#3 Prepared Classroom Environment and Montessori Materials

Third teacher: Dr. Montessori believed that a prepared environment is a third teacher. She believed that during these early years of the first plane of development (0-6 years), your child’s personality is being formed because of their social relationships and environments. Meaning that the primary role of the teacher is to construct an environment that promotes motivation, experimentation, curiosity, and social relationships often blending in with the children. As a result, children learn to respect themselves, others, and their environment. Our Children’s House classrooms encourage freedom of movement, allow for choice, provide comfort and are child sized. They are rich in materials for exploration and discovery. 

 

21^st Century Education: educational technology, self-paced, duo lingo. KHAN Academy, adaptive technology, experiential, 

 

Curriculum aligned to state and national standards often exceeding standards in science and math. 

 

Cosmic education:  explore the universe through the power of their imagination the whole of human knowledge:  the history of ancient civilizations, the mechanics of language, biological and geological classifications, the intricacies of physical and political geography, the methods of mathematics from basic operations through cube roots and basic algebra 

 

The Great Lessons:  The teacher tells stories which lay out the a general organization for knowledge, then invites the children to investigate the details.

 

The Absorbent mind: Dr. Montessori believed that this is the time that a child’s own sense of self begins to emerge. She identified six sensitive periods during this time where children are innately focused and have a special aptitude for developing a particular skill or knowledge area. The sensitive periods are order, language, coordination of movement, sensory development, interest in small objects, and concepts related to math and music. Our prepared environments promote growth in each of these areas utilizing hands-on materials that are as motivating as they are beautiful.