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Dr. Montessori believed that the goal of early childhood education should
not be to fill the child with facts from a pre-selected course of studies,
but rather to cultivate the child's own natural desire to learn.
Practical Life Exercises
In this area of the classroom, children develop their coordination and
motor skills while becoming absorbed in everyday activities. They become
confident, independent, and gradually lengthen their span of concentration.
They also learn to pay attention to details as they follow a regular sequence
of actions. Finally, they learn good work habits as they finish each task and
put materials away before beginning another activity.
Sensorial Exercises
A young child meets the world around him through the constant use of all his
senses. Since he quite naturally uses all his powers of observation during
these early years, Dr. Montessori felt that this was an ideal time to give
the child equipment, which would sharpen his senses and enable him to
understand the many impressions he receives through them.
The sensorial materials in the classroom help children to distinguish, to
categorize, and to relate new information to what they already know. Dr.
Montessori believed that this process is the beginning of conscious
knowledge. It is brought about by the intelligence working in a concentrated
way on the impressions given by the senses.
Mathematics
Dr. Montessori demonstrated that if a child has access to mathematical
equipment in his early year, he can easily and joyfully assimilate many facts
and skills of arithmetic. She designed concrete materials to represent all
types of quantities after she observed that the child who becomes interested
in counting likes to touch or move the items as he enumerates them. Later, by
combining this equipment, separating it, sharing it, counting it, and
comparing it, he can demonstrate to himself the basic operations of
arithmetic. This activity gives him the satisfaction of learning by discovery
rather than by being told. Eventually he develops an early enthusiasm for the
world of numbers.
Language
In a Montessori classroom, children learn the phonetic sounds of the letters
before they learn the alphabetical names in a sequence. The phonetic sounds
are given first because these are the sounds the children hear in words that
they need to be able to read. The children first become aware of these
phonetic sounds when the Directress introduces the consonants with sandpaper
letters.
The individual presentation of language materials in a Montessori
classroom allows the Directress to take advantage of each child’s greatest
period of interest. Reading instruction begins on the day when the child
wants to know what a word says, or when he shows an interest in using the
sandpaper letters. Writing, or the construction of words with movable
letters, nearly always precedes reading in a Montessori environment.
Gradually, the children learn the irregular words and words with two and
three syllables, by doing reading exercises which offer variety rather than
monotonous repetition. Also available in the Montessori classroom are many
attractive books using a large number of phonetic words. Proceeding at their
own pace, children are encouraged to read about things that interest them.
The children’s interest in reading is never satisfied by monotony. Rather,
it is cultivated as their most important key to future learning. They are
encouraged to explore books for answers to their own questions, whether they
are about frogs, rockets, stars, or fire engines.
In the Montessori classroom, children are introduced to grammar by games,
which show them that nouns are the names of things, adjectives describe nouns
and adverbs are action words. The activity becomes almost enjoyable.
Physical Geography
The large wooden puzzle maps are among the most popular activities in the
classroom. At first, the children use the maps simply as puzzles. Gradually,
they learn the names of the countries as well as information about climate
and products. Children also learn the common land formations such as islands
and peninsulas.
History
The Montessori program offers children a concrete presentation of history by
letting them work with Time Lines. Time Lines are very long strips of paper,
which can be unrolled and stretched along the floor of the classroom. The
lines are marked off in segments, which represent consecutive periods of
history.
Science & Nature
The child’s natural curiosity is stimulated through discovery projects and
experiments, which help him to draw his own conclusions. The plant and animal
kingdoms are studied in an orderly fashion to foster a love and appreciation
for all living things.
Cultural Awareness
The children gain an awareness of the world around them by exploring other
countries; their customs, food, music, climate, language, and animals. This
helps to raise the children’s awareness about other people, and to gain an
understanding and tolerance, and therefore compassion, for all people of the
world.
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