Twin Oaks Montessori Casa Dei Bambini

Montessori is a philosophy of education developed by Dr. Maria Montessori at the turn of the century. Montessori education is designed to cultivate and support a child’s natural desire to learn. Dr. Montessori believed that one is not “educated” by another person but educates oneself if one is to become truly educated.

In a Montessori classroom children experience the excitement of learning through their own choice. The are guided in developing their natural capacities for learning so that their unlimited potential may be supported in all endeavors. Montessori materials are thus designed not only to give specific information to children but also to foster thinking skills independence competence and self-confidence.

Dr. Montessori called the mind of a young child “the absorbent mind” because of the unique aptitude of learning she observed in children. She demonstrated children’s ability to read write and calculate in the same natural way they learn to walk and talk. Dr. Montessori also saw that there are periods in children’s development when they are drawn to and select materials that match their interest.

Children in Montessori classroom are taught through their hands. To learn there must be concentration. Children concentrate best by fixing their attention on a task they are performing with their hands Towards this end Montessori materials invite children to use their hands to learn. It is through exploration with the hands that the mind perceives and organizes information.