“When we picked him up, he said he was sad. We asked him why and he replied, ” I don’t want to go home, I want to stay here longer.” Later he slept 3 hours….”

This affirms for me the Montessori method (again). We have many “visitor children” at this time of the year.  None of them have ever been to our school before, most do not know anyone else there, some have never been anywhere before (as in group care).  It is the end of the year, so the community is made, everyone knows what to do.  The parents have many emotions, which I well understand, but we (Lynn, Megan and I) do not worry.  Even when a child cries very hard for a bit, they settle down, watching in fascination.  There is so much to see!  The other children are intriguing to them.  “WHAT are they doing????”  Someone is hammering, someone is singing, someone is doing a puzzle, someone is counting, and someone is looking at a book, while someone is slicing bananas and someone is folding napkins and someone is painting glue on paper and….you get to use SCISSORS??????

And the “rules” are different.  You cannot touch everyone’s things (“work?”), you have to ask, you have to put that other stuff away, first, you have to wash your hands, you have to roll your rug, people say “no” to you….Outside, children are running everywhere.

If this were not a good place for children, they would shut down and beg to escape.  Why not?  It is all new and confusing, and there is no comfortable person there (yet).  None of it is routine, yet.  So, it must be something that works for what children need, or parts of it.  (It could always be better!)

Maybe it is because, especially at the end of the year, the children, especially the 3rd years, are so much in charge.  And maybe that is why I am so often sad at this time of year, not just that the 3rd years are “perfect” AND going to Kindergarten, but that they have gotten to the place where, for much of the time, the adult teachers are not needed much, and that is how it should be.  And….then we start again….