Even before the birth of their first child, parents-to-be are already thinking about the best way to bring up their child. However, when baby arrives and throughout his or her growth, things don’t always go as you’d imagined or even wished. Indeed, there’s nothing more unpredictable than parenthood.
Mistakes are bound to be made along the way, but you’ ll learn as you go along, and then you’ll feel yourself growing up. To help you on your new journey, we offer these guidelines. They will provide you with a good starting point for your child’s education.
Montessori pedagogy
Montessori pedagogy? We hear about it all too often. It’s so popular that today, everyone wants to enroll their child in a Montessori school. But what’s all the fuss about this educational process?
What is Montessori education?
The Montessori method owes its origins to an Italian doctor by the name of Maria Montessori. It is based on the principles of self-confidence and autonomy. The aim is to enable children to learn on their own through a variety of experiments. These aim to develop the child’s various senses: sight, hearing, smell, touch and taste.
To achieve this, a variety of materials are used, including Montessori games. These can be construction toys, card games or puzzles. It all depends on the type of knowledge you want your child to assimilate. This method makes it easier for the child to register information. So, whether you’re for or against Montessori teaching methods: we’ ll explain the advantages below.
What are the advantages of Montessori teaching methods?
Montessori education has a number of advantages for children‘s physical and personal development:
- The Montessori method is suitable for all children, whatever their character
- It helps develop fine motor skills and coordination
- It facilitates the learning of writing and language
- It instills values such as orderliness, cleanliness, patience, responsibility, reasoning, self-confidence, a sense of justice, open-mindedness and sociability.
- It sharpens children’s creativity and imagination
- It helps children become autonomous more quickly.
Applying the Montessori Method at home: what you need to do
The Montessori Method starts at home. To begin with, you need to accept your child‘s pace. Everyone is different: some learn quickly, others more slowly. Both are perfectly normal. Your role as a parent is to encourage your child as best you can.
Secondly, give your child freedom. They should be able to experiment on their own, and recognize their own mistakes. Of course, you’ll need to keep an eye on him from a distance to ensure his safety.
Thirdly, let your child discover. If you see he’s having trouble, give him a chance to solve the problem himself. This will help build his self-confidence.
Finally, take the time to teach your child the essentials. Don’t forbid him certain activities because you’re afraid for his safety. Instead, give your child the right instructions so that he can act on his own and become independent.
In terms of activities, we recommend setting up a Montessori play area for your child. Place building blocks, puzzles, cubes, balls, paint, sound toys, books and so on.
Games in the education process
As parents, we often tend to underestimate the influence of games on our children’s development and education. However, playing not only contributes to a child’s emotional well-being. It’s also essential to their development as individuals.
The importance of play in early childhood education
Playful activities enable children to assimilate information more quickly. Why is this? Simply because they’re not aware that they’re actually learning. For them, games are fun and interesting.
While they’re playing, little ones put many of their abilities to work, and even acquire new ones in the process. They are much more motivated to find a solution to their problems during play, and thus develop a certain autonomy.
Games sharpen children’s 5 senses. They develop their apprehension, their intelligence quotient and even their ability to adapt to new environments. That’s why it’s so important to choose your child‘s first toys carefully.
What kind of toys should you choose for your child’s education?
It goes without saying that the choice of game will depend on your child’s age and the objective you wish to achieve. For young children aged 6 to 3, early-learning toys are the best choice. Choose colorful toys with large parts. You don’t want your little one swallowing the object as soon as your back is turned. Construction blocks and Montessori puzzles are ideal for thisage group.
You can also opt for sensory games. They help develop your little one’s attention span. Rough letters, for example, helpchildren to write more quickly.
For children over 3, emotional games are ideal. They enable them to decipher a person’s mood in a playful way. Our Montessori card and cube game for children can help you with this task. Visit also our collection dedicated to children‘s personal development. Discover the benefits of board games for your children and their psychological development.
A child’s sports education
The impact of sport on a child’s development should not be overlooked. Physical activities play an important role in the psychosocial education of children.
Why introduce children to sport?
Sport develops a number of values in children:
- Team spirit
- Discipline
- Respect for others
- Obedience to rules
- The importance of working on oneself
- Honesty
- Self-confidence
On top of all this, sport is good for children‘s physical health. You can start enrolling your little ones in sports sessions as early as the age of two or three. In this case, give priority to activities that develop your baby’s psychomotricity. The aim is not to give them military training, but rather to introduce them to an active life, starting with simple workshops. It’s only around the age of 5 that you’ll be able to enroll him in real sports classes such as judo, soccer or swimming.
