MONTESSORI METHOD OF EDUCATIONThe name “Montessori” is from Dr. Maria Montessori, the first female Doctor of Medicine in Italy, who lived from 1870 to 1952. Dr. Montessori developed her unique educational method through her work with children, known as the Montessori Method, which is both a philosophy of child development and a rationale for guiding such growth. Children’s developmental needs are fostered through freedom within limits in a carefully prepared environment, which guarantees exposure to materials and experiences.
The main premises of Montessori education are:
- Children possess unusual sensitivity and intellectual ability to absorb and learn from their environments, unlike adults in quality and capacity.
- The most critical years of a child’s growth are the first six years when their unconscious learning comes to a conscious level.
"Never help a child with a task at which he feels he can succeed." -Maria Montessori.The Whole Child Approach: The primary goal of a Montessori program is to help the children reach their full potential in all areas of life. Activities promote the development of social skills, emotional growth, physical coordination, and mental preparation.
The Prepared Environment: In the self-directed classroom, the whole learning environment (classroom, materials, and social setting) must support the children.
The Montessori Materials: Dr. Montessori’s observations led her to design several multi-sensory, sequential, and self-correcting materials to facilitate learning.
The Teacher: The Montessori teacher meticulously observes each child’s behavior and growth. Based on this observation, the teacher guides the child in an environment designed to meet the child's needs. Montessori credentialing requires years of extensive training.
Dr. Montessori has impacted education and how we understand and teach children today. Her influence can be seen not only in the number of schools that bear her name but throughout child care, education, and development.
Modern kindergarten classrooms use child-sized furniture and didactic materials, first introduced by Montessori. She was an innovator in education, and ideas that were once met with resistance in her day are now accepted as natural aspects of childhood. Her ideas are now part of our knowledge, language, and thinking about children.
Current concepts such as individualized learning and readiness programs, manipulative learning, ungraded classes, combined age groups, team teaching, and open classrooms reflect many of her early insights.