Advantages of Montessori Education

  • A young boy sitting on a beige rug with a colorful ocean-themed border, organizing green cards with numbers 1 through 5 and pink pig counters in a neat line.

    Multi-Age Groupings

    A Montessori classroom groups children with different backgrounds and of different ages.

    This mixed age group fosters self-discipline, independence, and responsibility towards the environment and the other members of their community.

    “An isolated individual cannot develop his individuality… He must put himself in relationship with his environment and within reach of events of life of his times.”

    - Child’s Instincts to Work, Maria Montessori

  • Assorted small toys and objects arranged on a beige fabric surface, with labeled word cards including 'cat,' 'dog,' 'map,' 'pig,' 'jet,' 'hat,' 'lid,' 'pan,' 'fan,' 'pot,' 'bug,' 'tub,' 'bag,' and 'row.' Items include a toy airplane, a miniature pig figurine, a small plastic horse, a soccer ball, a plastic airplane, and various other small objects.

    Curriculum

    Our Montessori classroom is fully interactive, multi-sensory, and tactile.

    Lessons are displayed on shelves. Children choose the lessons that interest them and with repetition, the child will move from being undisciplined to being self-disciplined, from disordered to ordered, from distracted to focused.

  • A person with a black shirt resting their hand on an open large book with printed text, on a surface with some crumpled paper or napkins and a green object nearby.

    The Prepared Environment

    In the “living room” classroom, each child will find deep concentration in an environment that is beautiful, peaceful, and conducive to focus.

    The classroom is clean, organized, and comfortable for a child-sized body, creating an atmosphere of warmth which helps to serve as a bridge between the home and school.

    “We must not wait upon the child, but educate him to be independent.”

    - Maria Montessori

  • Display of counting beads hanging on hooks and laid on shelves, in colors blue, brown, white, purple, yellow, and pink.

    Self-Discipline and Self-Respect

    To the casual onlooker, the child seems to be learning exactitude and grace of action, to be refining her senses, to be learning to read and write; but much more profoundly, she is learning how to become her own master, how to be a man or woman of prompt and resolute will.

    “The first dawning of discipline comes through natural work.”

    - The Montessori Method, Maria Montessori

  • Wooden blocks labeled with words such as energy, child, Batesville, Arkansas, and Montessorian Academy, aligned on a table, with additional blocks blurred in the background.

    Grace and Courtesy

    In the classroom, grace and courtesy are not only extended to the members of the community, but also within the child’s own body, helping them to control their bodies and move gracefully and purposefully, helping them develop a rich, positive, social awareness and concentration.

    “We see a child buttoning the clothes of his younger fellow, tying his shoestrings, or quickly cleaning the ground if someone happens to upset the soup.”

    - The Discovery of the Child, Maria Montessori

The Roots of Montessori

Dr. Maria Montessori developed the Montessori method when she began her medical internship in a psychiatric clinic in Rome in the early 1900s.

She became interested in the special needs of children housed in asylums. As a physician committed to healing, Dr. Montessori sought to alleviate the plight of these children, and along the way, found her role as an educator.

To the surprise of her peers, the children passed a state examination with the same success as their “neuro-normative” peers. This led Dr. Montessori to the novel conclusion of applying the same methods to all children no matter their skill level.

The scientific inquiry as to how children learn became her primary focus. Her method is based on empirical evidence, specifically designed didactic materials, and a philosophy of the child as an independent, intelligent, and remarkable being.

The Montessori method flourished and expanded across Europe, the United States, and India in the early 1900s. Over the years, her method has allowed children worldwide to experience spiritual, intellectual, psychological, and physical growth that allows them to reach their God-given potential in a prepared environment of independence, respect, love, and compassion.

A photograph of Dr. Maria Montessori standing outdoors holding a book.

Maria Montessori was an exceptional person, not only for the incredible work she did for the education of children, but also for being a strong woman during a time of repression.