Organic Classroom Management

Throughout my years in education, my love of the Montessori method has grown. What started as curiosity soon turned to enchantment. Then, the enchantment turned to stolid commitment. I have learned enough about this approach to education that I can honestly say I think it's the best option currently available, as far as organized education goes. The biggest reason I'm so fond of the Montessori method is the concept of the prepared environment.

For those not familiar with prepared environments, this post from the NAMC Montessori Teacher Training blog is very informative. According to this post, there are six principles of the prepared environment: freedom, structure and order, beauty, nature and reality, social environment, and intellectual environment. The subject that has been on my mind most recently is the prepared environment's role as built-in classroom management. This is clearly covered through the principle of structure and order.

The post describes structure and order as follows:

Structure and Order in the Montessori classroom accurately reflect the sense of structure and order in the universe. By using the Montessori classroom environment as a microcosm of the universe, the child begins to internalize the order surrounding him, thus making sense of the world in which he lives.

Montessori stated that there is a sensitive period for order which occurs between the ages of one and three years of age. This is when the child begins to draw conclusions of the world around him. If there is not order to his environment, the child’s sense of reason may be off since he will not be able to validate his findings.

This is not to say that routines or classroom set-up or ways of doing things can't change. However, it does mean that change should be carefully considered. Is this change for the good of the children? If so, it should be done carefully and its after-effects should be observed to ensure that it is of benefit to the children.

There are so many reasons why structure and order are important elements in the prepared environment. The most important is the teacher's sanity. But, seriously, what I love most about this whole concept is that it still allows children to have freedom in their classroom. I describe structure and order in the prepared environment as organic classroom management This is not a controlled, totalitarian approach to classroom management. There is no coercion or manipulation from the teacher. There are no games. The things in the classroom are just the way they are and the children accept those boundaries in their realities. And, they accept things the way they are because they make sense (as mentioned in the above quote, the classroom environment acts as a microcosm of the universe.) Natural order in children's behavior is achieved through natural order in their environment. So simple, yet so profound!

Image via Sea Pines Montessori Academy.