"Early Reader, Smart Learner"
Montessori Philosophy & Methodology has a Play, Material and Activity based advanced learning program.
The Montessori philosophy is based on supporting the complete development of the child as they progress from birth to adulthood. It takes the broad vision of education as an aid for life and develop knowledge and skills.
As a way of teaching, Montessori offers the view that knowledge isn’t passively gained by listening to words. Rather, it is gained through experiences in the surrounding environment.
Therefore, the Montessori approach uses a prepared classroom to inspire children towards a life-long love of learning.
Specific Elements of Montessori Philosophy on which the Educational Method is based
One of the greatest benefits of the Method Montessori, particularly during the early learning experience, is the focus on hands-on learning. The emphasis is on concrete, rather than abstract learning. Children in Montessori schools learn by working with specially designed materials. Rather than memorizing Math facts, they begin by counting and adding concrete materials. They use little objects and a set of wooden letters known as the movable alphabet to learn to read and write. Maria Montessori observed that children need to move and learn through experiences, rather than through sitting and listening to a teacher.
Academics In addition to math, language, and science-culture, Geography Montessori schools include two other academic areas: practical life and sensorial. Practical life consists of exercises to help children learn skills used in everyday life. For young children, this includes carefully pouring water, tying their shoes, and scrubbing a table. For older children, this includes things like budgeting and starting a small business.
Sensorial is the education of the senses, and is most prevalent in classrooms for young children. Montessori believed that children learn through their senses and there are materials specifically designed to help them refine their sense of smell, hearing, etc.
If a Montessori class has 25 different students, each of those 25 will be at a different academic level that is observed and tracked by the teacher. Rather than giving group lessons, Montessori teachers give one-on-one lessons to each student depending on his specific level and needs. This is possible because the children largely work independently, spending much of the day practicing and perfecting work they have already been given a lesson on.
Teachers in the Montessori classroom are “guides” that are there to facilitate the learning experience, rather than determine what it will look like. Teachers take the lead from the children in the classroom, ensure the ground rules are followed, and encourage students to perform tasks at their own pace. However, teachers do not determine the pace of the classroom – that is strictly up to individual students, as teachers strive to remain as unobtrusive as possible.
All authentic Montessori schools have long, uninterrupted work periods (generally 2-3 hours depending on age). Rather than having 30 minutes for math and then 30 minutes for language, children have a long morning and afternoon work period in one classroom that includes all of the subjects. This long time period allows children to engage with the materials deeply and reach intense concentration.
Montessori classrooms are referred to as a “prepared environment.” This means that they are designed with everything the children need to explore and learn independently. They are filled with low shelves and beautiful materials to entice children to want to learn and work. Montessori teachers observe the children and decide what work to place on the shelves to meet the children’s interests and needs at the time. Montessori classrooms are also far more minimalist than traditional classrooms, particularly for young children. They are full of muted colors and natural light to foster concentration. Everything in the classroom has a specific spot on a shelf where it belongs and the work is carefully organized to help children develop a sense of order.
A Montessori teacher is sometimes referred to as a guide, rather than a teacher, and this reflects her non-traditional role.
A Montessori teacher’s job is to observe the children and introduce them to the academic materials at just the right time. She is often hard to find in the classroom, as she is generally working one-on-one with a child, rather than standing at the front of the room talking to the whole group. Maria Montessori saw the role of the teacher as providing children with tools for learning, rather than pouring knowledge and facts into them.
Montessori preschool students enjoy a classroom and curriculum designed around their specific needs and abilities that allows them to explore and learn at their own pace and on their own terms. All objects and activities have precise locations on the shelves of a Montessori classroom. When children are finished with an activity, they place items back into their appropriate places. This sense of order helps facilitate the learning process, teaches self-discipline, and it refines important skills like concentration, self-control and motivation by following specific ground rules of the classrooms.
Montessori classrooms include mixed ages and mixed skill-levels, generally divided into three year groups (e.g., 3-6 year olds, 6-9 year olds). Peer learning is encouraged as the little ones learn from observing their older friends and the older children solidify their knowledge and gain valuable leadership skills through giving lessons to the younger children.
While Montessori schools are most common for younger children, Montessori middle schools and high schools exist as well.
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The work in a Montessori school is child-directed. A teacher gives a child a lesson on a material he hasn’t used before, but the child can then independently choose to work on it when he pleases. Children in a Montessori classroom choose where to sit and what to work on, with guidance from a teacher. A child will not be allowed to dance around the room and distract his friends or only draw all day, but he can choose whether to work on math or language, or whether to sit at a table or on the floor.
