Summer is here! During the break is the perfect time to rethink your space and offer more opportunities for your primary- and pre-primary-aged children to become self-sufficient. The Montessori Foundation has ideas that can be implemented throughout the house, giving children a sense of accomplishment in their care of self and their surroundings.
Have you ever wondered how Montessori theories translate to the classroom experience? This Montessori “Solar System” graphic, created by Mark Powell and shared by Trevor Eissler on the Montessori Madmen blog, gives a great overview of how Montessori principles work together in the day-to-day classroom.
Today, we complete our series on the Montessori Planes of Development with an overview of the importance of developing the joy of learning across each stage.
The responsibility of Montessori educators, as defined by Gretchen Hall, Director of Training at the Montessori Training Center of New England, in her 2011 article How Science Fits Into the Whole Montessori Curriculum (The NAMTA Journal, Vol. 36, No. 1, Winter 2011), is to help children follow their interests and inspire them to move forward. The key is to take Montessori’s theory and move it into 21st century norms. Although exploration and following the child is considered best practice, competition and acquisition of knowledge cannot be under-represented due to societal pressures.
Today knowledge can be acquired with the click of button – memorization is obsolete. The greater value is developing the joy of learning through the sense of wonder. Promoting an individual’s desire to learn, through fostering intrinsic motivation, unlocks the secret to self-learning. Knowing how to be a self-learner aids in the development of creative thinking skills necessary for future leaders. The focus should not be on the product but on the process – how a child obtains the answer is more important than the answer itself. The planes of development, as prescribed by Montessori’s method, provide clarity on the needs of the individual learner and encourage each learner to reach his or her full potential.
Other posts in this series:
The Third Plane of Development: How Can I Apply What I Know?
Creativity expert Ken Robinson is a world-renowned speaker, New York Times best-selling author, and a passionate advocate for rethinking education as we know it. In this TED Talk from April 2013, Robinson addresses how to navigate out of the “death valley” of the current education model, and how to encourage an environment of possibility.
Curiosity is the engine of achievement.
– Ken Robinson
Trevor Eissler is a professional pilot, Montessori dad, and the author of Montessori Madness! A Parent to Parent Argument for Montessori Education, as well as several books for children. He is part of a group of (mostly) fathers who call themselves the Montessori Madmen – advocates for Montessori education.
We’re an impatient, ragtag group of dads and advocates from around the world, united by a common zeal to bring the Montessori method to millions more. Our mission is simple: to advocate for Montessori education so that one day it’s not called Montessori school; it’s just called school.
– Montessori Madmen
Trevor and his team have put together a vast library of resources to help equip and inform parents, including articles, research, and videos. Explore the Montessori Madmen site to learn more.
Today, we continue our series on the Montessori Planes of Development with a look at the third plane, spanning from age twelve to age fifteen – the middle school years.
As Gretchen Hall, Director of Training at the Montessori Training Center of New England, notes in her 2011 article How Science Fits Into the Whole Montessori Curriculum (The NAMTA Journal, Vol. 36, No. 1, Winter 2011), the third plane child (ages 12-15 years) is focused on society, as the adolescent is searching to find a place in the world. Hall explains that adolescents need to experience the world through work, through purposeful movements, and by using their hands.
Maria Montessori believed the concentration at this plane of development should be centered on economic pursuits so children are equipped to become productive members of society. Hall notes that this economic activity allows adolescents to gradually come to understand the role of work in the greater society. Work becomes an agent for the adolescent’s self-esteem; the objective is to contribute to the world in some meaningful way. By contributing to the community, they are fulfilling a need for themselves and for others.
Hall reports that Montessori saw the third plane as a time of rebirth and referred to adolescents as “social newborns,” and asserts that the questions of the adolescent go beyond the “what” of the very young child and the “why” of the elementary child: The adolescent asks, how I can apply what I know? How does this work relate to my life, my world? How can I save the world with my knowledge of the natural laws and the formulas I studied? Providing experiences such as internships allows opportunities to answer these reflective questions. Education focus during the third plane includes three categories: the opening up of ways of expression, fulfillment of fundamental needs, and the study of the earth and of living things.
Other posts in this series:
The Planes of Development: Developing the Joy of Learning
The best schools are based on excellent classroom practices, have an established pedagogy, and focus on personalized teaching and learning. Montessori monitors the child’s progress throughout the year; it is not just about the end of the year assessment. Those opposed to the Common Core Standards refer to our children as the newest “guinea pigs” in education. In contrast, the first Montessori classroom was opened in 1907 and its philosophy has not changed. Currently there are over 30,000 Montessori school worldwide.
Diane Ravitch was the former Assistant Secretary of Education and Counselor to Secretary of Education Lamar Alexander during the George W. Bush administration. She was responsible for the Office of Educational Research and Improvement in the U.S. Dept. of Education. She led the the federal effort to promote voluntary state and national academic standards. Read her thoughts on the Common Core Standards.
Today we’re continuing our series Terms You Need to Know as a Parent.
State licensing assures safety and sound administrative practices for the care and well-being of children under the age of 5. In the state of Georgia, facilities which operate more than four hours a day are required to be licensed. Programs that operate less than four hours a day for children under 5 and those serving children above the age of 5 must obtain an exemption approval from Bright From the Start Early Care and Learning.
Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin share with Barbara Walters what they believe was the foundation for their innovative thinking – the Montessori environment.
Today, we continue our series on the Montessori Planes of Development with a look at the second plane, spanning from age six to age twelve – the elementary years.
As a child moves into the second plane of development (ages 6-12 years) the focus is on “why” and “how.” The child seeks intellectual independence. Gretchen Hall, Director of Training at the Montessori Training Center of New England, notes in her 2011 article How Science Fits Into the Whole Montessori Curriculum (The NAMTA Journal, Vol. 36, No. 1, Winter 2011) that the attitude of the child from birth to age six – “let me do it myself” – is replaced in the second plane of development with “let me find out for myself.” In her book To Educate the Human Potential, Maria Montessori refers to the child’s mind as a fertile field, ready to receive what will germinate into culture. Reason and imagination are the keys to unlock learning during this phase. Logic and reasoning take hold, and a child is able to perceive complex concepts.
In addition, during this second plane of development, children have a fascination with the extraordinary. Due to this fascination, the subject of the universe appeals to the elementary child since it is vast, mysterious, and irresistible. For this reason, “cosmic education” along with the “great stories” becomes the main staple at the elementary level. As Hall describes, the goal is to fan the flame of imagination and to inspire the child into new paths of exploration. Cosmic education can best be defined as stressing the interrelatedness of everything. Examples of cosmic tasks include: coral removing calcium from the ocean, plants absorbing poisonous carbon dioxide and using it to produce oxygen, and bees pollinating plants. As Hall points out, Montessori believed that humans, as part of the universe, also must have cosmic tasks. The elementary child discovers and understands these cosmic tasks through research.
Other posts in this series:
The Planes of Development: Developing the Joy of Learning
The Third Plane of Development: How Can I Apply What I Know?
