Montessori Philosophy: Similarities and Differences

Q: What are the similarities and differences between Montessori and traditional school?

A: The answer to this question could fill a book, but there are several key points to make.

Similarities:

• We read books to children at school. 
• We sing songs and play games. 
• We play on the playground. 
• We have art materials in the classroom. 
• We have a snack in the morning.
• We encourage socialization. 

Differences:

•  A Montessori classroom is child-centered, not adult-centered. The teacher is not the focus of the classroom. The teacher provides a link between the child and the environment, and the teacher maintains the environment with materials that teach children. The children teach themselves through use of the materials.
• We have multi-age classrooms with 3-year cycles, and the child stays in the same classroom with the same teacher for the full 3 years. The classroom becomes like a second family for the child. Each level is divided into three-year age groups: Infant-Toddler (0-3), Early Childhood or Primary (3-6), Lower Elementary (6-9), and Upper Elementary (9-12). Very few schools offer Infant-Toddler (our school does not), and even rarer are the Montessori middle- and high- school (our school is exploring the possibility). Each age grouping corresponds to a Plane of Development, as identified by Dr. Montessori. A Montessori classroom strives for a balance of boys and girls, and an equal number of each age group. In a multi-age class, children of the younger ages learn from the older children. This is achieved by observation of the older children, and by the older children actually giving lessons to the younger. In this way, the older children also learn through teaching, and gain self-confidence and leadership skills. Children can move at their own pace because there are always materials on their level available to them in any curriculum area. Montessori also saw value in multi-age groupings because families are multi-aged.
• Children have an active role in the environment. They help to maintain the classroom, keep it clean, and respect and take care of the materials. They are responsible for their own materials, putting them away neatly and ready for the next person to use. Many children thrive on being helpers and seek jobs to do.
• Children are not required to do the same thing at the same time. In a traditional school, the whole class is generally working on one thing at the same time. In Montessori, the children are allowed to make choices in their work and work on it until their needs are satisfied. They can work alone, with a friend, or in small groups. When looking around a Montessori classroom, one sees many different things going on at the same time.
• Dr. Montessori scientifically developed her ―hands on materials. She spent her entire life observing and researching children, and trying different things with them. Each material has a specific purpose or goal towards development. There is nothing in the classroom that is frivolous or arbitrary. While we Montessorians recognize that dress-ups, cars, trucks and kitchen corners serve a purpose in a child’s life, we believe that these things have a better place than the classroom.
• Materials are kept on low shelves that children can easily reach without adult assistance. The furniture is sized just for them.
• Montessori children have freedom of movement in the classroom. Dr. Montessori not only recognized that children have difficulty sitting still for long periods of time, but believed they should not be required to; therefore, getting rid of desks was one of the first things she did. Children have a great need to move their bodies and use their energy, and through movement, they learn and gain control over their bodies.
• Discipline is a process carried out in a consistent, respectful and logical manner. 
• Montessorians are more interested in the process that a child follows rather than a thing that is produced.
• In other words, Montessori is process-oriented, not product-oriented. 
• There is a certain spiritual nature in the Montessori environment. There is a sense of wonder and awe at the world and nature, and an appreciation for all things different. The individuality of children is not only recognized, but respected and encouraged.