Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between Montessori school and traditional education?

Montessori emphasizes learning through all five senses, not just trough listening, watching, or reading. Children in Montessori classes learn at their own, individual pace and according to their own choice of activities from hundreds of possibilities. Learning is an exciting process of discovery, leading to concentration, motivation, self-discipline, and a love of learning.

Where did Montessori come from?

A. Montessori education was founded in 1907 by Dr. Maria Montessori, the first woman in Italy to become a doctor. She based her educational methods on scientific observation of children’s learning processes. Guided by her discovery that children teach themselves, Dr. Montessori designed a “prepared environment” in which children could freely choose from a number of developmentally appropriate activities. Now more than a century after Maria Montessori’s first casa dei bambini (“children’s house”) in Rome, Montessori education is found all over the world, spanning ages from birth to adolescence.

Is Montessori good for children with learning disabilities? What about gifted children?

Montessori is designed to help all children reach their fullest potential at their own unique pace. A classroom where children have varying abilities is a community in which everyone learns from one another and everyone contributes. Moreover, multiage grouping allows each child to find his or her own pace without feeling “ahead” or “behind” in relation to peers.

That said, children with developmental delays attend the Montessori environment for half-day only, because we aim to protect the child’s right to spend enough time in the safety of their home environment in order to avoid much frustration that may come from being daily in a social group for overly long stretches of time.

What ages does Montessori serve?

Many toddler programs (ages 1-3 years) exist, pre-schools or ‘casas’ (ages 3-6), elementary (ages 6-12), adolescent (ages 12-15) as well as some Montessori high schools. Lisbon Montessori School hosts casa communities for children ages 2 &1/2-6 years and elementary program for children ages 6-12 years.

Are Montessori children successful later in life?

Research studies show that Montessori children are well prepared for later life academically, socially, and emotionally. In addition to scoring very well on standardized tests, Montessori children are ranked above average on such criteria as following directions, turning in work on time, listening attentively, using basic skills, showing responsibility, asking provocative questions, showing enthusiasm for learning, and adapting to new situations.

However, it is the success that is rarely measurable in positions on the social ladder or money that Montessori graduates enjoy in life. Recently carried out research reveals that Montessori alumni enjoy a higher life satisfaction and well-being than people who graduate mainstream schools.

The schedule – The three-hour work cycle

In Lisbon Montessori School casa and elementary classrooms there are two three-hour, uninterrupted, work cycles each day, not broken up by required group lessons. Some casa children nap in the afternoon cycle. Older children schedule meetings or study groups with each other and the teacher when necessary. Adults and children respect concentration and do not interrupt someone who is busy at a task. Groups form spontaneously or are arranged ahead by special appointment. In casa they almost never take precedence over self-selected work. In elementary students work on projects in small self-chosen groups or individually. Presentations are given by the teacher in small groups. There is 45 – 60 minutes outdoor recess every day. Children will play outside, rain or shine.

Work centers

The environment is arranged according to subject area, and children are always free to move around the room instead of staying at desks. There is no limit to how long a child can work with a piece of material. At any one time in a day all subjects – math, language, science, history, geography, art, music, etc., will be presented, practiced or researched, at all levels.

Teaching Ratio – 1:1 and 1:30

Except for infant/toddler groups, the teaching ratio is one trained Montessori teacher and one non-teaching aide to 30 children. Rather than lecturing to large or small groups of children, the teacher is trained to teach one child at a time, or a small group, and to oversee thirty or more children working on a broad array of tasks. A Montessori guide is facile in basic lessons of math, language, the arts, and sciences, and in guiding a child’s research and exploration, capitalizing on his interest in and excitement about a subject. The teacher does not make assignments or dictate what to study or read, nor does she set a limit as to how far a child follows an interest.

Class size

Except for infant/toddler groups, the most successful classes are of 30-35 children to one teacher (who is well trained for the level she is teaching), with one non-teaching assistant. This is possible because the children stay in the same group for three to six years and much of the teaching comes from the children and the environment. Observing in a Montessori classroom helps understand why such large groups are conducive to a lot of learning taking place.

Assessment

There are no grades, or other forms of reward or punishment, subtle or overt. Assessment is by the teacher’s observation and record keeping. The test of whether or not the system is working lies in the accomplishment and behavior of the children, their happiness, maturity, kindness, and love of learning and appropriate level of work.

At Lisbon Montessori School starting at age 9 the elementary students take a standardized annual assesment test. However, they will not be required to study especially for the test with the exception of being introduced to how the test works.

Character education

Education of character is considered before academic education. Children learning to take care of themselves, their environment, each other – cooking, cleaning, gardening, moving gracefully, speaking politely, being considerate and helpful, doing social work in the community – all of these things are treated as equally important as academic knowledge to the developing personality. Dr. Montessori discovered that when the child’s adults take active interest and care about her character development and wellbeing her academic success is soon to follow.

Multi-age grouping

Children are grouped in mixed ages and abilities in three-years span (Casa 3-6) and six-years span (Elementary 6-12). There is constant interaction, problem solving, child-to-child teaching, and socialization. Children are challenged according to their ability and almost never bored.

The Montessori elementary guide presents lessons in small groups that are formed according to the students’ level and interests. Older students assume the role of models and provide guidance and support to younger peers at various times throughout the day. This type of set up helps children to develop various social and leadership qualities naturally.

Teaching method – “Teach by teaching, not by correcting”

There are no papers turned back with red marks and corrections. Instead the child’s effort and work is respected as it is. The teacher, through extensive observation and record-keeping, plans individual presentations and projects to enable each child to learn what he needs in order to improve.

Areas of study

All subjects are interwoven, not taught in isolation, the teacher modeling a “Renaissance” person of broad interests for the children. A child can work on any material he understands at any time.

Learning styles

All kinds of intelligences and styles of learning are nurtured: musical, bodily-kinesthetic, spatial, interpersonal, intuitive, and the traditional linguistic and logical-mathematical (reading, writing, and math). This particular model of integrated learning developed by Dr. Montessori in her schools is backed up by modern-day Harvard psychologist Howard Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences.

An elementary child may choose to work with tone bars to compose music for a large part of the day, then record it in her diary. She may choose to follow it up with some mathematics or language work, or she may research history of a particular musical instrument. As this type of process suggests the knowledge is rather actively produced than passively accepted from the teaching source.

Requirements for age 3-6

There are no academic requirements for this age, but children are exposed to amazing amounts of knowledge and often learn to read, write and calculate beyond what is usually thought interesting to a child of this age.

Requirements for ages 6-12

The teacher remains alert to the interests of each child and facilitates individual research in following interests. There are no curriculum requirements except those set by state, or college entrance requirements, for specific grade levels. These take a minimum amount of time. From age six on, students design contracts with the teacher to guide their required work, to balance their general work, and to teach them to become responsible for their own time management and education. The work of the 6-12 class includes subjects usually not introduced until high school or college.