What is "The Montessori Method"?
For more than a century now, the child-focused approach that Dr. Maria Montessori, an Italian physician, developed for educating children has been transforming schools around the globe.
As soon as you enter a classroom, you know that something different is afoot. Montessori classrooms are immediately recognizable. You will see children working independently and in groups, often with specially designed learning materials; deeply engaged in their work; and respectful of themselves and their surroundings.
The Montessori Method fosters rigorous, self-motivated growth for children and adolescents in all areas of their development- cognitive, emotional, social, and physical.
Below we offer a snapshot comparison of Montessori v. Traditional methods. We also encourage you to check out the Montessori Videos page for more insight about the Montessori Method and its benefits.
Montessori v. Traditional
Montessori
- The method respects individual differences.
- The learning process is student-centered and emphasizes self-motivation.
- Multi-age grouping is practiced so that students may learn "horizontally" from observation of other people's work, directly or indirectly.
- Students learn at their own pace, free to complete a project or pursue a subject as deeply as they wish, according to personal enthusiasm.
- Students learn by practicing their subject matter while in school, under the supervision and assistance of their teacher.
- The classroom is used as a library or resource room for studying and completing projects. Students are free to move as needed and are active participants in building their own knowledge.
- Students avail themselves of concrete materials, scientifically designed to enhance conceptual thinking. The materials are graded by difficulty and adapt to the maturity of individual students. These tools bring about knowledge based on experience.
- Testing is built into the Montessori method as the third period of the "three-period lesson" and is a teaching technique that is applied routinely on an individual basis. The purpose of all testing here is to allow self-correction, repetition and achieve competence at one's own pace.
Traditional
- Emphasis is on conforming to the group.
- Emphasis is on grades, punishments or rewards as motivating factors.
- Students are grouped chronologically to suit teachers' pre-planned class lessons.
- Subjects are taught in lecture form and students must change classes and attend lessons all at the same time.
- Students must practice on their own and be graded on work they have done at home without benefit of close monitoring.
- Students work at desks by passively listening to lectures for directions and instructions. Passive learning is more tiring and the school work day has to be divided into periods with regimented interruptions.
- Learning takes place primarily through memorization and repetition of abstract concepts. Group leaning impedes the implementation of multi-sensory and experiential approaches to learning.
- Scheduled testing does not take into consideration the preparation of each individual student. It assumes that all students learn at the same rate. Tests are not designed as teaching tools, but rather as rewarding or punitive methods. The pass or fail grades simply reflect whether or not a student has conformed to class standards.
Success in school is directly tied to the degree to which children believe they are capable and independent human beings.
As we allow students to develop a meaningful degree of independence and self-discipline, we also set a pattern for a lifetime of good work habits and a sense of responsibility. In Montessori, students are taught to take pride in their work.
Independence does not come automatically as we grow older; it must be learned. In Montessori, even very small children can learn how to tie their own shoes and pour their own milk. At first, shoe laces turn into knots, and milk ends up on the floor. However, with practice, skills are mastered and the young child beams with pride. To experience this kind of success at such an early age is to build up a self-image as a successful person and leads the child to approach the next task with confidence.
Students who learn math by rote often have no real understanding or ability to put their skills to use in everyday life. Learning comes much more easily when they work with concrete educational materials that graphically show what is taking place in a given mathematical process.
Montessori students use hands-on learning materials that make abstract concepts clear and concrete. They can literally see and explore what is going on. This approach to teaching mathematics, based on the research of Drs. Maria and Mario Montessori, offer a clear and logical strategy for helping students understand and develop a sound foundation in mathematics and geometry.
When will children start to read?
There is typically a quick jump from reading and writing single words to sentences and stories. For some children, this “explosion into reading” will happen when they are four; for others when they are five, and some will start to read at six. A few will read even earlier, and some others will take even longer. Most will be reading comfortably when they enter first grade, but each child is different, and as with every other developmental milestone, it is useless to fret. Younger children are surrounded by older children who can read, and the most intriguing things to do in the classroom depend on one’s ability to read. This creates a natural interest and desire to catch up to the “big kids” and join the ranks of readers. As soon as children, no matter how young they are, show the slightest interest, we begin to teach them how to read. And when they are ready, the children pull it all together and are able to read and write on their own.