Montessori is an education philosophy and practice is a child-focused approach that fosters natural interests and self-motivated growth from children in all areas of their development, with a goal of nurturing each child’s natural desire for knowledge, understanding and respect. The environment places an emphasis on hands-on learning and developing real life skills.
Montessori Education is student-led and self-paced but guided, enriched and assessed by knowledgeable and caring teachers, the leaderships of peers and a nurturing environment.
The multi-age environments creates a community designed to create natural opportunities for independence, citizenship, accountability, multi-sensory learning and passionate enquiry. The children are given the freedom and support to follow their own curiosity at their own pace to fully understand concepts and meet their individual goals. Montessori students are confident, enthusiastic and self-directed learners, accountable to themselves and their communities.
The environment fosters independence, individual paced learning , empathy, a passion for social justice, and the love for life-long learning.
No, it is more than an academic programme. It is a whole approach to life to develop the whole personality of the child. The children develop creativity, critical thinking, social skills, cooperation, independence, responsibility, problem solving, caring, respect for self and others and all
the skills necessary to become fulfilled individual who positively contribute to society.
There are four planes of development – with each stage having its own developmental characteristics and developmental challenges. The early childhood (3- 6 years) takes places spontaneously without effort, which aids the child with a clear, concrete sense of many abstract concepts when entering Primary school.
Maria Montessori identified four “planes of development”. Each plane having its own developmental characteristics and challenges. For each phase there is a period of development and a period of consolidation of knowledge. These sensitive periods for learning is where a child undergoes a period of intense developmental changes followed by a period of assimilation, after which a child will display confidence in their newly acquired abilities.
The “infancy” period spans from 0-6 years. This stage is
split in to the unconscious absorbent mind (0-3 years)
and the conscious absorbent mind (3 – 6 years). During
this plane, a child’s brain is like a sponge absorbing
everything from their environment that is necessary to become an individual from their specific culture.
This plane is characterised by sensitive periods for movement, language, toileting, order, grace and
courtesy, music, reading, writing, mathematics and social relationships.
The environment is designed to work with the ”absorbent mind”, their “sensitive periods” and the tendencies of children. Learning is spontaneous without effort, leading children to enter the next plane with a clear, concrete sense of many abstract concepts. The Montessori materials and activities are designed to be sequential process to allow individuals the room to grow at their own pace and experienced over a three-year time span.
The mix-age classes are designed to encourage peer-
learning, respect and cooperation. The design of the
Montessori environment has the child’s individual and
physiological development in mind. The 3-year cycle
also allows the directress to follow the natural transition occurring within each child over a period of development, enabling them to mee the child’s individual needs and interests during the sensitive periods.
The child is strongly focused on the self and has a strong desire for physical independence. The mentally of “I CAN DO IT MYSELF”. It is also where the foundation for a child’s personality is laid.
Failure to complete the 3-year cycle results in the child
not achieving the “total possibility” offered by the
environment. Partially developed skills and incoherent
knowledge form many loose ends. The third year is the
culmination of this process which is depended on
repetition so that the information is fully assimilated
through senses, feelings and thinking. Failure to complete the 3 year cycle with leave gaps in knowledge
and understanding which may be difficult to fill at a later stage. The completion of the 3 year cycle ensure that the development of the whole child at that particular age and nurture a joy of learning preparing them for future challenges.
The carefully prepared environment provides endless
opportunities to develop all the their senses and motor
skills with the help of self-correcting materials. The 3 rd
year, the children will work with these materials in more
depth, thus gaining more insight from them but can move into academic areas. Once critical learning habits are established – concentration, self-discipline, sense of
order, persistence in completing a task, creative self-
expression and a love for learning, (invaluable
preparation for life) which is supported in a exciting
environment.
All preparation for later academic work and for social and emotional development, which has been nurtured are reinforced in the final year. It is also the year that they assume the leadership within the environment. This year is where everything seems to fall into place and the children are ready and confident for new challenges with the complete foundation.
In traditional grade R classrooms the primary emphasis is on developing social skills with some preliminary work in cognitive readiness. The Montessori environment, the emphasis is on individual growth, which allows for cognitive development from a firm foundation of sensory and motor skill training, making the transition to academic work so much easier for the child. The transition occurs naturally during the third year in the Montessori classroom, without stress, pressure or praise.
The benefits of completing the full 3-year cycle will ensure the child will reap the benefits of all the past work and expand their joy of learning.
The children experience a smooth transition into other learning environment. The transition is best made after completing the three-year Montessori cycle as it allows the child to get closure within the academic curriculum, as well as gain confidence from having been a leader in the environment.
Montessori education provides an excellent foundation for education. The 3-year cycle prepares the children in totality – academically, emotionally and socially. The children are adaptable, positive and eager to learn. They have a sense of responsibility, respect for themselves and others. From an early age, the children are encouraged to make decisions, problem-solve and manage their time during the work period.
They are able to work independently as well as have good communication skills to exchange ideas and discuss their work freely with others. The self-directed, non-competitive environment allows children to build confidence and a positive self-image.
The above qualities will support them in any future educational system whether it be Montessori elementary education, public or traditional private institutions.
A Montessori teacher direct or guide the children towards they need to teach themselves thus being called a directress or guide.
Demonstrations are presented individually or in small groups, allowing the teacher to get immediate feedback and to see how well the child/children are absorbing the lesson. It allows them to explore questions or ideas.
The Directress uses the Montessori materials to enhance the learning experience. The Directress will observe the class as a whole as well as the individual children to determine the level of development and what guidance each child will need to progress to the next level.
We admit children from 18 months onwards.
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