Montessori Peace Corner

Children are full of emotions and experience every emotion candidly. They work continuously to regulate these emotions. The way parents respond to their feelings in the initial years helps them learn to express and manage emotions later.

Even adults experience a whole range of emotions, and each emotion serves a purpose. Rather than controlling these emotions, children must embrace them while also having the ability to calm themselves down.

Feelings and emotions originate inside our brains. For toddlers, these emotions can be overwhelming as they experience many of them for the first time.

Since there is a solid connection between our body and the brain, calming your body can calm your brain. Introducing children to methods and materials that calm their bodies will soothe their minds.

Montessori Peace Corner is one such way that works wonders for the children in calming them down.

Are you curious about how the peace corner can help you?

Let us explore more about it.

What is a Montessori Peace Corner?

A Montessori Peace Corner is a small and safely designed space encouraged in every Montessori classroom and even Montessori Home Environment for a child to exercise self-regulation of their emotions. It is used in a Montessori homeschool environment as well.

It is also called a calm down corner and can be implemented to meet the specific needs of children in the classroom.

These spaces create an inviting place for children to find peace by providing calming me-time. It helps children experiencing big emotions or whose nervous systems are overwhelmed by outside stimuli calm down.

Characteristics of Montessori Peace Corner

• Structured – It is a structured space with specially designed materials depending on the needs of the children to instill self-regulation and calmness in children.
  
• Private – A peaceful corner provides solitude and privacy for young children when they need alone time to manage their feelings at school or home.
  At times, being in a class, context could be overwhelming to the nervous system, especially when the children spend long hours at school.
  
• Safe – These areas are safe spaces where children choose to spend time when they need to relieve their overstimulated emotions in a safe place.
  
• Quiet and calm- A peace corner is a quiet space with fewer visual stimuli than the rest of the classroom to soothe the children.
  
• Space to experiment – Children use the self-care tools in the peace corner to explore strategies, and gradually they learn which one works for them the best.
  
• Softly lit – Sometimes dim lights make children rest and find peace within as spending too much time in bright lights can cause over-stimulation in children.

Why create a Montessori Peace Corner?

Children, like adults, need an inviting space to unwind when they are overtired and overstimulated.

They often cannot express these emotions. Montessori Peace Corner provides a comfortable space to play and is also a good source for redirecting during challenging moments.

The purpose of the peace corner is to support peace within by using materials that represent and encourage positive behaviors, mindfulness, and self-reflection.

When children look upset, tired, have anxiety, or throw tantrums in a Montessori classroom or at home, teachers and parents redirect them to the peace corner.

The objective is to have a space where children can calm themselves down and learn to self-regulate their emotions throughout the day.

• Having this calming area in your home and school can make your child believe that calming strategies can happen anywhere.
  The child learns to use self-awareness and self-soothing strategies in daily life when they practice in the peace corner.
  
• Children can resolve the conflicts and issues that occur among peers. Children take turns talking about their feelings and solving problems.
  
• The peace corner can be particularly helpful if there are children with special needs in the classroom or at home.
  
• A peace corner helps children by providing a safe space to regulate their emotions positively.
  
• Peace corners create self-awareness for parents too. By sending your child to this space, you get time to calm down to think about the real consequences you will set.
  
• Children develop healthy coping mechanisms for stressful situations and learn to deal independently with them.
  
• Too much screen time and noise cause overstimulation in kids, a Montessori Peace Corner provides just enough stimuli to help the child calm down.
  
• Sometimes children need a break from Montessori activities and can use the peace corner to soothe themselves from overtiredness.
  
• It works well for children aged three years but can toddlers who are 1.5-2 years too.

How to create a Montessori Peace Corner?

Whether in a classroom or at home, a peace corner should symbolize a safe retreat where children can interact to solve their conflicts through respect and patience.

The atmosphere is calming and consists of activities that calm them and create a sense of peace within the child. A peace corner contains a comfortable place that is dark and quiet if needed. 

These are the steps you can follow for creating a peaceful corner.

• Finding an appropriate space
  You can check around your house to find an ideal personal place for your child. The spot must be safe, quiet, and easily accessible to the child.
  It need not be a far corner of your house. It could be a space that is a part of a library if you have one at home. Try decluttering in and around the peace corner, keeping it simple and naturally lit.
  
• Customizing the space
  You must be careful to add tools in the space that serve a specific purpose for your child. You can consider age, interests, and development when choosing materials for this space. If you have children of different ages at home, considering the interest of each child will help.
  
• Choosing materials for the space
  When setting up a calming corner, the items you select for the space play are essential in the effectiveness of the space for your child.
  Having calming activities is the objective of the Montessori Peace Corner. Involving your child in choosing materials is a good idea as they will connect instantly with them.
  

Some ideas to consider for a Montessori Peace Corner

1. Small unbreakable mirror – child gain self-awareness by noticing facial expressions
   
2. Books like The Mindfulness Coloring Book for Children by The Future Teacher Foundation, The Peace Book by Todd Parr, and What Does Peace Feel Like? by Vladimir Radunsky
   
3. Sensory bottles – safe and pleasant items for your child to smell, hear or feel that support sensory stimulation.
   
4. Calming jars – sensory tool for the cool-down period (1 Half-pint glass Mason jar, 1/2 cup corn syrup,1/2 cup hot water plus more to fill the jar,1 tsp glitter, 3-4 drops dish soap)
   
5. Bubbles – helps practice deep breaths
   
6. Sequin pillows and carpet – to feel comfortable and cozy.
   
7. Soft stress balls
   
8. Sand timer – a meditative tool to look at as time goes by and keep a tab on the time needed to calm down.
   
9. Emotions chart – Images help the child learn words to distinguish and express their feelings.
   
10. Playdough – for stretching, ripping, pulling
    
11. Pin Art – provides a sensory and cognitive experience that gets them out of their negative headspace.
    
12. Glitter balls
    
13. Stretchy strings
    
14. Noise blocking headphones
    
15. Miniature Zen garden

When you have set the peace corner, you need to figure out some calm-down strategies with your child. You may have to try different calming activities before finding one that works for your child. The needs of every child may vary across situations.

Some of the calming activities that you can introduce to your child are:

• Yoga
• Feather blowing
• Raking sand (Zen garden)
• Softly singing the calming song of choice
• Breathing exercises

Peace is the essential foundation to maintain the mental health of children. The Montessori Peace Corner is the perfect platform to establish peaceful ways of communication in school and at home.

However, you must be careful not to utilize the peace corner as a time-out area for your child. Introducing the place slowly to the child helps. Let them understand that it is a special place where they can go to take care of their feelings while their brain becomes prepared to think and learn again.

See Also:

• Mindfulness in Montessori Environment
• How to create a Montessori Environment
• Discipline in Montessori
• Normalization in Montessori