Montessori philosophy

What is Montessori?

The Montessori curriculum is based on several important concepts. First, everything is interrelated. One lesson leads to many others. Second, the child moves from concrete to abstract understanding, and work proceeds from the big picture to increasing detail. Maria Montessori, the creator of the Montessori method, felt that different disciplines  such as reading, geography, art, mathematics, history  were all linked in a form that resembled a spiral. Every three years, major themes in the curriculum are studied again in greater depth and abstraction, repeating the spiral. When educators refer to the Montessori Spiral, they are pointing to the connectedness of these topics, emphasizing that studies cannot and should not be compartmentalized.

Montessori schools are recognized as exciting, peaceful places where children are personally and appropriately challenged. They work with great joy, quiet dignity, curiosity and spontaneous enthusiasm. Only in the last 20 years have educators begun to realize that the Montessori approach is consistent with the results of research on the ways children learn.

Who is Maria Montessori?

Born in 1870 in Italy, Maria Montessori could be considered a pioneering feminist. She defied her parents wishes that she become a teacher  one of the few roles open to women at the time  and instead chose to study mathematics, engineering and biology. This led to her admission to University of Rome Medical School, and in 1896 she became its first female graduate.

Dr. Montessori specialized in pediatrics and thus came into contact with numerous children and families of the working class. Her experiences led her to support several social reform movements. As her work progressed, she began to embrace a scientific approach to education, based on observation and experimentation. This approach came to be known as the Child Study School of Thought.

In 1906, Dr. Montessori was invited to lead a Roman school for infants, and so the first Casa dei Bambini, or Children's House, was established. Here she further developed her philosophy and methodology for the education of young children. Dr. Montessoris novel ideas proved so successful that eponymous schools were created throughout Europe and the United States.

She soon ended her medical career to devote all of her energies to advocating the intellectual potential of children. Modern traditional education has extracted and adapted many aspects of Dr. Montessoris scholarship. Personalized instruction, manipulative learning materials, educational games, and the developmental classroom concept are all credited to her.

Maria Montessori: innovator, teacher, author, doctor, mother, life-long scholar, and advocate for every child.

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