MARIA MONTESSORI

CURRICULUM
PREPARED BY:
RACHEL MARIE R. ATALE
 WHO FOUNDED THE MONTESSORI
APPROACH?

• 1907: The Founding

Years. At the
beginning of the 20th
century, Dr. Maria
Montessori, Italy's first
female doctor,
opened the Casa dei
Bambini (Children's
House) to provide
education to low-
income children in
Rome.
Dr. Maria Montessori
 WHO INFLUENCED MARIA
MONTESSORI?

• Montessori was profoundly influenced by

Fredrich Froebel, the inventor of
kindergarten, and by Johann Heinrich
Pestalozzi, who believed children learned
through activity.

• She also drew inspiration from Itard, Seguin

and Rousseau.
 WHAT IS THE MONTESSORI
CURRICULUM?

• It is a scientific observations about how

children learn as they progress from birth to
adulthood.
• Essential to the Montessori Method, is the
Montessori Curriculum, which is a child-
centred learning framework that
incorporates holistic learning outcomes
tailored to each individual child’s
developmental needs and interests.
 THE MONTESSORI CURRICULUM
COVERS FIVE KEY LEARNING AREAS:
• Practical Life, Sensorial, Mathematics, Language
and Culture.

• In addition to these key learning areas, Montessori

Academy also cover the Australian Government’s
Early Years Learning Framework, Health and
Wellbeing, Science, Geography, School Readiness,
and the Arts. In this way, Montessori Academy
delivers a holistic education program that is tailored
to the unique developmental needs and interests of
each individual child.
 creativity and arts

early years learning

framework

health and well being

 1. PRACTICAL LIFE

• activities help children learn how to care for

themselves and their environment. These
activities help the child to become more
independent, leading to greater self-
confidence, and the ability to face new
challenges.
• The purpose of these activities is to enhance
co-ordination, concentration, independence,
and indirectly prepare children for writing and
reading.
• Activities often include cleaning, food
preparation, polishing and watering plants.
 2. SENSORIAL

• Sensorial materials were designed by Doctor

Maria Montessori to help children express
and classify their sensory experiences.
• The purpose of sensorial activities is to aid in
the development of the intellectual senses
of the child, which develops the ability to
observe and compare with precision.
• Activities often include matching and
grading materials that isolate the sense of
sight, sound, touch, taste and smell.
 3. MATHEMATICS

• Mathematical concepts are introduced to the

child using concrete sensorial materials.
• Initial explorations with sensorial materials
encourage children to understand basic maths
concepts such as learning number recognition,
counting and sequencing of numbers.
• Sensorial work prepares the child for a more
formal introduction to mathematics, and the
introduction of abstract mathematical
concepts such as the decimal system and
mathematical operations.
 4. LANGUAGE

• Language materials are designed to enhance

vocabulary and explore both written and
spoken language.
• Through language-based activities, such as the
sandpaper letters and the moveable alphabet,
children learn phonetic sounds and how to
compose words phonetically.
• They progress using concrete materials to
compose their own written work, read the work
of others, and learn to communicate their
unique thoughts and feelings.
 5. CULTURE
• Cultural activities lead the child to experience
music, stories, artwork and items from the child’s
community, society and cultural background. The
areas of geography, science, zoology and botany
are all included in this area.
• A range of globes, puzzle maps and folders
containing pictures from different countries all help
to give the child an insight into different cultures.
• The culture area encourages children to develop
their capacity for creation, and develop fine motor
skills. Whilst learning to freely express themselves.
Through cultural activities, children develop an
awareness and appreciation of the world around
them.
 MONTESSORI CLASSROOMS

• Montessori classrooms are beautifully crafted

environments that are designed to meet the needs
of children in a specific age range.
• The role of the Montessori teacher within this
environment is to observe and guide each student
on their unique development journey.
• The focus is on children learning and leading, not
on teachers teaching. In addition, the Montessori
teacher presents the Montessori activities to the
children. As a result, children learn by watching the
presentations, and then completing the activities on
their own.
 MONTESSORI MATERIALS

• The Montessori materials match children’s

interests with the five Montessori curriculum
areas.
• Through interest-based experiences, children
learn to develop key knowledge areas and skills
that assist with their social, cognitive, physical
and emotional development.
• In effect, the Montessori materials teach
children how to problem solve, work together,
correct their own work.
 PRINCIPLES OF MONTESSORI
EDUCATION

• Montessori discovered that children avidly

absorb information from their surroundings, and
that if these surroundings provide opportunities
for learning, that children would readily teach
themselves.
• Over more than 50 years, Montessori perfected
the teaching principles, key learnings, and
educational materials that provided children
with the optimal learning environment.
 1. RESPECT FOR THE CHILD

• The unique developmental needs and

interests of each child are respected.
Children are not compared based on merit,
they are valued for their individuality.
Montessori education embraces multiple
styles and pathways to learning, and
understands that each child’s early learning
journey is different.
 2. SENSITIVE PERIODS

• Children pass through specific stages in their

development when they are most able to
learn specific skills.
• The Montessori learning environment
supports these periods by proving children
with hands-on learning experiences that
encourage repetition and problem solving
to maximise learning during these windows
of opportunity.
 3. THE ABSORBENT MIND

• The first six years of life are crucial in a child’s

development as they establish an
understanding of themselves and their
world.
• The Montessori environment supports
children in this task by providing them with
learning experiences that promote their
sense of belonging, confidence,
independence and agency.
 4. TEACHING ROLES

• Children are the centre of the Montessori

classroom.

• The role of the teacher is to observe and

guide, being mindful of children’s changing
interests, developmental needs, and
emotions.

• Teachers plan daily lessons for each child.

