How To Implement Montessori’s Famous ‘Silence Game’ In Your Classroom

We live in a world that is full of noise leading to irritability, confusion and frustration and children feel all these too. Maria Montessori introduced the Silence Game with children to help create a level of awareness and sensitivity to noise making children calm and peaceful.

Here’s how the game is played:

1. The Teacher invites the children to sit in a circle.
2. She sits in a correct posture by keeping her back straight and her palms on her knees.
3. She then tells the children, ‘We are going to make silence’.
4. The Teacher tells them that she is going to make herself so still that it will seem that she is not there.
5. She closes her eyes and becomes very still.
6. After a few moments, she asks the children to join her, one by one or as a group.
7. To end the Silence Game, the teacher may whisper each child’s name one by one and they may open their eyes.

Conclusion:

• If the children have created silence, point it out to them.
• If silence was not created, bring to children’s attention what did not let it happen and let them know that we will try again another time.
• With practice, children learn to create silence and they love it.

Variation:

• Create a sign that says ‘Silence’.
• Use a little bell.
• Play soft music with sounds of nature.

Teacher can tell the children that if they see the word ‘Silence’ / hear the sound of the bell / hear that music then they need to stop doing anything they are doing and make silence.

Note:

This game may be played at any time when your class is noisy and is highly effective. It is used by many teachers across the world in their classrooms. At the end of the game, during the discussion, children will come up with some really amazing remarks. In time, their listening skills sharpen and they will be able to even hear the slightest movement in the room.

Points of Interests:

Children will be able to see if they are able to ‘make silence’ as a group and individually too.

Age: 2.5 to 6 Years

Enjoy the game! Share with us the outcome of this game when you play with your children!

Recommendation:

Here’s a book on ‘When I Make Silence’ for early reading children in the class. It is aimed at awakening children’s awareness of their own powers of silent reflection.