HOW MONTESSORI EDUCATION WORKS

Montessori works by offering children choices and activities that motivate them to engage deeply and work independently. Montessori classrooms are carefully prepared environments stocked with unique educational materials and teachers guide children in exploring, concentrating, and mastering key academic as well as social and emotional skills.

Montessori classrooms look different from regular classrooms. The Montessori method includes some special elements:

● Mixed-age classrooms: Children are in the same classroom, with the same teacher, for three years. Younger children learn from older ones, and everyone can learn at their own pace.

● Uninterrupted work periods: Children have long periods of time to follow their interests and work independently, building concentration and focus.

● Montessori materials: The Montessori materials are ingenious in that they are both attractive to the child and designed to support the deep exploration of important concepts.

● Real-world activities: The classrooms include real-world activities such as caring for plants and animals, keeping the room clean and organized, and preparing and serving food. Children love engaging in real activities, and, in addition to becoming responsible members of the classroom community, the skills they practice – attention, focus, coordination – set the stage for more advanced academic work.

● Children choose their own work: Within the limits set by the teacher and the classroom, children have a high level of independence and responsibility. At the same time, teachers spend a lot of time observing their classes carefully, which is necessary to support children in making responsible choices.