What is Montessori?
The Montessori approach provides an environment where children are “free to respond to their natural tendency to work as they grow from childhood to maturity”. It gives the child the opportunity to grow at their own pace through the guidance of a trained adult, according to their individual capabilities. Mosaic Montessori bears witness to the viability, the brilliance of this approach, and it is Maria Montessori’s vision for education that will guide our school for years to come.
Our program, both in philosophy and pedagogy, is based on the scientific research work of Dr. Maria Montessori and our AMI Montessori training. Her approach to education is based on the tenets of universal human development. Dr. Montessori provided a model for how to guide the learning of children of different ages and for what is important to present and make available to them at each level.
The classrooms are set up in an open style, with work areas throughout the rooms and materials openly displayed and available on accessible shelving. Most lessons are given to individual children, and some to small groups, while other children are working independently. We use stories, traditional Montessori materials, things of nature, treasures from the wealth of cultures around the world, and sometimes, conventional tools to teach the children. We incorporate materials and activities that reflect the daily functioning of a classroom, for example, food preparation, and environment care (sweeping, washing dishes, flower arranging), and care of self and others. The children learn by means of self-directed activity guided by the teacher. The Montessori curriculum is broader based than that found in a more traditional setting.
Who is Maria Montessori?
Mosaic Montessori Academy begins with the story of Maria Montessori, born in Chiaravalle, Province of Ancona, Italy in 1870. A graduate of the University of Rome she was to become the first woman to practice medicine in Italy. It was her profound interest and study in children’s development that the “Montessori Method” was born. With proper guidance and freedom it was her belief that children have an inner force to focus deeply on the task at hand that enables them to achieve their goals.
Maria Montessori opened her first “Casa dei Bambini” or The Children’s House, in the very poorest area of Rome, Quartiere di San Lorenzo in 1907, for children between the ages of three and six years old. Her dedication and approach to education caught the attention of people from all walks of life all over the world. Alexander Graham Bell, Woodrow Wilson, Gandhi, Jean Piaget (once headed the Montessori Society) were among her supporters, and in 1929 Maria Montessori co-founded the Association Montessori Internationale (AMI).