Protecting Focus
The first essential for the child's development is concentration. The child who concentrates is immensely happy.
~ Dr. Maria Montessori
That moment when the world falls away, and the child is in flow, is the moment we Montessorians live for. Well, one of the many moments that excite us.
We know that once the child has experienced concentration and the peace that comes with it, it is an experience they will work to return to again and again. This moment is why we work so diligently to prepare the environment to speak to the child and entice them to explore and work.
Once we observe this in the child, we step back. We allow the cycle of concentration to take shape and run its natural course. We protect it and do not interrupt. We give space for the flow. This is why you will not see a Montessori guide or teacher step in and comment on the work. We observe we notate. We gather information from that moment (What drew the child in? How did the child handle a challenge? Is the child showing growth in skill, whether physical, cognitive, or mental, in the form of perseverance? What is my next move as the child's guide?). We only comment if the child comes to us because it is all about the process or experience in the first six years of life. The outcome or product is truly secondary. We are working on the foundations of a natural and intrinsic learner, a learner that seeks out knowledge for the pure excitement of learning and understanding more deeply.
This is our end game, to set the child up for the next six years when the process becomes a way to get to the product and learning becomes more conscious and that Absorbent Mind of this stage of development is no longer. We know that if we offer and protect the concentration process, the child will fall in love with the flow. And that love of flow is what will carry them through the later years as they build their love of learning.
See if you observe that moment of flow in concentration at home. Notice your instinct: is it to step back and enjoy the moment or to step in and comment? If your instinct is to step in, try stepping back and simply taking a mental picture of the fantastic moment in time, the moment of flow.
