Teaching Methods
The Montessori Approach
Dr. Maria Montessori
Maria Montessori was an Italian physician, educator, and innovator. She was acclaimed for her educational method that builds on how children naturally learn.
She was among Italy's first female physicians when she graduated from medical school in 1896. Maria's early medical practice focused on psychiatry, and she later developed an interest in education, attending classes on pedagogy and immersing herself in educational theory. She opened the first Montessori school—the Casa dei Bambini, or Children's House—in Rome on January 6, 1907.
Subsequently, she traveled the world and wrote extensively about her approach to education, attracting many devotees. More than 22,000 Montessori schools are now in at least 110 countries worldwide.
The Montessori Method
The Montessori Method is a child-centered educational approach based on scientific observations of children from birth to adulthood. It has been tested, with over 100 years of success in diverse cultures worldwide.
In this method, the child is seen as naturally eager for knowledge and capable of initiating learning in a supportive, thoughtfully prepared learning environment. It is an approach that values the human spirit and the whole child's physical, social, emotional, and cognitive development.
The Montessori materials in the prepared environment help the children associate the abstract concept with the concrete sensorial experience.
Using all senses during the learning process allows children to actually learn instead of just memorizing.
Children learn at their own pace, and they all feel successful at their stage of the learning process.
The Montessori Environment
The Montessori classroom offers unique self-teaching materials. Children develop coordination skills, fine and gross motor skills, attention to detail and working habits using these materials. The materials are self correcting which makes the children learn on their own under the guidance of the teachers, encouraging self confidence and independence.
The Montessori education starts from the toddler years and extends to high school in some schools. The classrooms bring together children from three different ages ( 3-6, 7-9 and 9 to 12 etc) The advantage of mixed aged classrooms is that children remain with a big percentage of the same classmates every year, and the same teachers, offering consistency and security. The younger children learn from older children and older children reinforce their learning by teaching concepts they have already mastered. This arrangement also mirrors the real world, where individuals work and socialize with people of all ages and dispositions.
Autana School offers Toddler and Primary Level, which combines children from 18 months to 36 months old and 3 to 6 years of age. The Kindergarten level of traditional schools is included in the Primary Level of a Montessori classroom.
“Establishing lasting peace is the work of education; all politics can do is keep us out of war.”
— Dr. Maria Montessori”
The Peace Curriculum
Maria Montessori believed that children are the peacemakers of the future and that education was how children could be raised as world citizens who would find ways to live in social, cultural, and environmental harmony.
Peace education is an integral part of Montessori; for this reason, at Autana, we model peace through different activities in the classroom. Mindfulness practices are part of daily routine and storytelling with peaceful messages of tolerance, cultural awareness, compassion, and respect.
Peace Education focuses on helping students develop the interpersonal skills necessary to be active and positive members of a thriving community. Teachers promote self-reflection, conflict resolution, and problem-solving skills. They model effective communication, offer positive language choices, and guide children toward finding the best solutions. As students learn to handle conflicts, they also uncover their natural ability to lead themselves and others through challenges.
