If It's Broken: Don't Fix it!

No, that's not a typo. I have learned that sometimes if it is broken not fixing it can be a great way to reinforce the importance of taking proper care of toys and such.  When I started integrating montessori/reggio environments into our reasonably small home I was terrified!  Why? Because I have dumpers, scatterers, and all over the floorers.  If you have one or two in your home ... you know exactly what I mean.  My then toddlers and now preschoolers love to dump bins and buckets out to explore them.  They hop quickly from one thing to another and don't always put things back.  So the thought of total access totally terrified me. 

Then, I decided that I would try a few stations.  If things got broken or left out instead of replacing them.  I would leave those spaces empty and place those items on a shelf in a closet for 3 days.  Much to my surprise the technique worked relatively quickly.  Of coarse, these lessons are on going and we are far from 100% accuracy.  However, by enlarge we are doing great!  Especially in areas like the art center.