Mystery Box

For very young children the tactile exploration of objects in the environment is of most importance. Mental image imprinting through tactile sensory experiences seems to be much more efficient than through the visual or auditory modes. As Maria Montessori advocated, it is through the hand that the child brings in and assimilates the environment. This Mystery Box provides a wide range of tactile experiences from basic-shape recognition to fine-size and shape discrimination. This learning center comes with ten solid wooden shapes and ten matching shape tiles, as well as chalk and an eraser for drawing exercises.


LEARNING GOALS: The child learns to identify objects through the sense of touch, to match and compare shapes and to reproduce shapes by drawing them after tactile examination. The child imprints the forms of basic shapes into memory and learns to coordinate visual and tactile sensory input.