A Mother’s Influence: Anna Lloyd Wright and Maria Montessori
As a child, Frank Lloyd Wright received a gift of Froebel blocks from his mother Anna Lloyd Jones Wright. The polished maple blocks were invented by Friedrich Froebel, who created the concept of Kindergarten. Frank enjoyed playing with the cubes, rectangles, cylinders, pyramids, cones, and spheres and he used them to build simple structures. We’re not sure, but we suspect Anna’s gift may have been the impetus for Frank’s later highly successful career as an architect.
Mothers have a tremendous influence on their children. Like Anna Wright, they also have the opportunity to provide resources that can be formational in children’s later life and career choices.
Our mother Virginia Pavlik Bleck was one such woman. Trained at the Art Institute of Chicago, Mom worked as a fine and commercial artist her entire life while raising 9 children. Part artistic dynamo and part would-be teacher, Mom was strongly influenced by the teaching philosophy of Italian physician and educator Maria Montessori.
In the basement of our home, she designed an orderly, creative learning environment. Well equipped with a chalkboard, graphic alphabet, abundant blocks and art supplies, the space supported her beliefs about the ways in which children learn. She agreed with Montessori’s philosophy: “Here is an essential principal of education: to teach details is to bring confusion; to establish the relationship between things is to bring knowledge.”
Montessori’s belief in the positive influence of mothers and teachers is not exclusive. George Washington said of his mother “I attribute all my success in life to the moral, intellectual and physical education I received from her.” Abraham Lincoln said of his step-mother “All that I am or ever hope to be, I owe to my angel Mother.” In fact, leaders from cultures around the world credit their mothers with critically influencing their success in life.
This Mother’s Day weekend, thank your mother for her love and support and wish her a Happy Mother’s Day for all of us at Bleck & Bleck Architects.
