Key Factors to the Montessori Method

Maria Montessori was educated in medicine and became the first female doctor in Italy in 1896. She worked with children that had learning difficulties and using her observations she created new ideas and techniques to enhance the child’s learning. Gray and Mac Blain (2012) explained that it became a very well-known part of education.

***Maria Montessori using her methods***

 

  Montessori’s key factor was that every child was unique and born with the capability to learn with confidence and that there were various stages within a child’s life. Bates and Lewis (2009) concluded that they were known as the three six year periods, absorbent mind (0-6), childhood 6-12 and finally adolescence (12-18). In development she concluded that all babies and children develop the same cognitive, physical, linguistic social and emotion levels but all happened at different rates. This therefore led to using inclusive practice where diversity became accepted and discrimination was not allowed.

        A part of Montessori’s theory was that the environment believed to play a key role in supporting and extending learning. The environment is constructed with the child in mind. Murray and Peyton (2008) describe how she created child size furniture. The aim is to have a place where it can maximize and facilitate an independent learning. To create this the Montessori schools were well ordered, had creative activities plus physical and mental tasks.

            This therefore resulted in setting up special areas of the classroom. The eight areas are practical life, sensorial, math, language, culture, science and art. The areas incorporated sight, sound taste and touch into the materials that the children choose to play with.  Thayer (2013) argues further that by putting different ages of children together would enhance social skills but would allow the older children to become role models for the younger children.  All of these are set up to allow the child to have their choice in learning which I believe shows a vast amount of learning development.

         Another factor that Montessori encourages is positive relationships meaning that children learn to be independent from a base of loving relationships with parents.  Cathleen (2010) gives evidence from working in a Montessori school that the parents have respect for child to be capable beings rather than little adults. It is added to every aspect of the methods by expecting children to respect their environment, the material, and world themselves and others.  

 

    The key role of the Montessori teacher is that they do not lecture but demonstrate and inspire creativity and independence. Using all the factors above the teacher looks for the desires within in the child.

This video is a tour of a school called Wexford that uses the Montessori method. I choose this because it shows all the activities that children part take in and interviews the staff there.

 

Finally I believe this way of learning is a good way of getting a child to think for themselves and create their own personality at a very young age. It brings about confidence and discourages negativity but encourages creativity. Montessori methods are still used in school today and still growing with children that are attending.