WELCOME TO MONTESSORI

MRS. COLLINS
MRS. ROUSEY
MS. TEAL

What is Montessori?
The Montessori classroom is carefully prepared from the
arrangement to the layout of the materials. The classroom is
designed for open movement to support exploration and
interaction. All materials teach specific concepts /skills through
hands-on experience with real-world application and relevance.
The Montessori method aims for the fullest possible development
of the whole child. Dr. Montessori described the young childs mind
as the absorbent mind. During this stage the child has a
tremendous ability to learn and assimilate from the world around
him. A Montessori teacher recognizes and takes advantage of these
highly perceptive stages through the introduction of materials and
activities specially designed to stimulate the intellect. A
spontaneous love of work is revealed as the child is given the
freedom (within boundaries) to make her own choices.

What is Montessori
The Montessori teachers purpose is to stimulate
the childs enthusiasm for learning and to guide
it, without interfering with the childs natural
desire to teach himself and become independent.
Everything in the classroom has a specific use or
purpose. A quality classroom has a busy,
productive atmosphere where joy and respect
abound. Within this rich environment , freedom,
responsibility, and social and intellectual
development spontaneously flourish.

Who was Maria Montessori?

The philosophy of Montessori education began with Dr.
Maria Montessori (1870-1952). Dr. Montessori began her
career as the first female doctor in Italy. She began working
with children in the psychiatric wards of Rome in the late
1800s. Through her experiences there she formulated her
observations of the importance of training the hand to
develop the mind through sensory materials. As a result of
her observations and work, those children made
tremendous progress and were able to participate in the
state education exams. Through many years of working
with children from many cultures and countries and diverse
circumstances throughout the world, Montessori
developed what she termed her method of education.

Maria Montessori

Montessori
Montessori believed that during the first few years
children acquire the greatest percentage of their
knowledge. This learning comes through the five
senses which must be developed to their fullest. She
believed children had a spontaneous interest in
learning. She described sensitive periods in which
new cognitive learning is acquired and integrated into
the old.
The most valid impulse to learning is the selfmotivation of the child. The prepared environment is
structured so as to attract children and hold their
interest. The activities and materials are selfcorrective, sensorial, concrete and aesthetic.

Montessori
The classroom is organized in such a manner
that children move from the simple to the
complex. Each beginning activity relates to
another, yet more sophisticated. Children are
able to progress, following their own
timetable, through many levels of complexity.

Levels of Complexity
Gross Motor Skill (tongs)

Fine Motor Skill (tweezers)

Areas of the Classroom

Sensorial
Practical Life
Language
Math
Science
Social Studies

Practical Life
Because practical life lessons help the child to
understand the function of his immediate
environment, it is considered the threshold of the
Montessori program.
Practical life activities enable the child to acquire
independence and to coordinate his movements.
The exercises aid the growth and development of
the childs intellect and concentration and help
develop an orderly way of thinking.

Practical Life
The practical life area teaches life skills. It is
important that all materials be familiar, real,
breakable, and functional. The objects used in
practical life are child-sized objects that
resemble the ones used in his own home
environment.

Practical Life in the Primary

Montessori Classroom
Preliminary activities- carrying a tray, pouring,
spooning, tonging, scooping, transfering

Practical Life in the Primary

Montessori Classroom
Care of the environment- cleaning, sweeping,
dusting, polishing, care of plants and animals

Practical Life in the Primary

Montessori Classroom
Care of self- dressing, food preparation (selfserve snack), hand washing

Practical Life in the Primary

Montessori Classroom
Grace and courtesy- table manners, greeting
others, saying please and thank you, learning
to control ones own body, conflict resolution

Practical Life at Home

Sorting/folding laundry
Setting the table
Caring for plants and pets
Sorting recycling
Bed making
Sweeping/vacuuming/mopping
Grooming/Dressing
Cooking/baking
Greeting visitors/answering the phone
Table manners

Practical Life in the Elementary

Montessori Classroom

Sewing
Flower pressing
Gardening
Composting
Grace and courtesy

Why is Practical Life important for

older children?
Allows the children to process more
challenging content.
Always incorporates science, math, reading,
and writing.
Helps to develop a higher level of
concentration
Improves fine motor skills
Evokes a sense of respect for others and the
environment.