Which sport should you choose for your child?
The choice of sport is very important. Your child needs to be motivated by his or her physical activity. Otherwise, they won’t get involved. So understand your child’s needs, decipher his personality, identify his preferences and, above all, talk to him with an open heart. Then, together, choose the discipline that’s best suited to your child. Our section on how to help your child find his physical activity will give you some ideas and advice. Remember, under no circumstances should you force your child to take up a sport that doesn’t interest him or her.
A child’s musical education
A child ‘s musical education is not just about learning to play an instrument such as the guitar or piano. There are many ways in which music can be involved in the education of the youngest children.
Child education: the role of music
Various scientific studies have led to the conclusion that music is a powerful learning tool. In fact, music
- Helps children concentrate better
- Helps improve retention
- Helps to learn language
With this in mind, nursery rhymes are an excellent educational tool. The song “Head, shoulder, leg and feet”, for example, teaches children about different parts of their bodies in a fun way. There are also nursery rhymes that teach counting and the different letters of the alphabet. By listening to them often, even very young children can quickly memorize a great deal of information. And what about learning music?
Learning music at an early age has several advantages:
- Children quickly develop new motor skills
- Children learn patience and discipline
- Children develop their IQ
- Children sharpen their concentration and memorization skills
Which musical instrument for my child?
The choice of musical instrument will depend on your child’s character and willingness to get involved. Some instruments require more coordination than others. The guitar, for example, is one of them. Your child needs to be at least 5 years old before he or she can begin. For the piano, which is a little more accessible, you can start learning at the age of 3 or even 2 and a half.
My child and technology
Educating a child in today’s fast-moving technological age is no mean feat. The child/parent bond is no longer what it used to be or what it should be. Far too often, we rely on electronic gadgets to distract our little ones while we go about our business. What impact can this have? Have we ever really thought about it?
The dangers of technology for children’s education
Studies conducted by the American Academy of Pediatrics have concluded that children under the age of 2 should not be exposed to technological devices. Indeed, the consequences of neglecting to do so can be devastating:
- Triple brain stimulation
- Intellectual retardation
- A sedentary lifestyle
- Obesity
- Sleep disorders
- Behavioral disorders: anxiety, autism, aggression, depression, etc.
- Addiction to technological objects
- Radiation-induced cancer
Children’s access to technology: the limits
We may not realize it, but technological devices such as tablets, smartphones and even TV sets are not good for our children. That’s why it’s so important to limit their access to these objects. We recommend no contact before the age of 2. From the age of 3, limit access to 1 hour a day, then to 2 hours for children aged 6 and over. For older children with smartphones, see our section on how to monitor your child‘s cell phone Parental control.
Whatyou need to know about a child’ s personal development is that the relationship with parents is very important. Parents need to be both a reliable friend and anauthority figure. In fact, you can’t always be friends with your children under all circumstances. It’s often necessary to pull up stakes from time to time.
To do this, you need to know how to respect yourself. Make your children understand that they owe you obedience. To do this, establish a few simple rules to follow at home, such as:
- Clean their rooms every day
- Take turns washing dishes
- Create a schedule for homework, playtime and bedtime
- Etc.
It’s also important to establish mutual respect between the two parties. As such, you too must follow the same rules as your children. Above all, as mother and father, you must become your child’s role model, so that he or she recognizes your authority.
How to bring up my child: our conclusion
Bringing up a child is no easy task. Several factors need to be taken into account, namely their physical, emotional and psychological well-being. As such, various elements need to be included in his or her upbringing:
- Sport
- Music
- Positive discipline
- Parental authority
- Love of family
- Etc.
For your child to blossom properly, you need to give him room to develop his autonomy. Be careful not to give your child unlimited access to technology. This could hinder his intellectual development and become a cause of sedentary lifestyles and obesity.
Finally, don’t neglect the role of both parents: mom and dad. Your child ‘s personal development and emotional balance depend on it. Give yourself as much parent-child time as possible.
And what about you? What guidelines have you followed in raising your children? What advice would you give to other parents? Share your experience with us in the comments section.