“After you have planned each detail of an activity, organized a tray of materials, and practiced with them, you can model a cycle of activity with the child. Do so very slowly and methodically, pausing briefly after each step. Your child wants to imitate you but his thinking skills are limited. He relies on habit, pattern and repetition.”

“To prepare any activity for the child, it is necessary for the parent to think through every detail ahead of time. For example, is the cracker stiff enough to spread the peanut butter on or does it crumble with the pressure of spreading?...All of these difficulties become apparent in the preliminary practice period by the adult prior to a presentation to the child.”

“After you have demonstrated a practical-life exercise, and once your child has begun to use it with concentration, you must take care not to interrupt him.”

“The child must be given activities that encourage independence, and he must not be served by others in acts he can learn to perform himself.”

“Our schools are no closer in connecting the education of children to their development as human beings: each child as an individual with a unique contribution to make to the world. Until this is done, our schools will fail to help children become active learners, connected to their society, and empowered to accomplish things within it.”

“Because the materials selected for a specific purpose such as food preparation are set on a tray in order and sequence of use, from left to right and top to bottom, the child mentally incorporates this precise order it becomes part of his functional intelligence”

“The small child walks to develop his powers, he is building up his being. He goes slowly. He has neither rhythmic step nor goal. But things around him allure him and urge him forward.”