Language

To talk is in the nature of man. (Montessori)

The language environment at home is extremely important and leads to
the childs reading success in the classroom.
Language is a system of symbols with an agreed upon meaning that is
used by a group of people. Language is a means of communication of
ideas or feelings by the use of conventionalized sounds and signs. It can
be written and spoken language. Humans need language to communicate.
The first communication was through pictures/drawings.
Children need to be immersed in rich language. Because language is an
intrical involvement in the process of thinking, children need to be spoken
to and listened to often.
The prepared environment is so very important. Through the
environment , they learn each important step in language. They learn
communication and expression, organization and classification, and the
development of thought.
Language is meaningful through experience.

Math
Mathematics materials introduce the child to a
new phase of development. Simple but
extremely effective, it provides the child with a
sensorial experience of the abstract concepts for
understanding numerical values. The very first
Montessori math materials are in the sensorial
area. These materials are based on 10. This is a
brilliant way to introduce the idea of quantity.
Children move from the concrete to the abstract.
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Cultural/Geography
Through the exploration of the different sensorial
materials, in Geography the child is able to integrate the
physical characteristics of the world, to understand the
human affairs, past and present, and to become aware of
mans dependency and responsibility towards everything in
the environment so that everything may exist in harmony.
Cultural introduces children to the structured compositions
of the physical world and enables them to explore and
learn about the existence of diverse cultures and their
responsibilities towards their habitats.
The land and water form sets help the child visualize and
understand the various land formations in an abstract form.
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Science
Botany materials provide the child with
information that would interest him in the
beauty and dcor provided by nature. It
serves to help him acquire knowledge and
stimulate his appreciation of the natural world
around him.
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Sensorial
Sensorial materials lay the foundation for the learning
of important concepts, and allows the child to work
independently in a prepared environment in which he
is able to respond to his natural tendency to work. The
child studies his environment through his senses. The
child is a sensorial explorer.
Through the childs work with sensorial material, the
child is helped to make abstractions, distinctions in his
environment, and the child gains knowledge through
his own experiences.
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Promoting Readiness at Home

Parents must help their children be ready for school!
Read to them about things they are interested in. Help
them make something that goes along with the story.
Play games that follow directions.
Help them to assume more responsibility. Example: setting
the table for dinner.
Help them dictate stories or keep a journal in invented
spelling.
Make sure they have all the materials they need for school!
A childs initial experiences in school shape cooperation in
society and responsibility and productivity!

Needs of Lower Elementary Children

His main interest is in the How and Why. He is aware
of the problem of cause and effect.
He needs practical experiences.
He is moving into the world of the abstract.
The teacher must say only what is necessary and
sufficient. The teacher is teaching him to go out
into the world. Learning this consists of an activity that
requires the acquisition of information and materials.
Then comes the series of practical exercises. Then he
will gain experience.
His knowledge and social experience must be acquired
at the same time.

Montessori Children
Montessori children learn:
that each life has value and purpose.
their ideas have merit and that their decisions are
important.
that people make mistakes but we can learn from
them.
we need to take responsibility for our actions.
Children learn how to live in a community and how to resolve conflicts peacefully. They learn to lead and to be
a part of the team. They learn to bring abstract ideas
to life. They see the real connections between things.

Quotes from Dr. Montessori

It is the environment which helps to make the children continuously
betterthe teachercan remain a quiet spectator of all the little mistakes
that occur around her.
Educationis acquired not by listening to words but by experiences upon
the environment.
Since children are so eager to learn and so burning with love, an adult
should carefully weigh all the words he speaks before him.
As the child repeats the exercise of fitting the knobbed cylinders into
their proper places, his ability to observe and make distinction is
sharpened, and his reasoning power is stimulated through noticing and
correcting errors.
The science of peace, were it to become a special discipline, would be
the most noble of all, for the very life humanity depends on it. So, also
perhaps, does the question of whether our entire civilization evolves or
disappears.
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Grace and Courtesy

The lower elementary classroom is full of teachable moments in

grace and courtesy that will help in situations throughout life.
Everything is connected and interdependent upon one another.
Through modeling and practice, children will learn to live and work
together in peace and harmony. Students are shown what it means
to cooperate, be a friend, and solve problems. Grace and courtesy
lessons provide a foundation and set a tone for mutual respect and
kindness.
The ideas of justice and fairness are fundamental concerns of the
elementary child. The culture of the classroom is built on caring,
consideration and respect. We must create a diverse cultural,
racial, and linguistic environment. Children learn that all people
have basic needs that must be met. Cultural differences are
celebrated.
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