As parents, we all want the best education for our children. But what does that mean? What does that look like? For me, it means having access to the teachings and philosophy of Dr. Maria Montessori.
We have three children, ages 10, 7, and 4. They are all unique; all with their own personalities, special gifts, and needs. As a child, I attended public school the whole way through, while my husband is the product of both public and private education. We both went on to higher education and will encourage our children to do the same. I am a traditionally trained teacher and taught for many years in a general classroom. I was successful, by everyday standards and felt good about the work I was doing. As young parents, we deliberately took to methods which promoted independence in our children. And then, everything changed in 2013. Big questions came bubbling up when our middle child turned 2.
On a whim, we placed our daughter in a well-known, established AMI Montessori classroom. I was skeptical, but figured it is “just preschool,” and we can always move her after a year if we don’t like it. Little did we know that this one leap of faith would end up profoundly affecting the entire family, and in a very short amount of time.
As an educator and a parent, I wanted to understand this new method. Come to find out—at all of those free parent education nights I couldn’t get enough of—I learned the Montessori Method is over 100 years old. Wow! How could one teaching philosophy withstand the test of time like that? As a teacher, I had grown accustomed to being trained, almost yearly, on a new math or reading program. I had to learn more.
Over the course of our daughter’s first year in Montessori, we were expecting our third child, moving our oldest (then age 6) over to the Montessori school to join his sister, and I was offered a job. Constantly comparing what our son was receiving in his traditional first grade classroom to what our now 3-year-old daughter was learning about at the Primary level (the continents, exchanging big numbers using the bank game, learning cursive with sandpaper letters, how to arrange flowers, just to name a few), I soon realized our children’s experiences were at opposite ends of the spectrum. Not shy with my awe and admiration with what I was observing through my children and all over the Montessori school, I was subsequently asked to be the assistant teacher in an ever-growing Upper Elementary classroom for the following school year.
In many ways, I was starting over, learning a new trade and craft. Many would ask, “You are going back to being an assistant when you have taught for so many years?” Or, “How different can Montessori truly be from Traditional?” Yes, I was going back. I was going back to learn. To start over, in many ways. And yes, Montessori is different than Traditional. Truly different.
I have the opportunity, at this stage in my career to follow what ‘speaks’ to me. I have found a teaching philosophy (a life philosophy) that honors and respects the developing brain of the child. It is a philosophy that understands how to cultivate lifelong learners, independent thinkers, and socially aware citizens of the world.
Shifting my mindset from being at the center, up front, and in control to humbly bringing it back to the child is my new mission. Now working on my Montessori Certification at the Elementary level and relentlessly searching for a place where our three children can be immersed in the Montessori community (and for as long as possible) is my mission. Helping others see the beauty and genuine remarkability of the Montessori Method is my mission. It is as if my entire universe stems out from here and will continue to guide us.
Children are OUR teachers, not the other way around. Children will tell us what they need and where their interests lay. They have questions about the world around them and how they might find a solution to a community, national, or global problem. It is our job as educators (as adults) to observe our children, to step out of their way, and to listen.
Today, I consider myself a budding Montessorian with still much to learn. And while I don’t know where this journey will lead, I know I am on the right path.
Tomorrow’s Child / Nov 2018 / Pg 29
