Primary Program

Nurturing Curiosity, Creativity and Imagination

Dr. Montessori knew that no person is ever educated by another; he must do it himself or it will never be done. She wrote, “Education is not what the teacher gives; education is a natural process spontaneously carried out by the human individual, and it is acquired not be listening to words but by experiences upon the environment.”

Children between the ages of two and six can learn information spontaneously and joyfully. Dr. Montessori called the child’s mind at this stage “absorbent,” and compared it to a sponge soaking up water. She also discovered that during these years there are “sensitive periods” when the child shows an unusual interest in certain areas. It is actually easier for him to learn in these areas that at any other time in life. Montessori classes nurture this so that the child is able to learn the things he needs to know by the same spontaneous and joyful process with which he learned to walk and talk.

Since education is derived from experiences within the environment, the Montessori classroom is a “prepared environment” where many things are scaled to the size and inner needs of the child. The child selects his activities from the things that he has been shown and thus he can experience the excitement of learning by his own choice and at his own pace. Since young children have a deep-seated love of order in the arrangement of things, there is a place for everything and everything is in its place. Since they have sensitivity for concrete, sensorial experiences, the materials allow the children to work toward abstractions with concrete materials. Since the hand is the main instrument of learning at this age, the materials are manipulative. Usually the materials have a built-in “control of error” or “criterion of success: so that the child learns to rely on his own judgment of his work rather than being dependent on someone else’s opinion.

The teacher’s role in the Montessori classroom is to prepare the environment (socially, psychologically, and physically) and to introduce the children to various activities in the classroom in a sequence which challenges the child, allowing him to move from success to success as he progresses from the simple to the complex, from rudimentary experiences to refined ones, and from outer control so self-control. Dr. Montessori preferred the term “director” to “teacher,” for while the adult serves as a dynamic link to the environment, the child educates himself through his experiences. When a child enters a Montessori class, he is likely to have a short-attention span, little ability to concentrate, and limited coordination and self-control. Therefore, he is shown exercises that are relatively undemanding and his range of choices is limited to a degree with which he can cope. As his work shows that he has mastered his exercises and his behavior shows that he can deal responsibly with the amount of freedom he has been given, he is introduced gradually to more challenging activities and a wider range of choice. The child develops self-control, coordination, attention-span, and concentration to a degree usually considered remarkable to children of such a young age.

Primary Directress: vhall@msasc.org