Short answer
Pick the plane that matches your child's age. If your child is in their sixth or twelfth year (on the boundary between planes), pick the one you feel fits them better, or leave it blank for now. You can change it from the child's profile at any time.
Walk-through
- Open the "add a child" form from the Overview page. The form asks for name, date of birth and developmental plane.
- Enter name and date of birth as normal.
- Pick a plane from the drop-down:
- Plane 1 for children aged 0 to 6.
- Plane 2 for children aged 6 to 12.
- Plane 3 for children aged 12 to 18.
- Plane 4 for children aged 18 to 24.
- If you are unsure, leave it blank. The app will use the date of birth to suggest activities; the plane field sharpens the suggestions but is not required.
- Save. The child now appears on your Overview page.
What the plane actually does in Willowfolio
The plane field shapes what activity suggestions the app shows you and which parts of the Overview page are highlighted. A Plane 1 child gets practical-life and sensorial suggestions by default; a Plane 2 child gets Cosmic Education and long-project suggestions; a Plane 3 child gets adolescent-work prompts.
The plane does not grade your child. It does not compare them to a national average. It does not mark them as "behind" or "ahead". The underlying framework is Maria Montessori's four planes of development (six-year-long developmental phases), and the dedicated explainer article in the related reading has the fuller story.
If that did not work
- The drop-down did not show. Refresh the page; if it still will not load, email [email protected].
- Your child's age falls right on a plane boundary (sixth or twelfth birthday this year). Pick whichever plane fits them better; transitions are gradual rather than sudden and the setting can be changed.
- You changed the plane but the suggestions have not updated. Suggestions refresh on the next app open; close and re-open the app.
If you are still stuck, email [email protected]. A real person reads it.