“All work is noble, the only ignoble thing is to live without working.”
-Maria Montessori

The concept of work is part of the human experience. From the very beginning human beings were designed to work and contribute to the ongoing work of Creation. The dignity of work is one of the fundamental concepts of Catholic Social Teaching. Work is far beyond a way to make a living, but rather a fundamental process by which the human person transforms the self and develops into an integrated and whole person. Work is more than labor or an external expression of one’s gifts and talents. Work is what it means to develop the whole self and transform through life’s stages, progressively becoming an integrated being of body, mind, and spirit.

Maria Montessori recognized this desire for work and transformation in the child. She observed that the child desires true and meaningful work as part of the process of growth and development. She saw in the young child an attitude toward work that embraces the process rather than just the end result. As adults we tend to focus on the “product” of our work, i.e a clean kitchen, an organized closet, a paycheck, a college degree. For children work is about the “process,” i.e the steps necessary to internalize and make real what it means to form the self. It is only through work that a child truly becomes the adult and realizes his/her dignity as a child of God and the creator of the human person. The adult works to produce, the child works to become.

The Montessori environments are designed to give great dignity to work and enable the child to engage in meaningful work that will enable self-transformation and ongoing development spiritually, socially, intellectually, emotionally, and physically.

Preprimary

For children in the preprimary environment the development of the work cycle is an integral part of the Montessori curriculum. Freedom of movement and freedom of choice allow the child to move through this work cycle: choosing a work, taking the work to a workspace, completing the work, and returning the work. The exercises of practical life are specifically designed to help develop the work cycle through order, concentration, coordination, and independence. The sensorial materials engage the child in large and small motor movements thus allowing the child to actively engage in the environment and connect the hand and mind into an integrated whole.

Pinpoking is an ongoing work in preprimary. The shapes and patterns vary with the seasons. The child uses a large pushpin to carefully poke around the outline of the shape. Intense concentration is needed to place the pokes closely together so that the shape can be perforated from the paper.

Working with the red rods and the brown stair, the child explores the relationship of length, width, and dimension. These materials encourage large motor movements as the child carries each piece from the shelf to the rug, requiring 10 or more trips to and from the shelf.

Elementary

As the child enters the elementary environment, he/she moves into a more intellectual plane of development where work becomes a means of understanding how the world is interconnected and how all of creation works together to bring about cosmic unity and connection. Reading and writing become a means of expression and a gateway to understanding and further study. The work cycle developed in preprimary now enables the child to develop a greater sense of independence and self-directed learning.

Studying the Saints through biographies gives the elementary child an opportunity to look to heroes of the past as they ponder human relationships and the work and achievements of the human family throughout history.

The elementary child also finds a sense of satisfaction and accomplishment in recording work and following a structured plan. This helps the child to develop more structured work habits and executive functioning skills.

Adolescent Program

The ErdKinder model in Middle School encourages the adolescent to engage in the work of the land and connect to the labor that helped to form and develop civilization. At this developmental stage the physical and emotional changes in the child create a sense of instability and internal discomfort. Real work that leads to adult independence and community connections brings a sense of valorization and understanding of one’s own dignity and contribution to the human family.

Through the woodshop, students work to improve and change the environment around them. In woodshop, students work together to construct new resources for the school, as well the community. Building structures such as sheds, benches, tables, platforms, etc., requires the students to learn and master specific woodworking skills through the use of their hands.

Through the work in the garden, students learn how to cultivate and care for the environment and our community. Gardening gets students outside and deeply involved in nature’s works. It provides them with a rich learning experience that engages all of their senses. Beginning with seeds, students nurture and care for their plants, allowing them to take on a sense of responsibility, build practical life skills and acquire an understanding of the world around them.

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