Montessori Philosophy

What is Montessori?

The Montessori pedagogy, or educational system, is the world’s only scientifically developed pedagogy. It’s also the most widely delivered education system in the world.

The philosophy has two core tenets: every child is treated as an individual, and their education encompasses every aspect of their development.

While developed by Dr Maria Montessori in the early 1900s, the Montessori philosophy – with its focus on nurturing independence, innovation and a love of learning – is more relevant in today’s fast-moving world than ever.

The Montessori Difference

Choosing a Montessori education for your child means that you are choosing a scientific method of teaching that focuses on the child, not the teacher; where children learn about themselves through self-correction; and where ‘work’ is a purposeful, self-chosen activity.

Here are the key differences between a Montessori environment and traditional education:

Montessori Education: The Science

The Montessori pedagogy is founded on a scientific understanding of childhood and the development of the body and mind. Through her observations of children, Dr Montessori concluded that a child must be free to develop according to the natural laws of development, with no rewards or punishments, as well as no competition.

Dr Maria Montessori was a pioneering scientist and educator, and she based her approach on the development of the whole human being. Her work has been studied and developed for many years and is successfully evidenced today in neuroscience and research into the executive functioning skills of children and adults.

The Four Planes of Development

Through scientific research, Montessori based her educational philosophy on the idea that children develop through a series of four planes, from birth to maturity. Each plane has a variety of characteristics that are typical for children at that stage. Studying and understanding these stages enables us to understand our interactions with children with a new perspective.

The Montessori method, therefore, focuses on guiding each child, through positive experiences in a prepared environment, to independence in all spheres of development: physical, intellectual, social/emotional, and moral. And so, in a Montessori environment that meets the natural developmental needs of children, each child achieves self-mastery and self-discipline.

Dr Maria Montessori

Born in Italy in 1870, Maria Montessori was one of the first women to attend medical school in Italy, and she qualified as a doctor from the University of Rome at the age of 26.

Soon after, Dr Montessori began practising medicine and, through her work with children, she developed an avid interest in education.

She opened her first education institution for children, Casa dei Bambini, in 1907 and published two seminal books – The Montessori Method (1909) and The Advanced Montessori Method (1917) – before establishing the Association Montessori Internationale (AMI) in 1929.

Her aim: “Spreading of knowledge of how the children, immature and struggling to develop their own powers, may be assisted in the self-realisation of reaching their full perfection of growth.” And today, there are over 22,000 Montessori schools in the world that are determined to pursue her work, with around 300 just in Australia.

For her committed efforts on behalf of children, especially in the face of fascism during World War II, Dr Montessori was nominated three times for a Nobel Peace Prize (1949, 1950 and 1951).

It is not true that I invented what is called the Montessori Method… I have studied the child; I have taken what the child has given me and expressed it, and that is what is called the Montessori Method.”

– Dr Maria Montessori

The Prepared Environments

Montessori education is a natural process defined by positive experiences in a prepared environment where:

• children work at their own pace according to their own interests
• each child is guided by the assistance of a director
• there are no rewards or punishments
• there is no competition
• ‘work’ is a purposeful self-chosen activity

Research consistently shows that brain development and learning — ultimately, academic success — are optimised in an environment where children are free to choose work that:

• engages their interest and effort
• provides some pleasure and some challenges

As such, our lessons are given after careful observation of each child’s interests and ability level and are finely tuned to meet their need for meaningful and interesting effort.

Montessori Materials

Over four decades, Dr Montessori designed and constructed new materials, which is the name she used to describe the educational objects used in the classrooms, with each being particular to different subject areas (e.g., art, music, mathematics, language, science, etc). Montessori materials (also called jobs or work) offer students a great advantage: they are self-correcting, meaning that if a child makes a mistake, it will be evident to the child and they will then be able to try again – hereby reinforcing the importance of repetition.

Cursive Handwriting

In Montessori education, learning to write begins with the hands. Children develop the coordination, control and muscle memory needed for writing through carefully sequenced, hands-on materials and activities.

Cursive handwriting fits naturally within this approach. Rather than learning letters as isolated shapes, children experience their formation through movement. Materials such as the cursive sandpaper letters allow children to see, feel and trace each letter, connecting the sound of the letter with its shape and movement. The movable alphabet then gives children the opportunity to build words and express their ideas before they are fully able to write them independently.

This progression supports the Montessori principle of moving from the concrete to the abstract. Children first experience the sounds and movements of language through their senses and hands, before gradually developing the control and fluency needed for independent writing.

The Importance of Handwriting

Research in neuroscience and psychology indicates that handwriting engages multiple areas of the brain, including those associated with cognition, language, memory and fine motor control. The physical act of forming letters helps integrate visual, sensory and motor processes, supporting the development of functional specialisation in the brain.

For Montessori students, handwriting is therefore more than a way of recording information. It is part of the child’s development of coordination, concentration, independence and self-expression.

Cursive at All Levels

Want to find out more about the Montessori philosophy?

For those eager to delve deeper into the Montessori Method, we recommend these enlightening books:

• The Absorbent Mind, Dr Maria Montessori
• The Discovery of the Child, Dr Maria Montessori
• The Secret of Childhood, Dr Maria Montessori
• From Childhood to Adolescence, by Dr Maria Montessori
• Montessori: A Modern Approach, Paula Polk Lillard
• Maria Montessori: A Biography, Rita Kramer
• Montessori: The Science Behind the Genius, Angeline Lillard

Also, check out this cool video about Montessori education.

Children are human beings to whom respect is due, superior to us by reason of their innocence and of the greater possibilities of their future… Let us treat them with all the kindness which we would wish to help to develop in them.”

– Dr Maria Montessori