Fantasy vs. Imagination

I am a part of a montessori yahoo group (okay 3 groups). Anyway, one of them recently has been talking about Montessori's approach to children's literature. It has been VERY interesting. I have not read about this myself but apparently she discourages any type of fantasy literature before a child is 6 years old. This is because young children cannot tell the difference between real and make believe. So she discourages any books where animals where clothes and speak, where mythical creatures are involved and similar types of things.

Along the same lines she makes an interesting distinction between fantasy and imagination. She talks about fantasy play not being helpful to kids, while imagination should be encouraged. Fantasy play is when kids pretend to be a pretend character (like Batman, Arial, etc.). Imagination is when they pretend to be something that is real (a pilot, a teacher, a bus driver - whatever). The idea is that in fantasy play they are not really being imaginative they are fulfilling someone else's script (even if the words/ actions are there own). In imaginative play they truly are using their imaginations.

I am still learning more about this topic and I might have to hunt down some original sources. It did make me pause and think. I have known some 4 year olds that can only think about being one character - it becomes and obsession.

On a related note I started looking at the Charlotte Mason approach again. They basically have her whole curriculum laid out online. This includes a great reference list for books (scroll down the page to find it) worth reading. There is also an interesting conversation about how to choose books worth reading. Both approaches focus on helping the child learn for themselves - but they have MANY differences. Good thing I have another couple years to figure out which way we might lean.