10/31/08

The Montessori Philosophy

Maria Montessori was a leading educational theorist who lived from 1870 to 1952.  She spent a lifetime observing young children to understand how they learn.  She developed a philosophy for modern educational practice that is used in Montessori schools all over the world. 

Basically, she developed two fundamental philosophies:

1.  Children learn through movement, using their hands.

"...We can see that all changes in man's environment are brought about by his hands.  For if men had only used speech to communicate their thought, if their wisdom had been expressed in words alone, no traces would remain of past generations.  It is thanks to the hand, the companion of the mind, that civilization has arisen.  The hand has been the organ of this great gift that we inherit."  p. 151, The Absorbent Mind, by Maria Montessori.

Small children learn through touching objects, moving them around, working with them.  Our Montessori classroom is equipped with very special objects which the children use primarily with their hands to learn fundamental concepts such as quantity, shape and name (vocabulary).  At the same time, they learn motor skills, both large and fine, dexterity, visual discrimination, problem solving, and cognitive skills. 

2.  Children have an innate (internal) drive to learn.

Through scientific observation, Montessori proved that inside each and every child there is an innate drive that guides the child to learn and develop.  This development occurs spontaneously - each child actively looks for learning opportunities.  The teacher's job is to provide the right circumstances (through close monitoring and skilful guidance of each child and an academically rich, prepared learning environment) which lead to the development of the child's highest potential. 

Other Characteristics of a Montessori environment:

The prepared environment of the school is designed to move children sequentially from the concrete to the abstract.  Academic areas of a Montessori classroom include Practical Life (exercises of daily living that help create a necessary foundation within each child for further exploration and learning of the more advanced academic areas of the classroom), Sensorial (pre-math), Mathematics, Language (writing and reading), Cultural Subjects, Science and Art.  At Las Manitas Montessori, we also offer Music, Physical Education, yoga, gardening, woodworking, and Spanish, integrated throughout the entire school.

Montessori classrooms are also based on a multi-age grouping concept.  Multi-age groups promote an atmosphere of cooperation, teamwork, and peer teaching, while meeting the needs of each child regardless of age.  Older students assist younger students as peer teachers.  This builds confidence and reinforces the lessons in the older child.  The younger student becomes academically and socially motivated by the older role model.

Learning a second (or more!) language at the Preschool Level

"Our mind, as it is, would not be able to do what the child's mind does.  To develop a language from nothing needs a different type of mentality.  This the child has.  His intelligence is not of the same kind as ours." p. 25, The Absorbent Mind.

Montessori describes young children as having an "absorbent" mind for learning language, both their native language and other languages as well.  Their young minds can absorb, like a sponge, their environment differently that we adults do when learning new concepts.

Beginning the process of learning a second language at the preschool level can give children a great head start in life for becoming fully bilingual. Also, studies show that learning another language can give a child other learning skill advantages (such as increased logical thinking skills and higher ability to focus and concentrate) that can last a lifetime.  

Check out this link to a recent story about babies and exposure to multiple languages:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16455841/

The story describes research that demonstrates exposure to second (or more) languages creates "mental dexterity brought on by a bilingual world," for infants.  We believe it does this also for preschool age children.

Immersion in another language gives children the opportunity to become bilingual in a natural and effective way. The children learn while acting on concepts, creating, listening, actively participating, and learning new skills.  We also integrate written curriculum in all areas of the classroom, so children get the opportunity to see words and phrases in Spanish as well as practice hearing and speaking it orally.  We provide immersion opportunities to learn Spanish primarily by having daily Spanish circle times that are fun, interactive, and effective.  Veronica, our Spanish Montessori co-teacher, often uses Spanish (with English translation when needed) to give the children simple directions or assistance, as another primary way to increase the children's exposure to comprehending and using Spanish.