Development of Mathematics: Ages Birth to Three
One of the human tendencies is to measure the world and to calculate quantities. Infants are born with this tendency, which is called the ‘mathematical mind’ by Montessori educators. From birth, infants observe and respond to measurable physical relationships in their environment in order to be able to orient themselves to the environment and to make sense of it.
They assess, measure, hypothesise, order and classify as they explore their environment with their senses and learn to operate in their environment. To crawl or walk from A to B involves assessment and calculation. Up to three years of age this is done unconsciously and by using the senses.
Many of the activities in Montessori settings prepared for infants and toddlers provide sensory experience of mathematical relationships. Some examples are:
The Montessori materials provide experiences with dimension and form, sequencing, patterns, order and comparison. They also encourage reasoning and calculation.
The Montessori environment and programme provides experiences in shape and space, time and predictability and enhances working memory.
Food preparation activities provide experience with measuring, quantity, weight, volume, sequencing and fractions.
Puzzles, exact matching of nomenclature objects and cards, table setting, and flower arranging provide one-to-one correspondence.
Language materials provide classification experiences.
Washing hands, dishes and cloths provide experience with volume, weight and sequencing.
Sand play provides experience with quantity, volume, weight, measurement and area.
Songs, poems and fingerplays provide experience with numbers.
Counting books provide number experience
Mathematical language pervades the environment – ‘more/less’, ‘right/left’, ‘up/down’, ‘high/low’, ‘in/out’, ‘big/little’, ‘large/small’, ‘heavy/light’, ‘some’, ‘full/empty’, ‘same/different’, ‘near/far’, ‘under/over’, ‘open/close’, ’here/there’, ‘fast/slow’, ‘today/yesterday’, etc.
These experiences in the Nido and Infant Community provide indirect preparation for the introduction of more formal concrete mathematical materials in the Montessori preschool setting, the Children’s House.