“…nature is quite logical in arousing now in the child not only a hunger for knowledge and understanding, but a claim to mental independence, a desire to distinguish good from evil by his own powers” – Maria Montessori
Maria Montessori talked A LOT about child development from birth to around 6 years old (the first plane of development). But, she did talk about older children too, and I believe it’s never too late to bring Montessori into an older child’s life and routine. Here are 3 simple ways you can do this at home with your children.

1. Chat to them about their Cosmic Mission.
Oh, this has got to be one of my favourite Montessori lessons (even though I say that a lot). Cosmic Education is where we develop an understanding that every single thing in the universe has a purpose, and everything is interdependent on one another. So that tiny ant right there? It has a job and a purpose and we should respect that. Consider talking to them about what they think their purpose is right now. Do they think it will change in the future?
2. Help around the house
I know, I know. My 7 year old doesn’t see the joy in laying the table any more than she wants to put her shoes on in the morning. Rewind 4 years and there was nothing better than laying the table and helping to put the shopping away. Even if they had a great routine in helping out when they were younger, it can happen that they hit the second plane of development and bam! They become a little bit messier and more into doing their own independent thing. It makes a lot of us wonder what happened? But it’s normal.
Try to keep up the momentum and gently encourage. Follow their lead though! If they are engrossed in a book or an art project, let them be. That concentration is still developing.
3. Remember that they may need concrete materials to help them learn.
This is especially important to remember if they go to school, but I’m talking to home educators here too. Don’t get sucked into thinking that they are older now so don’t need to use maths manipulatives to truly understand a concept. Concrete to abstract = mastery. It helps children to be able to not only understand a concept, but be able to use it in a few different ways – investigations, reasoning and problem solving. And why especially school goers? The class has got to move at a certain speed. And whilst a good teacher will differentiate, they cannot do this to suit 30 different learners, no matter how hard they try. Often in later KS2 classrooms there are no concrete materials to use.
4. Talk often about morals and values.
Children of this age are often so interested in what is right and wrong. If you have a child of this age, you will probably relate to this – who else gets constant stories of who did what wrong at school? One of the best tips I have had for this age child is to talk to them about their morals. If they are upset about something, chat to them about what you can tell about their character from their upset.
For example: my daughter was upset that some boys in her class said that her Moana bottle is for babies. We chatted about this and I said that I could tell how much she cares about people being kind to one another, or she wouldn’t have been affected by this comment. This kind of conversation can help them to be self-assured and have strong morals as they grow and move into adolescence (which I am fully denying will ever happen, thank you very much!).
There are lots more ways you can bring Montessori to an older child’s life and routine, but try these as a starting point.
I would love to know what YOUR cosmic task is right now? It’s so important for us as adults too. To feel like we have a purpose. If you don’t know, or don’t think you have one, that’s fine. Some food for thought. Let me know your thoughts below, or come and engage with me on Facebook. I have some great summer clubs coming up for older children