“A tranquil mind gives life to the body” Proverbs 14:30a NAB
What is the Montessori philosophy of “normalization?” What does it look like? Does it look the same in each child? How can we foster normalization?
Normalization fosters peace and joy in the child. It allows the child to enter into a deeper spiritual prayer time. As adults we have a unique role to create the optimal environment and freedom that will allow a child to enter into normalization. We are capable of fostering or obstructing this process. We must not allow the uncomfortableness of boredom or struggle to obstruct the child’s natural potential to enter deeply into meaningful work on their own.
Gabriela Perez is a Montessori guide in the Northeast Georgia Mountains. She is the director of Little Way School which is a Catholic Montessori School that serves children of all financial abilities and backgrounds. She has been involved as a Montessori guide and as a catechist for The Catechesis of the Good Shepherd for over 12 years. She is AMI certified at the primary level and formed in Catechesis of the Good Shepherd in level 1.