Chapter 7 Summary: Exercises of Practical Life
The Daily Schedule Philosophy
⢠Long school days for comprehensive development - 9am-5pm in winter, 8am-6pm in summer for working families
"For poor children, and especially for the 'Children's Houses' annexed to workingmen's tenements, I should advise that the school-day should be from nine in the morning to five in the evening in winter, and from eight to six in summer"
⢠Garden of child culture, not academic pressure - Extended time serves holistic development
"The 'Children's House' is a garden of child culture, and we most certainly do not keep the children for so many hours in school with the idea of making students of them!"
⢠Schedules must be flexible - Rigid timetables don't work with liberty-based education
"The schedule which we outlined when we established the first 'Children's House,' but which we have never followed entirely, (a sign that a schedule in which the material is distributed in arbitrary fashion is not adapted to the rĂŠgime of liberty)"
The Four Pillars of Practical Life
⢠Cleanliness - Foundation of self-respect - Daily inspection teaches self-awareness and care
"We examine the hands, the nails, the neck, the ears, the face, the teeth... In this way, the children become accustomed to observing themselves and take an interest in their own appearance"
⢠Order - Environmental responsibility - Children maintain their learning space
"Then we begin our visit about the schoolroom. We notice if all of the various materials are in order and if they are clean"
⢠Poise - Grace in movement - Physical composure reflects inner discipline
"The teacher explains to them that the normal position is for each child to be seated in his own place, in silence, with his feet together on the floor, his hands resting on the table, and his head erect"
⢠Conversation - Social and language development - Guided discussions build communication skills
"Such conversations as these encourage the unfolding or development of language and are of great educational value"
Self-Care as Education
⢠Teaching personal hygiene skills - Children learn to wash, groom, and care for themselves
"The teacher, by using a little washstand with small pitchers and basins, teaches the children to take a partial bath: for example, they learn how to wash their hands and clean their nails"
⢠Older children help younger ones - Natural mentorship develops responsibility
"We teach the big ones to help the little ones, and, so, encourage the younger children to learn quickly to take care of themselves"
⢠Self-awareness through body care - Learning about different body parts and care methods
"We call their attention to the different parts of the body which they are washing, and to the different means which we use in order to cleanse them: clear water for the eyes, soap and water for the hands, the brush for the teeth"
Grace and Courtesy Training
⢠Graceful movement as social skill - Teaching children to move with awareness and consideration
"After this we have a series of exercises in which the children learn to move gracefully, to go and come, to salute each other, to lift objects carefully, to receive various objects from each other politely"
⢠Positive reinforcement for good behavior - Teacher notices and celebrates progress
"The teacher calls attention with little exclamations to a child who is clean, a room which is well ordered, a class seated quietly, a graceful movement"
⢠Transition to self-direction - Moving from guided practice to independent good choices
"From such a starting point we proceed to the free teaching. That is, the teacher will no longer make comments to the children, directing them how to move from their seats, etc., she will limit herself to correcting the disordered movements"
Morning Conversation Circle
⢠Guided social interaction - Structured discussion that builds communication skills
"After the directress has talked in this way about the attitude of the children and the arrangement of the room, she invites the children to talk with her"
⢠Focus on individual growth - Questions about personal behavior rather than family privacy
"She questions them concerning what they have done the day before, regulating her inquiries in such a way that the children need not report the intimate happenings of the family but their individual behaviour"
⢠Teaching appropriate conversation topics - Learning what is suitable for social discourse
"The directress can prevent the children from recounting happenings in the house or in the neighbourhood, and can select, instead, topics which are adapted to pleasant conversation"
Preparation for Social Life
⢠Practical life as experimental psychology - Preparing the child before beginning formal lessons
"After having prepared the instrument (to which in this case the environment may correspond) we prepare the subject... we must begin our work by preparing the child for the forms of social life"
⢠The most successful part of the curriculum - Practical life exercises proved universally effective
"These exercises were such a success that they formed the beginning of the day in all of the 'Children's Houses'"
⢠Foundation for all other learning - Social skills and self-care enable academic growth
"Considering the method as a whole, we must begin our work by preparing the child for the forms of social life, and we must attract his attention to these forms"