Name of material: Care of self, others and the environment Image(s): Photo(s) courtesy of Montessori Child. Visit www.montessorichild.com.au to purchase this material. Video : Point(s) of interest: The appeal of using high quality, smaller versions of the real , functional tools that are used by adults. Primary purpose: Main objective To develop the practical skills associated with care of the self, others and the environment. Secondary purposes Incidental benefits Development of attention and concentration. Promotion of wellbeing through joyful exploration. Refinement of finger grasps, physical dexterity and hand-eye coordination. Control of error: Each activity provides the control of error that the real outcome either will or will not be achieved using the real tool. That is, if the child is using a real glass for a drink then either he/she will get the liquid to his/her own mouth without spilling or he/she won’t. In this case the ‘control of error’ is the potential for error that is usually artificially hidden by “kids”
equipment or by pretend play. For instance, plastic ‘sippy cups’ prevent spills artificially, and empty cups in a pretend ‘tea party’ will not spill, even if the child’s movements are not careful. In these examples the child does not receive the input of the ‘spill’ as a prompt to alter his/her movements. Therefore when using real tools for their true purpose in the Care of Self/Others/Environment lessons the potential for error is the control of error. EYLF Outcome 1.2: Children develop their emerging autonomy, inter-dependence, resilience and sense of agency by engaging in exploration, problem-solving and self- correction (rather than relying on an adult to identify the error and suggest the answer). Presentation : Please ¡note: ¡ ¡ Presentations ¡for ¡infants ¡and ¡toddlers ¡(0-‑3) ¡tend ¡to ¡be ¡much ¡less ¡formal ¡then ¡the ¡lessons ¡given ¡ to ¡pre-‑school ¡age ¡children ¡(3-‑6). ¡ ¡ The ¡Care ¡of ¡Self/Others/Environment ¡activities, ¡however, ¡do ¡benefit ¡from ¡a ¡direct ¡ initial ¡ presentation . ¡The ¡presentation ¡is ¡helpful ¡partly ¡because ¡many ¡of ¡the ¡required ¡movements ¡are ¡ difficult ¡to ¡discern ¡through ¡independent ¡experimentation. ¡ ¡ Preparation: • The educator observes the child wishing to engage in care of the self/others/environment and prepares the corresponding activity (eg. the child expresses thirst so the educator presents the use of a drinking glass). • The educator briefly identifies the name of the material and provides a brief demonstration of its use. This is not always necessary as some children are able to proceed directly to identifying the purpose independently. • The teacher sits/stands to the right of the child if the adult is right-handed and to the left of the child if the adult is left-handed (this avoids the issue of having the adult’s hand/arm block the field of vision of the child). Lesson 1: Eating utensils (Care of the self) Spoon • The educator models how to hold the spoon in the dominant hand, then scoop it down and through the food. Fork • The educator models how to hold the fork in the dominant hand, then push it into a piece of food. Knife • The educator models how to hold the fork in the non-dominant hand, with the knife in the dominant hand. • The educator pushes the fork into the food to hold it steady then uses the knife to cut through. • Alternatively, the educator can show how to make a ‘bridge’ over the food with the non-dominant hand or to hold the end of the piece of food.
Lesson 2: Drinking (Care of the self) Pouring water • The educator models how to place the dominant hand around the handle of the jug. • The non-dominant hand is placed under the ‘lip’ of the jug. • The jug is lifted slightly and then slowly tipped towards the vessel. • When the water starts flowing the angle of the jug is maintained, or corrected if the flow is too fast. • When the vessel is nearly full the jug is carefully tipped back towards being straight. Drinking from a glass • The educator models how to take the glass in the dominant hand and lift it towards the lips before tilting it back gently. Lesson 3: Care of activities/materials (Care of others) Holding tray • The educator models how to place one hand on the centre point of each end of the tray. • If the tray has handles the educator models how to slide the fingers into the cavity of the handle and hold them tightly. Replacing activities • The educator models how to reset the pieces of the activity (such as putting the ball back into the Object Permanence box) and placing it back on the shelf where it was first found. Using a mat • The educator models how to take a mat from the shelf and spread it on the floor by pulling at the corners and edges to make it flat. • After use the educator models how to take one side of the mat and pull it across to match the other edge, then take the top edge and bring it down to the bottom edge so it is folded before replacing it to the basket/box. Lesson 4: Gardening (Care of the environment) Watering plants • The educator models how to pick up the watering can using the dominant hand on the side handle and the non-dominant hand to support the spout (or hold the top handle if one is present). • The watering can is carried to the tap and placed on the ground. • The tap is turned on to a low flow. • If the water is not flowing into the watering can then the educator models how to lift the can up to catch the water flow. • When the watering can is half full the tap is turned off. • The educator models how to carry the can (dominant hand on side handle, non- dominant hand on top handle or supporting spout) to the plants. • The educator models how to hold the watering can close to the base of the plant and aim the end of the spout at the roots of the plant. Cutting flowers • The educator models how to separate one stem from the bush/tree.
• The educator shows how to snip the base of the stem to remove the flower. Flower arranging • The educator models how to remove the excess leaves from the stem. • The educator models how to fill the vase (using the careful pouring technique outlined under Pouring Water ). • The educator models how to place the stem carefully into the vase (and to trim it with scissors if necessary). Lesson 5: Cleaning tools (Care of the environment) Using a dustpan and brush • When a solid spill occurs (crumbs, papers etc) the educator models how to collect the dustpan and brush. • The educator shows how to separate the dustpan and brush and lift the brush in the dominant hand and the pan in the non-dominant hand. • If the spill is on the floor the educator shows how to place the dustpan edge flat against the ground and hold it steady. • If the spill is on the table the educator shows how to place the dustpan at the edge of the table and hold it steady. • The educator then shows how to push the bristles of the brush against the spill and guide them towards the lip of the dustpan. • When the dustpan is full the educator demonstrates how to hold it flat and carry it to a bin before gently tipping the crumbs off the pan. Using a sponge and bowl • When a liquid spill occurs the educator models how to collect a sponge and bowl. • The educator places the sponge on top of the spill to soak it up (moving it in a circular motion if the spill is larger than the sponge). • The educator lifts the sponge, holds it over the bowl and squeezes it in one hand to release the drips (for larger sponges, or cloths, the educator shows how to hold one end in each hand to ‘wring’ the drips out). • The educator repeats as necessary until the spill is dry. Using a broom • The educator models how to draw a small target on the floor using chalk. • The educator models how to place two hands on the broom handle and hold the bristles flat against the floor. • The educator uses the bristles to push the crumbs towards the target. • When the crumbs are collected the educator shows how to collect them with a dustpan and wipe away the target with a sponge. Conclusion : • When the child has completed his/her exploration you may use model some language relating to the experience. • Ask the child, or assist him/her, to place the material back on the shelf. This contributes towards the creation of a learning environment and promotes EYLF Outcome 4.4: Children resource their own learning through connecting with people, place, technologies and natural and processed materials.
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