Montessori Philosophy
Dr. Maria Montessori was a revolutionary. Born in Italy, Montessori challenged educational norms from a young age. Education in Italy in the 1800s was different depending on a child’s gender and Maria Montessori had aspirations to be a doctor. So after much pleading to her parents she ended up at a boys school which offered science topics to help her with her aim! By the age of 26 she was one of the first Italian women to complete a Doctor of Medicine.
After graduating, Montessori did a lot of work with children with special needs. It was here she started her plentiful observations of the needs and commonalities of children. She continued to develop her ideas around education and sent time in a variety of countries and economic groups furthering her ideas. She was also influenced by other educational theorists.
Montessori pedagogy is designed to meet the needs of students based on their developmental age range 0-3, 3-6, 6-9, 9-12 etc. The activities and lessons in a Montessori class involve exploration, manipulation, order, repetition, abstraction and communication.
Montessori education extends beyond the school gates and is a philosophy that advocates strongly for children's rights, Peace Education and social justice. Montessori environments at home and school are created in a way to promote the development of peaceful individuals. We cannot create this peaceful environment if we are interacting negatively or competitively with others. It is because of this reason that Montessori was a strong advocate for parents being ‘on board’ with all the aims of Montessori philosophy.
- A philosophy of being that extends beyond the classroom and works with family to create contributing global citizens.
- Based on helping the natural development of the human being while teaching the national curriculum.
- Learning based on the fact that physical exploration and cognition are linked.
- The child’s individual development brings its own reward and therefore motivation. We do not give out certificates or stickers.
- Holistic education including emphasis on independent thinking, good social skills and developing emotional intelligence.
- Multi-age classrooms.
- Uninterrupted work cycles. Children structure their own time and day with guidance from teacher. This means there are generally 30 different timetables working concurrently in a class!
- Children teach themselves using materials specially prepared for that purpose.
- Understanding comes through the child’s own experiences via the materials and the promotion of children’s ability to find things out for themselves. Children, within limits, are free to choose their own areas of interest to explore further.
- The teacher works in collaboration with the children – children may ask for a lesson from teacher, or may volunteer to teach other children.
- Cosmic Education and Peace Education are integral parts of the curriculum.