What Is Montessori Education?

The essence of Montessori is that every child is treated with care, patience and respect, encouraging them to become independent and confident learners.

A Montessori classroom provides a prepared environment where children are free to respond to their natural tendency to work and play, they self-access activities and materials in response to their own interests.

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 and play, children develop concentration and self-discipline and progress at their own pace and rhythm, according to their individual capabilities.

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Who is maria montessori

Maria Montessori born in Italy (1870-1952) was a pioneering physician, educator, and innovator, and one of the first doctors in medicine in her country and renowned for her revolutionary approach to early childhood education.

Montessori left medicine and academia to pursue this passion for the way children learn. In 1907 she was given the opportunity to care for 50 3-6 year old children in a deprived area in Rome where the first Montessori school began called ‘Casa Dei Bambini’, or “Children’s House.”

Montessori’s passion for helping children learn came to her through clinical observations and additional studies in the areas of psychology and philosophy. Maria Montessori concluded that children learn effortlessly during “sensitive periods” up to the age of six than at any other time and in the right environment, have the potential to essentially teach themselves, and became known as her ‘Montessori Method’.

She was a true pioneer of child-centred education and her innovative classroom practices and ideas have had a profound influence on the education of young children all over the world to this day.

Why montessori?

Montessori is a method of teaching which enables young children to develop to their full potential in a nurturing environment.

Maria Montessori discovered that when children are allowed freedom to make their own choices they naturally choose activities that best serve their learning needs.

Montessori environments encompass the following principles:

Child-centred learning, with freedom to explore suited to their interests and needs, with increasing confidence, self-motivation, and independence.

Mixed age groups, offer a wide range of activities where young children learn from their older peers, who in turn enjoy being role models which boosts their own self-esteem and understanding.

Freedom for children to work at their own pace, without interruption, choosing from a range of activities that are developmentally challenging and purposeful.

Self-discovery and exploration is encouraged, so that children find things out for themselves, make mistakes and correct them independently.

Multi-sensory hands-on learning materials, designed specifically for their small hands within easy reach that children can choose for themselves.

Freedom to explore their environment, spending as long as they like on an activity, through repetition to gradually perfect their skills and develop concentration.

Freedom to interact socially, or spend time on their own to focus on their activity.

Order and structure to provide consistency and predictability, essential for a sense of wellbeing and security (every activity has its own place readily accessible).

Considered focus on process, not product - the Montessori approach does not test, but adopts an individual approach to the progress of every child.

Kindness and respect for others, the community and the environment.

Please look at our Curriculum page to see how the Montessori method compliments the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS).

"There is a great sense of community within the Montessori classroom, where children of differing ages work together in an atmosphere of cooperation rather than competitiveness. There is respect for the environment and for the individuals within it, which comes through experience of freedom within the community."

- Maria Montessori

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