Exercises of practical life equip children with life skills that expand motor skills, refine coordination, extend concentration, and express their love and respect for their community and classroom.  The activities are simple, concrete exercises that are familiar to the children because they see adults performing them in their daily routines.  Activities such as pouring water from a jug, spooning pasta from one bowl to another, threading beads, washing dishes, tying and polishing shoes, preparing food, washing hands, and arranging flowers are the everyday activities that empower children and encourage them to take their new skills home. Through lessons in grace and courtesy, the guide invites the children to practice thoughtful behavior and good manners. Lively presentations focus the children’s attention on their culture’s conventions of graciousness and civility.

 

Exercises of practical life develop independence, self-control and physical coordination serve as the foundation of future academic work by encouraging concentration, order and establishing a work cycle with the learner. When the children are able to perform these exercises, they develop self-respect and self-esteem as they gain finer motor skills and self-control. The children also acquire social awareness that enables them to interact and cooperate with other children when they are working together in the classroom environment.