Why Montessori?
Montessori education is a child-centered approach to learning that fundamentally believes children are instinctively keen learners who, when immersed in engaging and interesting environments, have the ability to learn and discover seemingly entirely on their own! In Montessori classrooms, teachers observe children, and based on these observations, make adjustments to the environment in order to meet each child’s individual interests and learning styles. Montessori children learn through play, are free to discover their own interests and passions, and are given the tools to pursue these interests independently- laying the foundations for becoming happy and fulfilled adults with a lifelong love of learning.
Montessori moves the focus from “what” children learn (content based learning) to “how” they learn (process based learning), and it is because of this that children from Montessori schools are not only academic high performers but they are also collaborative, empathetic, and self-driven.
“THE MOST IMPORTANT PERIOD OF LIFE IS NOT THE AGE OF UNIVERSITY STUDIES, BUT THE FIRST ONE, THE PERIOD FROM BIRTH TO THE AGE OF SIX. FOR THAT IS THE TIME WHEN MAN’S INTELLIGENCE ITSELF, HIS GREATEST IMPLEMENT, IS BEING FORMED.” ~ MARIA MONTESSORI
What is Montessori?
Montessori is a philosophy and approach to learning that was created by Dr. Maria Montessori over one hundred years ago in Rome, Italy. The Montessori approach is founded on the belief that all children are inherently good, peaceful, and intrinsically motivated, and that these innate characteristics must be nurtured by the adults and by the environment surrounding the child. As an authentic Montessori school, Philly Montessori holds these foundational characteristics: