Dr. Montessori's Own Handbook - Restoration # [Chapter 07 - Moral Factors](https://montessori-international.com/s/montessoris-own-handbook/wiki/Chapter+07+-+Moral+Factors) A brief description such as this, of the ***means*** which are used in the “Children’s House,” perhaps gives the reader the impression of a logical and convincing system of education. But the importance of my method does not lie in the organization itself, but ***in the effects that it produces on the child***. It is the ***child*** who proves the value of this method by his spontaneous manifestations, which seem to reveal the laws of man’s inner development.[ \[B\]](https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/29635/pg29635-images.html.utf8#Footnote_0002) > \[B\] See the chapters on Discipline in my larger works. Psychology will perhaps find in the “Children’s Houses” a laboratory that will bring more truths to light than thus hitherto recognized; for the essential factor in psychological research, especially in the field of psychogenesis, the origin, and development of the mind, must be the establishment of normal conditions for the free development of thought. As is well known, we leave the children ***free*** in their work, and in all actions which are not of a disturbing kind. That is, we ***eliminate*** disorder, which is “bad,” but allow that which is orderly and “good” the most complete liberty of manifestation. The results obtained are surprising, for the children have shown a love of work which no one suspected to be in them. They showed a calm and an orderliness result in their movements which, surpassing the limits of correctness, have entered into those of “grace.” The spontaneous discipline, and the obedience which is seen in the whole class, constitute the most striking result of our method. The ancient philosophical discussion as to whether a man is born good or evil is often brought forward in connection with my method. Many who have supported it have done so on the ground that it provides a demonstration of man’s natural goodness. Very many others, on the contrary, have opposed it, considering that to leave children free is a dangerous mistake since they have in them innate tendencies to evil. I should like to put the question on a more positive plane. In the words “good” and “evil” we include the most varying ideas, and we confuse them, especially ***in our practical dealings with little children***. The tendencies which we stigmatize as ***evil*** in little children of three to six years of age are often merely those which cause ***annoyance*** to us adults when not understanding their needs, we try to prevent their ***every movement***, their every ***attempt to gain experience for themselves in the world*** (by touching everything, etc.). The child, however, through this ***natural tendency***, is led to ***coordinate his movements*** and to collect impressions, especially sensations of touch, so that when prevented he *rebels*, and this rebellion forms almost the whole of his “naughtiness.” What wonder is it that the evil disappears when, if we give the right ***means*** for development and leave full liberty to use them, rebellion has no more reason for existence? Further, by the substitution of a series of outbursts of ***joy*** for the old series of outbursts of ***rage***, the moral physiognomy of the child comes to assume a calm and gentleness which makes him appear a different being. It is we who provoked the children to the violent manifestations of a real ***struggle for existence***. To exist ***according to the needs of their psychic development**,* they were often obliged to snatch from us the things which seemed necessary to them for the purpose. They had to move contrary to our laws or sometimes struggle with other children to wrest from them the objects of their desire. On the other hand, if we give children the ***means of existence***, the struggle for it disappears, and a vigorous expansion of life takes its place. This question involves a hygienic principle connected with the nervous system during the difficult period when the brain is still rapidly growing and should be of great interest to specialists in children’s diseases and nervous derangement. The inner life of man and the beginnings of his intellect are controlled by special laws and vital necessities, which cannot be forgotten if we are aiming at health for mankind. For this reason, an educational method, which cultivates and protects the inner activities of the child, is not a question that concerns merely the school or the teachers; it is a universal question that concerns the family and is of vital interest to mothers. To go more deeply into a question is often the only means of answering it rightly. If, for instance, we were to see men fighting over a piece of bread, we might say: “How bad men are!” If, on the other hand, we entered a well-warmed eating-house, and saw them quietly finding a place and choosing their meal without any envy of one another, we might say: “How good men are!” Evidently, the question of absolute good and evil, intuitive ideas which guide us in our superficial judgment, goes beyond such limitations as these. We can, for instance, provide excellent eating-houses for entire people without directly affecting the question of their morals. One might say, indeed, that to judge by appearances, well-fed people are ***better, quieter, and commit less crime*** than a nation that is ill-nourished; but whoever draws from that the conclusion that to make men good it is *enough* to feed them, will be making an obvious mistake. It cannot be denied, however, that ***nourishment*** will be an essential factor in obtaining goodness, in the sense that it will ***eliminate*** all the ***evil acts and the bitterness*** caused by lack of bread. Now, in our case, we are dealing with a far deeper need - the nourishment of man’s inner life, and of his higher functions. The bread that we are dealing with is the bread of the spirit, and we are entering into the difficult subject of the satisfaction of man’s psychic needs. We have already obtained a most interesting result, in that we have found it possible to present ***new means*** of enabling children to reach a higher level of calm and goodness, and we have been able to establish these means by experience. The whole foundation of our results rests upon these means which we have discovered, and which may be divided under two heads - the ***organization of work***, and liberty. It is the perfect organization of work, permitting the possibility of self-development and giving an outlet for the energies, which procures for each child beneficial and calming *satisfaction*. And it is under such conditions of work that liberty leads to a perfecting of the activities, and to the attainment of a fine discipline which is in itself the result of that new quality of ***calmness*** that has been developed in the child. Freedom without an organization of work would be useless. The child left ***free*** without means of work would go to waste, just as a newborn baby, if ***left free*** without nourishment, would die of starvation. ***The organization of the work***, therefore, is the cornerstone of this new structure of goodness; but even that organization would be in vain without the ***liberty*** to make use of it, and without freedom for the expansion of all those energies which spring from the satisfaction of the child’s highest activities. Has not a similar phenomenon occurred also in the history of man? The history of civilization is a history of successful attempts to organize work and obtain liberty. On the whole, man’s goodness has also increased, as it is shown by his progress from barbarism to civilization. It may be said that crime, the various forms of wickedness, cruelty, and violence have been gradually decreasing during this passage of time. The ***criminality*** of our times, as a matter of fact, has been compared to a form of ***barbarism*** surviving amid civilized peoples. It is, therefore, through the better organization of work that society will probably attain further purification, and in the meanwhile, it seems unconscious to be seeking the overthrow of the last barriers between itself and liberty. If this is what we learn from society, how great should the results among little children from three to six years of age be if the organization of their work is complete, and their freedom absolute? It is for this reason that to us they seem so good, like heralds of hope and of redemption. If men, walking as yet so painfully and imperfectly along the road of work and of freedom, have become better, why should we fear that the same road will prove disastrous to the children? Yet, on the other hand, I would not say that the goodness of our little ones in their freedom will solve the problem of the absolute goodness or wickedness of man. We can only say that we have made a contribution to the cause of goodness by removing obstacles that were the cause of violence and of rebellion. Let us “render, therefore, unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and unto God the things that are God’s.” > ##### **The license of this page:** > > This page is part of the “**Montessori Restoration and Translation Project**”. > > Please [support](https://ko-fi.com/montessori) our “**All-Inclusive Montessori Education for All 0-100+ Worldwide**” initiative. 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