Maria montessori childhood play
Who said play is the work of the child.
Birth-18 months
Almost all neuron (nerve cells) are present at birth but most are not connected in networks.
Maria montessori childhood life
The connecting process (synapse formation) is rapid during this year, with brain activity becoming closer to an adult than newborn by 12 months. Areas of greatest growth are sensorimotor, visual cortex and later the frontal lobes.
Play reflects the development of brain areas. This is what Piaget called “practice play.”
Sight, sound, touch, taste, smell: These are the ways babies learn about the world.
Maria montessori childhood play
This is why the best infant toys are usually brightly colored noisemakers. They soon graduate from mobiles (try a musical one for extra interest) and mirrors (which they find fascinating) to grasping and holding. Toys they can manipulate with pleasing effects–activity quilts with different textures: attachments that squeak or jingle; rattles; activity bars: softballs to drop and retrieve–begin to teach them dexterity and the concept of cause-and-effect.
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