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The Magic of Concentration

Deeply concentrating on the knobbed cylinders.
Deeply concentrating on the knobbed cylinders.

Maria Montessori tells a story in her writings about noticing a child very deep in concentration with the knobbed cylinders, a material found in the sensorial area.  Dr. Montessori wondered just how much it would take to break this child’s concentration.  She had the other children in the class surround the young girl and sing, and Dr. Montessori even lifted the girl from her chair.  Despite all of the noise and movement around her, the little girl clung to the knobbed cylinders and could not be convinced to cease her work with them.


This was a revelation for Dr. Montessori, because she (like many of us) thought young children have short attention spans and are easily distracted.  Why was this young girl so focused? How could Dr. Montessori recreate and encourage the conditions that enable such deep concentration?


Over time, through experimentation and observation in her classroom, Dr. Montessori came to believe that children sought out opportunities for deep concentration. She theorized that children have an inner drive for such opportunities. As Montessori teacher and writer Paula Lillard Preschlack writes, “Montessori made it her goal, then, to notice what objects attracted the children’s attention so strongly that they became fixed upon them and, thereby, developed their powers of concentration — powers which could then be transferred to other subjects as their interests were piqued, so that they learned many more things.”  The skill of concentration is like a muscle that can be trained, and by following children’s natural interests, Montessori teachers provide engaging opportunities for children to concentrate on progressively longer and more difficult tasks.  


Why is this so important? In the one hundred plus years since Dr. Montessori developed her ideas, researchers and psychologists have found that the act of concentrating and being engaged in one's work improves learning outcomes, executive function, and even emotional regulation.  Dr. Montessori saw this too: she wrote of a “spiritual” transformation that occurred in children.  She writes, “Through concentration important qualities of character develop. When the concentration passes, the child is inwardly satisfied, he becomes aware of his companions in whom he shows a lively and sympathetic interest.”  Similarly, Angeline Stoll Lillard discusses this in Montessori: The Science Behind the Genius and cites recent research that found that adults are happier and more socially inclined after focusing on a task.  Dr. Montessori referred to this transformation brought about by concentration as normalization, which we will examine in a future blog post.


Higher level learning requires deep and extended focus. Source
Higher level learning requires deep and extended focus. Source

In Montessori classrooms, this emphasis on concentration is put into practice through an uninterrupted work cycle (usually two to three hours) in which children have free choice over the materials they work with.  Teachers serve as guides who connect children to the prepared classroom environment, providing a brief lesson before stepping back and allowing children to explore the materials independently.  Montessori teachers are trained to refrain from interrupting a child who is concentrating on a task.  The result is a busy hum of activity: children enthusiastically engaged in learning that genuinely interests them. 

 
 
 

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