Montessori Academy Statement of Philosophy

Maria Montessori realized that young children are not miniature adults, nor are they imperfect beings because they are small. She saw them as developing beings, growing into men and women who will largely reflect their upbringing. Dr. Montessori felt that an atmosphere which enables a child to develop into a mature adult, realizing his full potential each step of the way is best for the child. She created a “prepared environment,” where there is an atmosphere which answers the particular needs of small children as they strive for independence and intellectual growth.

Montessori Academy is such a place. It is furnished with child-sized furniture and the famous “didactic apparatus.” Today’s educators call learning tools “hardware,” but they know, as did Dr. Montessori one hundred plus years ago, that children must have real things to see, touch, hear and smell.

The other side of her “liberty within limits” coin is self-discipline. Each child follows her own bent provided she does not disturb others or abuse the material. Children are free to form groups spontaneously, but a child happily engaged in a private project is left alone.

Montessori education does not end with the preschool experience. It continues into the child’s elementary and adolescent years, constantly building upon itself to the changing developmental needs of the child. Maria Montessori wrote, “The successive levels of education must conform to the successive personalities of the child.” As the elementary-aged child gradually moves from the concrete learning pathways of preschool to the more abstract ones of the elementary, and on to the adolescent age which is characterized by great social development, critical thinking, re-evaluation, self-concern and self assessment, Montessori meets developmental needs each step of the way.

The teachers at Montessori Academy are trained and experienced in the Montessori Method. Their primary responsibility is to ensure the continuing development of each child. They set the stage, provide the correct props and leave the child free to learn.

"Not in the service of any political or social creed should the teacher work, but in the service of the complete human being, able to exercise in freedom a self disciplined will and judgment, unperverted by prejudice and undistorted by fear." Dr. Maria Montessori

Objectives

• To provide an environment that enables a child to develop into a mature adult and realize his full potential

• To provide an environment that will assist the child's endeavors toward independence and intellectual growth.

• To provide the opportunity for the child to develop self-reliance, self-esteem and confidence, as well as her sense of order, dexterity and sensory motor skills.

• To provide an atmosphere of freedom within limits so that a child can develop self-discipline.

• To provide an atmosphere that will aid the child's development of respect for himself, others, his environment and the whole world.

• To help the child involved in the Extended Care Program to know a consistency of development between the classroom environment and the extended care environment.

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