Training Talk - The Pikler Approach

Montessori childminder Charlotte Vallence says she and her four assistants have ‘slowed down’ since she completed a course introducing the Pikler approach, ‘both in the way we give our care and in our expectations of how a child develops’.

The four five-hour workshops were organised by social enterprise Early Childhood Outdoors and delivered by two Pikler specialists in Copmanthorpe, North Yorkshire.

Its main principles are the importance of letting children develop at their own pace, and forging strong connections with caregivers. ‘A prime example would be propping babies up to sitting when they don’t have the necessary neck control,’ Ms Vallence explains. ‘This essentially immobilises them and yet it is absolutely commonplace in our culture.’

The four workshops covered movement, care, play and outdoors in nature. As well as learning from presentations, participants were encouraged to experience care from a child’s perspective through practical work such as sand play. The group of around 30 was also sent outdoors to gather natural resources.

On one occasion, half of the group left the room, returned, took other participants by the hand and began wiping them with baby wipes while ignoring them. ‘I was amazed how sad you felt when someone was doing something to you but paying you no regard whatsoever,’ says Ms Vallence.

Ms Vallence has observed several changes in her setting’s children’s behaviour since the course. ‘Our conflict resolution has improved hugely,’ she says. ‘The course leaders advocated stepping back and watching children resolve their own conflict. Now, where we might have stepped in a bit too soon, by giving the children the opportunity to sort things out for themselves, nine time out of ten it’s sorted out much quicker.’

Further information: https://www.earlychildhoodoutdoors.org/events