Montessori-Pedagogy

Dr. Maria Montessori (1870-1952), physician, anthropologist and pedagogue, studied children of all racial, cultural and socio-economic backgrounds for over fifty years. Her intense scientific observation of the human being from birth to maturity allowed her to distill a body of philosophical, psychological and pedagogical principles. These together with a vast range of auto-didactic (self-correcting) materials, came to be known as the Montessori Method of Education.

Montessori pedagogy is a comprehensive and continuous response to the vital exigencies of the total human being, adapted to each stage of development.

Key aspects of the Montessori Approach include:

* "Help me to help myself "

* The inner connection of independence, freedom and human dignity.

* The Prepared Environment, including the specifically designed Montessori educational material.

* The role of the Montessori Teacher as a mediator between the child and the materials.

Montessori classrooms provide a prepared environment where children are free to respond to their natural tendency to work. The children's innate passion for learning is encouraged by giving them opportunities to engage in spontaneous, purposeful activities with the guidance of a trained adult. Through their work, the children develop concentration and joyful self-discipline. Within a framework of order, the children progress at their own pace and rhythm, according to their individual capabilities.

Children are sensorial explorers, constructing their intellects by absorbing every aspect of their environment, their language and culture.

Children aged between 3 to 6 years posses what Maria Montessori called the Absorbant Mind. This type of mind has the unique and transitory ability to absorb all aspects physical, mental, spiritual of the environment, without effort or fatigue. As an aid to the child's self-construction, individual work is encouraged. The following areas of activity cultivate the children's ability to express themselves and think with clarity:

Practical life, Sensorial, Language, Cultural and Mathematics.

 

Dr. Maria Montessori stated: "From the moment the child enters the classroom, each step in his education is seen as a progressive building block, ultimately forming the whole person. All focus is on the needs of the child."

 

 

 

 

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