Prepared For Life

Babies move uncontrollably. The most controlled movement of a newborn is sucking. This instinctual movement is survival for the baby. Without this movement the young child would have great difficulty receiving nourishment for her body and mind. Once the muscles begin to develop and the movements are more controlled the will begins to establish. As a child grows, so should their movement. It is believed that the child learns by doing. Movement should serve a purpose. There must be something gained by performing movements. Practical life exercises are more beneficial and make more sense for life than gymnastics. The exercises of practical life take far more coordination to carry out the exercises. These precise details are what enhance the development of the child. When they push in a chair, sweep the room, pour water or grain, sew buttons, they are using movement as a means of educating themselves and establishing a perfection to detail. Children must have the freedom to choose their movement. Their movement must not be because of the command of an adult. By giving children the freedom to choose movements that are not harming themselves or others, we witness the natural phenomena of the growth of a human’s personality that is established by the individual alone.

If we encourage this development and establish a prepared environment in which the children could build upon the centre and periphery, than the children’s growth and mental development will be natural and normal. If a prepared environment is not established for children to move and express their personalities freely, than the children will be deprived of a certain level of intelligence.