Montessori Materials
Montessori materials educate through the senses. They exist in service of auto-education, where children practice repeatedly until their sensory processes are refined. The Montessori guide leads the young learners from sensations to ideas.
The hands-on materials, designed by Maria Montessori, are beautiful and meant to attract the interest of children. Classroom organization is done thematically in support of subjects such as mathematics or culture.
Materials are arranged in a sequential order moving from left to right and top to bottom according to the level of difficulty. Each material is designed to contain a control of error, meaning the child will recognize if he has made an error based on some part of the material not fitting or working as a result. This allows for independence and autonomy in learning.
Children practice with the materials until they achieve a level of mastery with them. This signals the time to move onto a parallel activity or a more abstract expression of the task.
References:
Montessori, M. (1988). The Montessori method. (A.E. George, Trans.) New York: Schocken Books. (Original work published 1909).
Author: Catherine Munro
The hands-on materials, designed by Maria Montessori, are beautiful and meant to attract the interest of children. Classroom organization is done thematically in support of subjects such as mathematics or culture.
Materials are arranged in a sequential order moving from left to right and top to bottom according to the level of difficulty. Each material is designed to contain a control of error, meaning the child will recognize if he has made an error based on some part of the material not fitting or working as a result. This allows for independence and autonomy in learning.
Children practice with the materials until they achieve a level of mastery with them. This signals the time to move onto a parallel activity or a more abstract expression of the task.
References:
Montessori, M. (1988). The Montessori method. (A.E. George, Trans.) New York: Schocken Books. (Original work published 1909).
Author: Catherine Munro
