Nurturing the Spirit

In his work, Wolf examines how a teacher might contribute to the core goal of raising a more peaceful society by properly raising students. She examines the spiritual realm in depth and discusses how to foster an agnostic environment in the classroom. A child will be able to live a good life in the future if they are raised with a strong spiritual foundation. More importantly, the author offers insightful advice on how to promote harmony and peace in the globe. This essay will examine some of the book’s most memorable phrases and point out how they connect to the Montessori method of teaching. If education recognizes the intrinsic value of the child’s personality and provides an environment suited to spiritual growth, we have the revelation of an entirely new child, whose astonishing characteristics can eventually contribute to the betterment of the world“ (4).

This statement demonstrates how adults can nourish a sense of spirituality in children. The importance of enhancing the spiritual level of the child is evident in this quote. Therefore, this statement provides a valuable synthesis of Montessori education compelling ideas concerning the child’s spiritual needs and the importance of fostering a spiritual community. An education system that nurtures a child and brings out the personality values is important. This quote elucidates that the child is endowed with an inner power which could be guided t in the process of development. This is an important factor in modeling the future life of the child.

”Spirituality is rooted in the most profound depths of each human being, in all nature and in the universe that surrounds us (7).

Wolf also believed that one of the key ways to foster harmony in the world is through cultivating spiritual growth in a child. Teachers should also be on the forefront in identifying the value in children to contribute to the betterment of the world. Making children understand that spirituality is important in their lives is very critical in education. A child has to understand that spirituality surrounds us and it is in every human being. Hence, the education system has to embrace teaching spiritual requirements. This idea is critical in enabling the child to be well equipped on spiritual with vital virtues like love and tolerance that will help him or her to face the world with courage.

”In discovering one’s self, I believe, it is also very important to recall one’s childhood… It means to feel intensely the moods of one’s childhood, the emotions, the fears, the excitement, the questions” (36)

During the childhood developmental stage, a fundament factor involves discovering oneself and importance of identity. It is during the childhood stage that a person will intensely feel moods of excitement, emotions, fears and even raise critical questions about his or her. According to the author, maintaining a proper nurturing spirit in children enables them to cultivate correct emotions and look at the world positively. Teachers should be careful in what they tell the children while they are growing up because it has a significant influence on their adulthood life. More significantly, parents and teachers should be able to identify the moods of the child and respond them appropriately. As such, parenthood encompasses the ability nurture children safety in a sound way that will impact on their future life.

”The child’s sense of wonder cannot also be nourished inside the classroom with activities that have been thoroughly preparing to arouse curiosity” (81).

Experiencing wonder in the classroom is a significant topic that a teacher has to explore in every child. The activities that are carried out in classroom mold the child in wide spheres of life and impact the person with the knowledge that is fundament in the process of upbringing. Therefore, a classroom is an important place that helps to nurture a child and bring wonders in his or her life. The experiences in the classroom enable the child to develop curiosity and thus bring out the hidden talents as well as prepare the child to face life boldly. The person develops a spirit of adventure and thus explores life. Hence, a teacher should make a classroom environment to be a place of discovering talents and preparing the child to encounter the world challenges.

”If we deliberately destroy nature or harm other living beings we might be ultimately destroying ourselves” (93).

This quote elucidates that promoting peace with people and other things promotes equality and care on the earth. There is a need for every person to understand that peace begins with oneself in the attempts to see a peaceful world. When a country is at peace, the economy also grows, and every person will lead a good life. For this reason, teachers in school should teach the children that when one is at peace with the neighbors, the whole nation is at peace. This is one of the critical facets that has to form part of the curriculum in the education system.

”A human being is led to his or her cosmic task by an allurement, that is, an authentic passion or interest that emanates from the true self” (96).

This quote alludes that people awake in themselves unique set of factors that emanate from the inside. A child should be taught that true self is a crucial factor in cultivating for true identity. Being true to yourself builds on the self-esteem and thus makes the person be confident in what he or she does in life. Truly, a spirit of true identity is significant in the education life.

”A very important step in nurturing either own’s spirit or the child’s spirit is to prepare an environment where stillness can be cultivated with some regular frequency” (51).

Stillness is a central virtue in every individual, and it enables one to thrive and makes people realize their interior lives. Stillness promotes peace and harmony as well as the foster life that is admirable to live on. In children, raising them in an environment that is characterized with stillness helps to understand that living a tranquil life is important in the development of their brain.

”If a child like adults feels peace in their hearts, they can more easily relate peacefully to those around them” (115).

Wolf tried to explain that the child’s inner peace and love was momentous in promoting harmony. This quote showcases that violence and stress in children promote bad behavior and this makes some of them become gangsters. The statement also portrays why it is important for parents to bring up their children in a stress-free environment to promote peace and love. Hence reducing stress and building of self-love are important aspects in cultivating a child’s inner peace. This helps the child to be aware of his or her self-worth, and one learns to appreciate the people around them. Calling the children the right names is fundamental for the parents to help in promoting self-worth in children. Hence, nurturing spirituality and teaching peace benefits the children in having self-love.

”Community breeds helpfulness, strength, intimacy and a special kind of shared laughter that comes from knowing each other well and looking at situations from the same perspective” (53).

In this quote, Wolf communicates to the reader that when teachers work in a community, they are able to overcome their weaknesses and look at things positively. For teachers to live in a community, they must have open communication to foster the stated virtues and make people understand the importance of corporation. Also, it is important for one to admit his or her weaknesses to make it possible for one to live well with the people around. Community among the staffroom member acts a model to the children and impacts in them a spirit of teamwork. Working together assist in achieving a common goal.

“In a classroom community it is particularly important to let children experience the joy of creating something there-something that would not be possible for one child to do alone” (129).

This quote stresses the importance of creating groups in the classroom in setting the children works together. Through nurturing a community spirit in the classroom makes the child be able to discover new things which one could not have managed if let alone. Also, when children work together, it promotes the spirit of cooperation which is a vital aspect in nurturing children. This also promotes love, friendship, and harmony in children. More importantly, the children learn how to relate to other people and how to respond to issues in the appropriate ay as well as embracing cultural diversity. According to the book, the school is a community and za family to the young children. In a school, it is also important for the parents to be involved to enable a better development of the children.

”Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist’s ones he grows up” (143).

When a child is born, he or she is endowed with some talent that makes him or her an artist. However, the factors that the child encounters while growing up could either bring out the artistic nature in the child or kill it. According to this quote, it is thus important for parents and teachers to provide fertile settings to the child upbringing that will offer ground of illuminating creativeness in the child in fields such as drama, music, dancing, and art. Therefore, just as Abraham Maslow indicates, creative art education is specifically vital to enable children to actualize their potentials and help nurture the artistic aspect in them.

”Children’s questions and comments about God force us to reflect on our own beliefs; they stimulate out spiritual growth even when we have no answers, even if we have no faith” (162).

This quote means that a child should be a raid on a religious grounds and know that God exists. The security in children could make then question vital factors, but white a pater is a believer or a non-believer, he or she should take the question positively and respond to it positively. This is one of the vital factors that should be embraced when raising children. A parent who is a believer should tell the children the bible stories and bring out the moral lesson in every story to help in nurturing the child to live a morally upright life.

Work Cited

Wolf D. Aline. Nurturing the Spirit: In Non-Sectarian Classrooms. New York. Parent Child Press, Incorporated, 2017