# Summary Chapter 13 - 1912 - The Montessori Method ### **Short Summary** This text discusses the education of the senses in the Montessori Method, focusing on the tactile, thermic, basic, stereo gnostic, taste, smell, and vision senses. It explains various exercises and didactic materials used to develop these senses in children.  ### **Facts** * The education of the tactile and thermic senses is often combined since heat enhances the tactile sense. Bathing the hands in warm water is used to teach cleanliness and improve the tactile sense. * Children are taught how to touch surfaces lightly and are encouraged to close their eyes while touching to enhance their ability to feel differences without relying on sight. * Didactic materials used for tactile and thermic education include wooden boards covered with smooth paper and sandpaper, as well as tablets with alternating strips of smooth paper and sandpaper. * The thermic sense is developed using metal bowls filled with water at different temperatures. * The baric sense (sense of weight) is developed using wooden tablets of different weights, which children learn to distinguish by holding them in their hands. * The stereognosis sense (recognition of objects through feeling) is developed using bricks and cubes, where children feel and differentiate them by touch, sometimes blindfolded. * The sense of taste and smell education is challenging, and no satisfactory results are mentioned. Smelling fresh flowers and identifying them blindfolded is one test that has been tried. * Visual perception of dimensions is taught using solid insets and large pieces in graded dimensions, which children learn to differentiate based on thickness, height, and size. --- ## **Summary Chapter 13 - 1912 - The Montessori Method** Chapter 13 focuses on the education of the senses, particularly tactile (touch), thermic (temperature), baric (weight), and stereognostic (identification by touch and muscle memory) senses. For tactile education, activities like washing hands in warm water are used to heighten children's sense of touch, and also teach cleanliness. Children are also encouraged to close their eyes while touching to heighten their sensitivity to different surfaces. Learning materials include wooden boards covered with varying textures. Thermic education employs small metal bowls filled with water at different temperatures. Kids dip their hands into these bowls to experience hot, warm, and cold sensations, and this can be a fun activity for them. Baric education, or the understanding of weight, uses small wooden tablets of different types of wood, each having a unique weight. Children try to distinguish the tablets by weight, often with eyes closed, which can become an entertaining guessing game. In stereognostic education, kids learn to recognize objects, like bricks and cubes, by feeling them without the help of sight. This encourages the simultaneous use of touch and muscular senses and can be entertaining for children as they gain confidence in their ability to identify objects this way. Education of taste and smell are also discussed but these are still challenging areas with few successful strategies so far. Some possible activities include letting kids smell different flowers or taste various flavors. These experiences also provide opportunities for teaching hygiene practices. Overall, this chapter emphasizes the importance of sensory education in developing children's awareness and appreciation of their environment. \#SensoryEducation #TactileLearning #ThermicSenses #BaricSenses #StereognosticSenses #TouchAndLearn #EducationThroughSenses #LearningIsFun #ChildhoodEducation #TeachingHygiene Section 1: Visual Perception of Dimensions The text discusses a set of educational materials used to teach children about visual perception of dimensions. These materials include: 1. Solid Insets: These are wooden blocks with cylindrical pieces that fit into holes in the blocks. The cylinders vary in size, teaching children about differences in thickness, height, and overall size. This can be a group activity in the classroom. 2. Large Graded Pieces: This set includes three types of blocks that vary in thickness, length, or overall size, helping children learn to differentiate these dimensions. They involve arranging the blocks in a certain order, and if the order is incorrect, the error is visually noticeable. (a) Thickness: These are rectangular prisms that vary in thickness. The child arranges them by thickness. (b) Length: This set contains rods of varying lengths. The child arranges them by length. (c) Size: This set includes cubes of different sizes that children can stack in order from largest to smallest. These games are suitable for children aged three to five, with the simplest tasks aimed at the younger ones and more complex tasks for the older ones. ### Section 2: Visual Perception of Form This part of the text explains how geometric insets of wood are used to teach children about shape perception. These wooden pieces fit into matching holes in a board. The text