Can't I Take all The Credit?

I was thinking a little today, that perhaps I couldn't take all the credit for Daniel's interest in writing.  Sure, he showed interest long before experiences with preschool, though it waned for a while - due to his experiences in his first preschool, I'm sure!  What fascinates me is interest-driven learning.  At Christmas he was so interested in writing labels for presents that he'd chosen himself, he wants to write / copy sentences in little books he creates, sometimes with my help, at Montessori preschool, he writes the words he's supposed to write according to phonetics he's been studying: nip, snip, tip, but then, he writes 'Nerf' and 'Bionicle'.  Often when he draws, he tries spelling out a word, a lable, or title for his pictures..all based on things he loves.
So, does all of this initiative come from his being encouraged to be free, to follow his interests, from my examples of writing, and all the little activities I've presented to him: letter recognition, the alphabet song, reading signs, non-stop reading at home, signing his name to pictures (he's never wanted to, still doesn't), letter tracing, sand-paper letters, finger painting, gell-bags, scrabble letters, writing out his dictated stories, making cartoon books with him, writing shopping lists, playing with movable type, magnets, stamps, cutting out letters from magazines, finding letters in print, discussing and practicing, capitals, lower case, cursive writing, labeling stuff in the house with names,  and so on and so on??

I suspect that at Montessori preschool, his extensive work with insets and his teacher's gentle guidance has really helped him improve his 'pincer' grip (Is that what it's called?).  I recall trying to tell Daniel many times to hold his pencil that way, and he'd balk at my suggestion, yet when he started to learn it at school, he'd come home at tell me 'how to hold a pencil'!  His teachers have told me that he's shown a lot of interest in reading and learning phonetics.  Daniel himself says he doesn't like doing it, but has nothing else to do there.  Still, he's excited about knowing sounds, and trying to spell them.  Montessori has given him practice in this without a doubt!  Would he be more or less interested or able if he wasn't attending Montessori?  Hard to say.  All I know, is the stuff he really creates, does of his own accord, is always interest-based.  He wants to write and learn to read!  He doesn't like too much pressure!  He's well on his way.  I believe he would have been regardless of attending preschool or not!  Let's see what the next months / year hold.  Hopefully, all positive!

Don't ask why some pictures are sideways!