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The Absorbent Mind, Chapter 10: Some Thoughts on Language

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“All children pass through a period in which they can only pronounce syllables; then they pronounce whole words, and finally, they use to perfection all the rules of syntax and grammar.” — Maria Montessori, The Absorbent Mind , p. 111. Last summer, my teenage son and I were visiting my sister and her family. One morning, my son found himself tending my 5-month-old nephew while the adults were getting ready. The baby, not used to his cousin, began to cry. I hurried downstairs only to hear my son say in exasperation, “I don’t know what you want. If only you could use your words!” We have all been there. Trying to decipher baby and toddler speech can be frustrating. Mono-syllables are easily misunderstood and lost in translation, leaving both child and adult bewildered and confused. Language, says Montessori, “is an instrument of collective thought. ” (Montessori, p. 108) Simply thinking a thing is not enough; there must be communication and mutual comprehension. Studying the Works of Mon...
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The Absorbent Mind, Chapter 27: The Teacher's Preparation

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 Permit me to repeat … some words which have helped us to keep in mind all the thing of which I have been speaking. It is not a prayer, but rather a reminder, and for our teachers, an invocation, a kind of syllabus, our only syllabus: Help us, O God, to enter into the secret of childhood, so that we may know, love, and serve the child in accordance with the laws of Thy justice and following Thy holy will. —Maria Montessori The Absorbent Mind, p. 286. What is the role of the Montessori teacher? We use the term guide, but what does that really mean? To Maria Montessori, being a guide involved a spiritual quest, one on which the adult observes and prepares for the child who is not yet ready. We watch and wait for that one material that so captures the attention that the child’s entire focus and concentration is devoted only to it. The teacher must spend her time preparing for this moment. The Absorbent Mind, Chapter 27: The Teacher's Preparation — Studying Montessori The Three Stages ...
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Educating the Whole Child in the Montessori Environment

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Since it has been seen to be necessary to give so much to the child, let us give him a vision of the whole universe. The universe is an imposing reality, and an answer to all questions. —Maria Montessori To Educate the Human Potential, p. 5. Montessori education is not segregated by topic, curricular area, or grade level. Because we teach the whole child, the method we employ must be that of a generalist rather than a specialist. We must become proficient in all subjects not just isolated disciplines. The mind of the child is not compartmentalized, so we should not teach as if it is. Montessori Is About Teaching the Whole Child My initial training was as a French and English teacher. When I accepted my first position in an upper elementary Montessori classroom, I was told that I would be responsible for teaching math and science as well as language and social studies. I will admit, I was nervous. I had not studied math since high school, and I certainly was not a “math” teacher. Howev...
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