Montessori Images - Maria Montessori

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Maria Montessori

One hundered years ago, Maria Montessori (1870-1952), first woman physician in Italy, challenged the fixed, rote traditions of schooling at that time, and presented a revolutionary learning environment based upon her close, scientific observations of how children learn. Her first Casa dei Bambini (Children's House) opened its doors in 1907 to the desperately poor children of San Lorenzo on the edge of Rome. The results were extraordinary. The children showed a love of learning and work, and progressed to a level which no one had expected.

Montessori's teachings give profound importance to the first six years of a child's life. The core principles of her method are:

Children benefit most from active, hands-on learning that draws upon all five senses.
Children are naturally self-motivated to absorb from a prepared environment and will interact consciously and intentionally with that environment, strongly preferring certain experiences to others.
Children experience sensitive periods of learning (walking, talking, writing, etc) during which the child is particularly sensitive to a specific stimulus.
Children learn best at their own pace and in an atmosphere of freedom and respect where the choice of the child leads the learning.

Today the success of the Montessori method still resonates in schools around the world, and her views are as relevant now as when they were first proposed. Her ideas have influenced almost all early childhood settings. In the home environment the Montessori philosophy has brought a wealth of guidance to parents bringing many to describe it as "an assist to life."

For further reading:
The Absorbent Mind, Maria Montessori, New York, Henry Holt & Co., LLC, 1995
Montessori Today: A Comprehensive Approach to Education from Birth to Adulthood, Paula Polk Lillard, New York, Schocken Books, 1996