The Adult and Presentations - 2

A presentation given to a child is more of an offering than a lesson, as it is a present, a gift, given to the child and an invitation to further work. 


A presentation ultimately opens the door to the child’s activity; after the presentation, the child is free to work with the materials whenever he likes. 


Success of presentations depends on timeliness based on the child’s readiness, the perfection with which the adult presents it in knowing it so well that the adult can focus on the child and his reaction, and with the adult’s own interest in the work being presented.

• If the adult has no to little interest or is too clumsy that day, the presentation should be held off to another day, as the key messages will not be transmitted to the child.

            
There are two types of presentations: 

• intentional (direct)
• unintentional (indirect). 

The choice of the three types of intentional presentations, collective, group, or individual, will depend on the needs of the children and the nature of the activity; some presentations can only be done with individuals or small groups, while some are more conducive for a collective presentation; however anything that can be presented collectively can also be presented individually. 


The unintentional and more powerful presentations are in every movement, the voice tone and choice of words of the adult; the adult’s actions are reflected back by the children, therefore presentations should be done with love.


Children also provide direct and indirect presentations for one another, through directly showing another child how to use the material, or through observation of another child’s work.