Though this happened several years ago I bring this to the attention of students who are currently going through their Montessori Teacher Training for the 3-6 year old group because this was truly the most frightening experience I had while undgergoing the training. By the way I was a student of the institute for the AMI 3-6 yrs Diploma in 2017-2018 that went by the name Navadisha Montessori Foundation (now Supraja Montessori Training Center) and the horrendous experience I had while undergoing this training has already been documented. The link to that post is here. I also debunked the Montessori Method for those who think Montessori is the holy grail of education for children and that post is here.

Anyway back to the frightening experience. This was the day we students were asked to observe a baby, one that was probably 6 months old, that was just able to crawl and sit and not walk. The entire program was called “Baby Observation“. The session was about observing the toddler continuously for an hour or so (should confirm the actual time) and jotting down every little activity the baby was performing. The young mother and the toddler were introduced to the class of 45 or so students who were seating in a circle with the baby and the mother at one of the points on the cicumferance of the circle. I am sure the mother of the baby was told by the trainers to not pick the baby up or distract or disturb the baby for the entire duration of the session. 

What should have passed off as a mere observation turned out to be one of the most frightening things I was about to watch and about which I had the faintest idea. To keep the baby occupied there were toys and other things around the mat or a small bedspread that was there but what I didn’t know was that there were small marble like objets and coins too. Did I ever what was going to happen? The child would grab things with its hands but when it started putting things into its mouth I was almost jumping up from my seat. The baby would choke on the coin or tiny ball it had swallowed and spit it out. And this would go on and on and on. Many a time I though maybe someone would prevent this from happening by removing these tiny objects away but nothing of that happened. Sometime it would just not be interested in those small objects but when I thought it wouldn’t go after it, it would go back to it again. My heart was pounding. The entire observation itself seemed like an eternity in sheer agony. I was just praying that the baby SHOULDN’T GO BACK TO THOSE TINY OBJECTS AND WORSE PUT THEM IN ITS MOUTH.

The abject pity is that none of my classmates (all women) the trainers and the mother were just passing it off as something so casual while I was literally praying nothing untoward happened to the little child. I even kept kooking at my classmates to find out even if one of them was sharing the same sentiment as I was but not a soul seemed to be feeling the way I was. One of the ladies in my class even said how her child had swallowed a coin and in the traditional way the coin was taken out by holding the child upside down by its feet, spanked on its back till it spat the coin out. This child was putting more than one coin in its mouth.

After the session was over I confronted the mother and even told her, “Even if the organizers of this even had told you not to distrub the child as a mother don’t you think you should have reacted when it was chocking and spitting those small objects?”. The poor lady would have been instructed not to disturb and she was just following instructions.  I then asked one of the trainers about what would happen if the child had swallowed anything. She confidently replied that the child wouldn’t. It would always spit it out. 

My humble request if you as a student is going through this at this institute or any other, Please ensure tiny objects such as coins, small balls are kept far away from the baby in such a situation. Do raise your voice if the session has to be interrupted for the safety of the child.