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Practical Life
PRACTICAL LIFE
Children love to do activities which help them to take care of themselves. Often we hear "I can do it myself". Practical Life area and activities lay the foundation for the child’s introduction to school providing a link between home and the classroom.
The direct aim of this area activities is to assist the child in developing social skills and personal independence. The indirect aim is to develop the child’s fine motor movement, which involves the body, intellect and will.
Practical Life exercises teach children to care for themselves, for others, and for the environment. These exercises involve a wide variety of activities such as carrying objects, walking, polishing, sweeping, dusting, lacing, mainly activities that are done in day to day living.
Practical Life is divided into four major areas namely:
• movement,
• care of self,
• care of environment,
• and grace and courtesy.
All Practical Life activities are uniquely purposeful and calming. They also teach the child to complete a task following a step-by-step procedure. This sequential ordering of tasks prepares children for the logical task that awaits them in mathematics. Activities in these areas are presented in isolation in order to help the child focus his attention only on a particular task.
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