Will Your Child be the Next Famous Montessorian?

Some of the world’s brightest minds had Montessori educations. Thomas Edison, the great inventor; Mr. Rogers, children’s TV host; Jimmy Wales, the founder of Wikipedia; Julia Child, famous chef; Jeff Besoz, founder of Amazon; Sergey Brin & Larry Page, co-founders of Google; Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, former first lady; and Joshua Bell, world-renowned violinist.

And though some of those people went on to master the use of the Internet, they did not have technology when they were in their Montessori primary class. That was a time for them to build their foundational blocks of who they were to become, and that consumed their young days to fully develop their unique talents and possibilities. These famous Montessorians learned optimally at their own pace, and in the way that suited their own learning style.

It is natural for children to wiggle, touch things and explore their environment. This spontaneous activity is encouraged in the form of freely moving around the classroom, within reasonable limits of appropriate behavior, to discover interesting and challenging work that captures their attention and invites the child to master a new skill.

Great attention on the part of the child is needed to develop the fine art of communication with all of the other children in the multi-aged classroom. Socialization skills are naturally developed as a child learns to work with older children, as he is peer-taught, and then also with younger children as he helps lead them. All learn how to prosper in this respectfully-cooperative and dynamic classroom family.

Montessori children are not simply given assignments to complete, but they work because they are interested in a particular task or skill. They are intrinsically motivated to discover, to experience, to absorb — and all of this builds competent and independent human beings. In this way, children construct their own sense of individual identity, developing a strong sense of self-confidence. No Internet activity can produce this same outcome.

Dr. Maria Montessori was convinced that she had discovered the “secret of childhood,” in that if we allow children’s needs to be met more fully, they will develop a higher state of self-confidence, receptivity to learning experiences and ultimately, an inner peace, all of which will optimally develop into strong leadership skills and independence.

Montessori children are pure examples of the wonder of the human spirit and the vast possibilities of intelligence, creativity and inventiveness.

Cynthia Thomas founded her first Montessori school in Brevard County in 1983. She now operates five schools throughout Florida. She discovered Montessori’s unique approach when her children attended a school in Hawaii. She received her masters in education specializing in Montessori from Charminade University in Hawaii.

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