discusses how these insets have been adapted over time, ending with a design that involves a rectangular tray and a set of white cards with different geometric forms on them. This material allows teachers to present different combinations of shapes, providing a versatile tool for teaching geometric form recognition. \#Education #TeachingTools #VisualPerception #LearningThroughPlay #Montessori This text discusses unique methods for teaching children about colors and sounds. In the first part, it describes the use of color tablets covered in silk or wool to teach children about different colors. The kids learn to identify eight colors - black, red, orange, yellow, green, blue, violet, and brown, each in eight different shades. Exercises include matching tablets of the same color, gradually increasing the number of colors, and arranging tablets in order of their shades. Children also have a chance to test their color memory. This teaching method improves kids' sense of color dramatically, with even three-year-olds able to organize all the tints accurately. #ColorEducation #LearningThroughPlay The second part of the text focuses on sound discrimination. Here, the author acknowledges the challenges associated with sound discrimination as it requires absolute silence. Tools such as a series of thirteen bells or Pizzoli's series of little whistles are used, but they have their limitations. There are also exercises where the teacher gradually deepens silence, allowing children to become aware of subtle sounds around them. The text concludes by emphasizing the importance of training the ear to appreciate harmonious sounds and dislike harsh or discordant noises. #SoundEducation #MindfulListening In summary, these teaching methods focus on refining children's sensory perception of colors and sounds, encouraging active participation and interaction with the learning materials. The ultimate goal is not only sensory education but also cultivating an appreciation for order, harmony, and beauty. ### #MusicalEducation We need a well-planned method for teaching music to young children, as they often can't appreciate the complexity of sounds. To encourage musical appreciation and rhythm, we should develop instruments and musical activities for them. Stringed instruments like simple harps, drums, and bells could be ideal. Teachers should engage with the children while playing music, instead of just performing to them. This interactive method helps children resonate with music at their own pace. Primitive instruments work best in awakening musical interest in young children. We found rhythm to be a key factor in their music engagement, and it also helped improve their body coordination. \#HearingSharpnessTests Successful experiments in our "Children's Houses" involve listening to the ticking of a clock and whispers, in a completely silent environment. It allows us to gauge a child's auditory sharpness. Before starting these exercises, children are taught the real meaning of silence. Achieving absolute silence is not easy, but once achieved, it allows them to hear subtle sounds which usually go unnoticed. These tests not only improve their hearing acuteness but also enhance their discipline. \#SilenceGame In our silence game, children are called by name from another room in a whisper, while their eyes are closed and the room is dark. The children experience joy when they hear their name and are chosen. This silence exercise brings us closer and makes the children more obedient, gentle, and sweet. \#LessonInSilence I once brought a baby to the classroom to illustrate what perfect silence looks like. The quietness and stillness of the baby were more profound than any silence the children could achieve. This lesson had a calming effect on the children, making them understand the depth of true silence. In sum, well-planned and interactive musical education can awaken a love for music in children. Tests for auditory sharpness can also serve as an exercise in discipline, while lessons in silence provide children with a deeper understanding and appreciation of calmness. \#MusicLearning #ChildEducation #AuditoryTraining #SilenceIsGolden #MusicInEducation --- > ##### **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. We create open, free, and affordable resources available for everybody interested in Montessori Education. We transform people and environments to be authentic Montessori worldwide. Thank You! > > [](http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/) > > **License:** This work with all its restoration edits and translations is licensed under a [Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License](http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/). > > Check out the **Page History** of each wiki page in the right column to learn more about all contributors and edits, restorations, and translations done on this page. > > [Contributions](https://ko-fi.com/montessori) and [Sponsors](https://ko-fi.com/montessori) are welcome and very appreciated! * [The Montessori Method, 2nd