TOPIC 04PRACTICAL MONTESSORI PARENT INSIGHT
Movement
Your child isn't “too active”. Your child is growing through movement.
Young children don't experience movement as something separate from learning. They run, climb, carry, push, pull, balance, crawl and jump because their bodies are figuring out what they can do. So, when a child is constantly moving around the house, the answer isn't always to make them sit down.
Rather ask yourself: “Where can I give this movement a useful direction?”
Ways to provide purposeful movement:
- •Give them something to carry.
- •Let them push a light laundry basket.
- •Allow them to climb safely where appropriate.
- •Take them outside.
- •Let them walk rather than always being carried.
- •Give them opportunities to pour, wash, sweep, transfer and arrange.
And if your child is jumping on the sofa? Rather than only saying: “Don't jump!” try: “The sofa is for sitting. Let's go outside and jump together.” The boundary stays. The child's need for movement is acknowledged.
A child who has spent the morning moving purposefully may be much more ready to sit down for a quiet activity later. Try thinking of your child's day as having a balance of: movement → purposeful activity → rest → movement again. You don't need to “tire the child out”. Instead, give the body meaningful work.
