and teach our youngest.
So what does this means for a Montessori environment? Knowing about the importance of these connections in early child development, Montessori Toddler Guides provide spaces, environments, and interactions in which children can create positive connections. It means that we provide a glass cup so that they learn glass is fragile, that some materials break if dropped. That we facilitate kind and gentle interactions with friends every day. That we let them experience things that they might not get to any where else, whether it is painting their body, helping to make food, or the opportunity to observe other friends working. Every detail in our environments is carefully thought out so that the young minds that inhabit them are being constantly stimulated and positive neural connections are made.
Happy Spring!
~Ms. Melanie and Ms. Abby
