This quote from Dr. Montessori highlights the role of the teacher in a Montessori environment. How a teacher creates and stimulates children with an external and inner environment so rich and full of learning that a class full of little children is at peace and is quietly satiating their inner being. Education and learning is not merely by listening to the words of the teacher and following the instructions to the bit, but rather it is a natural and spontaneous process carried out by the human through various experiences and by his own will which strongly flames this inner desire of self actualization. The teacher by being a guide and observer shows the child this fulfilling path.
The teacher is like a gardener in the nursery who plays a crucial role. Each time the students enter the nursery, it is the responsibility of the teacher to organize interesting activities, filled with nourishment and challenges, which will enable the students to grow strong and tall. She must wait very very patiently for these plants to grow, to bear flowers and fruits and be strong and capable of serving the society in times to come.
Like the plants, manure is to be provided at right time, watering and sun should be just adequate for the optimum growth, because too much of these can also be an obstacle in the vital growth stage of plants. Similarly the teacher should be patient with the seedlings, because no matter how much water or how much sunshine they receive, they are all individuals, and, as a result, they will all grow at their own rate, in their own way, during their own time and no two of them are the same.
The nursery needs to be weeded at first sight, to prevent any unnecessary growth and to provide just the right environment for the change in the seasons. Similarly Some students will