 5. MONTESSORI MATERIALS

• Montessori materials are sensory-based

learning tools that are designed to isolate
one skill or concept. The materials
encourage hands-on learning, independent
problem solving, and analytical thinking.
 6. PREPARED ENVIRONMENT

• The Montessori classroom is a prepared

environment designed to optimise learning.

• Characteristics include: low open shelves,

left to right display of Montessori materials in
progression order, defined curriculum areas,
child-sized furniture, freedom of movement,
and freedom of choice.
 7. THREE HOUR WORK CYCLE

• Students participate in a three-hour work

cycle every day.

• This period of individual learning provides

children with the opportunity to choose their
work and progress at their own pace.
 8. FIVE CURRICULUM AREAS

• The Montessori Curriculum is divided into five

key areas of learning:
• Practical Life,
• Sensorial
• Mathematics
• Language and
• Culture
• Each curriculum area has a dedicated
space in the prepared environment.
 9. NORMALISATION

• Normalisation describes the process where

young children come to focus and
concentrate on a task for a sustained period
of time.

• This period of development is characterized

by: love of work, concentration, self-
discipline, sociability.
 THE MONTESSORI DIFFERENCE

• “What makes Montessori different from other

preschools?”

• Prepared learning environments

• Montessori learning materials
• Child-focused teaching
• Active learning experiences
• Adaptable Curriculum
PREPARED LEARNING ENVIRONMENT

• The first Montessori difference can observed in

the structure of the Montessori classroom, which
is a prepared learning environment.

• Each material is displayed in progression order,

from easiest to hardest, and from left to right.
This logical structure encourages children to
organise their thinking, progress logically
through the Montessori program, and absorb
the outcome of the material at their own pace.
• The left to right orientation of the Montessori
materials also assists children with preparation
for reading and writing, and the way that the
brain naturally processes information.
 MONTESSORI MATERIALS
• The second Montessori difference can be observed
when you look around the shelves of the classroom.
Each Montessori classroom contains a full suite of
authentic Montessori learning materials sourced
from Neinhaus and Bruins, the leading providers of
Montessori materials internationally.

• Montessori materials are sensory-based learning

tools that are designed to isolate one skill or
concept. The materials encourage hands-on
learning, independent problem solving, and
analytical thinking.
• Most unique about these hands-on learning tools is
that each material is designed with a control of
error. This allows children to work with the materials
and discover the learning outcome through
repetition and practice.
• Working with the Montessori materials teach
children how to develop the skills of ‘Executive
Function’ such as critical thinking, collaboration,
communication, creativity, independence, and
intrinsic motivation. By contrast, play-based child
care services generally offer a range of activities
that are predominantly play based toys, as
opposed to educational learning materials.
 CHILD-FOCUSED TEACHING

Teachers’ Roles
• In a Montessori preschool, the role of the Teacher is
to provide students with learning experiences that
are designed to animate their own “inner teacher.”
They will never say, “no you’re doing it wrong,” or
compare one child’s progress to another. Instead
they observe, guide, and respect each child’s own
unique development journey.
• This structure encourages students to develop the
skills of independence, self-regulation, impulse
control, and critical thinking; ultimately leading to a
harmonious classroom environment, and the
optimal learning space for children.
• Montessori Teachers also create daily lesson
plans for each individual child, and teach at a
child level, as opposed to a class level. This
structure allows each child to progress
according to their developmental needs and
interests.
• In comparison, most traditional preschools
deliver the same weekly plan, at the same
pace, in the same order for all students.
ADAPTIVE LEARNING EXPERIENCES
• Active vs. Passive
Montessori lessons are interactive learning
experiences that engage children’s senses. In contrast,
traditional preschools generally encourage learning
through passive learning experiences, such as listening
and play-based activities.
• Montessori work cycle
The Montessori work cycle is a structured period of
learning at the beginning of the school day that allows
children to direct and manage their learning.
By comparison, traditional preschools do not usually offer
such an extensive block of time for children to direct their
own learning, and develop their concentration on
activities.
• Mixed Age Groups
The sixth Montessori difference is mixed-
age class groups.
This structure allows children to work at
their own level, while socialising with children
of diverse ages and developmental abilities.
In most traditional preschools, classes are
defined by chronological age within a 12
month period, rather than a child’s stage of
development.
 ADAPTABLE CURRICULUM

• The activities in each Curriculum area are

designed to teach specific learning objectives,
whilst also offering a range of learning extensions,
to further re-inforce key concepts. In this way, the
Montessori Curriculum is adaptable and
expandable to meet each child’s unique
developmental needs and interests.
• In traditional preschools, the Curriculum generally
contains set learning objectives, that do not offer
learning extensions to suit individual student
needs.
 WHY CHOOSE MONTESSORI?

1. Child Centred, Teacher Guided -every child learns

in a different way

2. Holistic Learning Experience -covers five key areas

that focus on full development of the child.

3. Social Development and Collaboration -

encourages children to role model, collaborate with
others, and fosters imitative learning.
4. Confident Lifelong Learners -become confident
and independent learners.

5. Highly Skilled and Passionate Staff -undergo

extensive training in Montessori and early childhood
education and care.

6. Well Resourced Learning Environments -facilities,

and classrooms is to create a learning environment
that is supportive of children’s interests and
development needs as they grow.
7. Best Practices -“Education should no longer be
mostly imparting of knowledge, but must take a new
path, seeking the release of human potentialities.”
-Dr.M.M

8. Education Fosters Independence -These tasks

include washing dishes, caring for plants, and folding
child-sized wash cloths. As a result, this is not only
empowering for the child, but it also gives them a
sense of confidence and personal achievement.
9. Parent Satisfaction
10. Learning is fun -learn about all areas of the
curriculum by actively participating in activities that
engage multiple senses.
The Montessori motto:

“Help me to do it myself.”

-thank you 