“If education is always to be conceived along the same antiquated lines of a mere transmission of knowledge, there is little to be hoped from it in the bettering of man’s future. For what is the use of transmitting knowledge if the individual’s total development lags behind?” — Maria Montessori, The Absorbent Mind, p. 4.

In her recent webinar, “The Power of Playful Learning: How guided play sparks social and academic outcomes,” Dr. Kathy Hirsh-Pasek stated that, according to her research, “…adult directed play was better than free play when there is a learning goal.” (Hirsh-Pasek, 2014)

Why the Montessori Environment uses Guided Play to Foster Learning

In the Montessori environment, there are specific learning goals assigned to each area of the classroom as well as to each material. If we look at the Pink Tower, we see that it looks like a set of basic stacking blocks. And if we were to allow the children to freely play with them, they would learn to build a tower, knock it over, and start again. But through guided play, the adult chooses how the interaction will occur. Yes, we stack them, but as we do so we deliberately compare each block to the others, strengthening our perception of size and order. Through the Montessori three-period lesson, we teach vocabulary associated with the material: large, larger, largest; small, smaller, smallest. We use words of proximity: on top of; beside; next to; below; adjacent. Through guided play, we are teaching both spatial and mathematical concepts and building the foundation for future learning.

Hirsh-Pasek used preschool geometry to research the importance guided play had on future STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) skills. Using materials similar to Montessori’s Constructive Triangles and Geometric Cabinet, her study used three conditions:

Guided play
Children were taught rule-based classification for shapes in a playful, exploratory manner. (They were the “detectives” discovering the secret of the shapes.)

Direct instruction
Children were taught rule-based classification for shapes in a passive learning manner. (They watched while the experimenter acted as a detective discovering the secret of the shapes).

Exploratory, free play
Children played with shape cut-outs and wax stick for approximately the same time as the above training conditions. (Hirsh-Pasek, 2014)

The results proved overwhelmingly that children who discover and explore through guided play achieved a higher rate of success and learned skills needed far beyond their preschool years. 

(Hirsh-Pasek, 2014)

Angeline Lilliard’s research on play and direct instruction has found that “Developmental science does not support young children sitting in desks while teachers lecture at them. … Compared with free play programs, more structured classrooms with carefully designed, challenging, hands-on activities that confer learning appear to help children’s development the most.” (Lillard et al., 2012)

When we consider the needs of children, we can see that neither free play, which has no adult intervention, nor direct instruction, which does not allow for child exploration, serve educational requirements. And whether we, as Montessorians, call it work or play, the answer as Lillard concludes, is this: “The hands-on, child-driven educational methods sometimes referred to as ‘playful learning’ are the most positive means yet known to help young children’s development.” (Lillard, et al., 2012)