Edition](https://montessori-international.com/s/the-montessori-method/wiki/+Chapter+Index+-+The+Montessori+Method%2C+2nd+Edition+-+Restoration+-+Open+Library#the-montessori-method%2C-2nd-edition---restoration---open-library) - English Restoration - [Archive.Org](https://archive.org/details/montessorimethod00montuoft/) - [Open Library](https://openlibrary.org/books/OL7089223M/The_Montessori_method) * [Chapter Index](https://montessori-international.com/s/the-montessori-method/wiki/+Chapter+Index+-+The+Montessori+Method%2C+2nd+Edition+-+Restoration+-+Open+Library) * [Chapter 00 - Dedication, Acknowledgements, Preface to the American Edition, Introduction](https://montessori-international.com/s/the-montessori-method/wiki/Chapter+00+-+Dedication%2C+Acknowledgements%2C+Preface+to+the+American+Edition%2C+Introduction) * [Chapter 01 - A critical consideration of the new pedagogy in its relation to modern science](https://montessori-international.com/s/the-montessori-method/wiki/Chapter+01+-+A+critical+consideration+of+the+new+pedagogy+in+its+relation+to+modern+science) * [Chapter 02 - History of Methods](https://montessori-international.com/s/the-montessori-method/wiki/Chapter+02+-+History+of+Methods) * [Chapter 03 - Inaugural address delivered on the occasion of the opening of one of the “Children’s Houses”](https://montessori-international.com/s/the-montessori-method/wiki/Chapter+03+-+Inaugural+address+delivered+on+the+occasion+of+the+opening+of+one+of+the+%E2%80%9CChildren%E2%80%99s+Houses%E2%80%9D) * [Chapter 04 - Pedagogical Methods used in the “Children’s Houses”](https://montessori-international.com/s/the-montessori-method/wiki/Chapter+04+-+Pedagogical+Methods+used+in+the+%E2%80%9CChildren%E2%80%99s+Houses%E2%80%9D) * [Chapter 05 - Discipline](https://montessori-international.com/s/the-montessori-method/wiki/Chapter+05+-+Discipline) * [Chapter 06 - How the lesson should be given](https://montessori-international.com/s/the-montessori-method/wiki/Chapter+06+-+How+the+lesson+should+be+given) * [Chapter 07 - Exercises for Practical Life](https://montessori-international.com/s/the-montessori-method/wiki/Chapter+07+-+Exercises+for+Practical+Life) * [Chapter 08 - Reflection the Child’s diet](https://montessori-international.com/s/the-montessori-method/wiki/Chapter+08+-+Reflection+the+Child%E2%80%99s+diet) * [Chapter 09 - Muscular education gymnastics](https://montessori-international.com/s/the-montessori-method/wiki/Chapter+09+-+Muscular+education+gymnastics) * [Chapter 10 - Nature in education agricultural labor: Culture of plants and animals](https://montessori-international.com/s/the-montessori-method/wiki/Chapter+10+-+Nature+in+education+agricultural+labor%3A+Culture+of+plants+and+animals) * [Chapter 11 - Manual labor the potter’s art, and building](https://montessori-international.com/s/the-montessori-method/wiki/Chapter+11+-+Manual+labor+the+potter%E2%80%99s+art%2C+and+building) * [Chapter 12 - Education of the senses](https://montessori-international.com/s/the-montessori-method/wiki/Chapter+12+-+Education+of+the+senses) * [Chapter 13 - Education of the senses and illustrations of the didactic material: General sensibility: The tactile, thermic, basic, and stereo gnostic senses](https://montessori-international.com/s/the-montessori-method/wiki/Chapter+13+-+Education+of+the+senses+and+illustrations+of+the+didactic+material%3A+General+sensibility%3A+The+tactile%2C+thermic%2C+basic%2C+and+stereo+gnostic+senses) * [Chapter 14 - General notes on the education of the senses](https://montessori-international.com/s/the-montessori-method/wiki/Chapter+14+-+General+notes+on+the+education+of+the+senses) * [Chapter 15 - Intellectual education](https://montessori-international.com/s/the-montessori-method/wiki/Chapter+15+-+Intellectual+education) * [Chapter 16 - Method for the teaching of reading and writing](https://montessori-international.com/s/the-montessori-method/wiki/Chapter+16+-+Method+for+the+teaching+of+reading+and+writing) * [Chapter 17 - Description of the method and didactic material used](https://montessori-international.com/s/the-montessori-method/wiki/Chapter+17+-+Description+of+the+method+and+didactic+material+used) * [Chapter 18 - Language in childhood](https://montessori-international.com/s/the-montessori-method/wiki/Chapter+18+-+Language+in+childhood) * [Chapter 19 - Teaching of numeration: Introduction to arithmetic](https://montessori-international.com/s/the-montessori-method/wiki/Chapter+19+-+Teaching+of+numeration%3A+Introduction+to+arithmetic) * [Chapter 20 - Sequence of exercise](https://montessori-international.com/s/the-montessori-method/wiki/Chapter+20+-+Sequence+of+exercise) * [Chapter 21 - General review of discipline](https://montessori-international.com/s/the-montessori-method/wiki/Chapter+21+-+General+review+of+discipline) * [Chapter 22 - Conclusions and impressions](https://montessori-international.com/s/the-montessori-method/wiki/Chapter+22+-+Conclusions+and+impressions) * [Chapter 23 - Illustrations](https://montessori-international.com/s/the-montessori-method/wiki/Chapter+23+-+Illustrations)