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Sensitive periods

19.05.2023
AliveMontessori
Montessori Education

A sensitive period is a stage of learning, especially in the first five, six years of life, when it is very easy for children to learn concepts, ideas, skills, attitudes, and behaviour. These could be learned later in life but never fully, as according to Maria Montessori this could only be achieved during the sensitive periods; hence, the importance to observe the children and to identify areas where we could support them and guide them in order to develop their maximum potential. 

It’s worth mentioning that is it possible for a child to be more intensely involved within a sensitive period while other sensitive periods are less perceptible, this is why we should be close observers of the children, and make sure we do not miss any window of opportunity and support them by preparing the best environment. A child who would love to play an instrument, but the parents think this is not important or maybe the child does not express his/her desire and the parents do not notice it, it is a missed “window of opportunity”. Soon, the child will redirect his/her interest to something else and most probably trying to learn how to play an instrument later in life might not be as easy as it would have been to learn it now.

Think about the sensitive period as an invisible headlamp directed at specific areas of interest. While a child might have to choose between working with the blocks or using paint, the light shines more brightly on one of them, and this is the opportunity we should make the most out of. We should guide the child in the best way that we can and provide the most suitable resources while he is particularly interested in something. 

To conclude, a sensitive period is a synonym of “window of opportunity” because it is the time when it is very easy for the child to learn something, in other words it is the perfect opportunity to make the most out of it, as if a window is open, the child has the chance to see what is out there, to explore it and to benefit from it. It also reflects the fact that it is a temporary stage, just as a window is never always open the same with the sensitive period, it is there only for some time, so the child with the help of the adults must take advantage of it while it lasts, while the window is open.