What is a Montessori Education?
The Montessori Method is one that creates extraordinarily adaptable children. They are able to work independently and in groups. They are problem-solvers who can make choices and manage their time well. They are confident and rich with self-esteem. They love learning and they love themselves.
Peace creates a “prepared environment.” Careful selection of materials results in an environment that meets each child at their level to promote exploration and discovery. Our teachers offer encouragement and gently guide a child into activities, which lead to self-discovery. They let the child feel the excitement of understanding a problem and conquering it. They allow the children to build their own self-image, confidence and independence.
A Montessori teacher’s chief role is to observe. Continual observation is the key to being able to understand each individual child and as a result, prepare the environment based on the needs observed. The teacher gets to know each child very well and clearly understand his or her needs and development.
As found in all Montessori schools, children are placed into multi-age classrooms with most age ranges spanning 2-3 years. Mimicking a sibling relationship, we believe a family-like grouping allows learning to take place naturally. More experienced children share what they have learned with the younger children, thus reinforcing their own learning. During that three-year span, a trusting community is built – with children typically having the same teacher, the same classroom and many of the same friends.
Our overall Montessori curriculum emphasizes the teaching of respect. We believe in preparing the child to be a part of the larger community – of one’s classroom, school, neighborhood, city, state, country and planet. Beginning in their toddler years, our students learn to respect and value others and our environment. In turn, they learn self-respect and a strong sense of self-worth.
The Toddler curriculum lays the groundwork for the older classrooms. A major emphasis is placed on developing a toddler’s sense of independence as well as the refinement of their gross and fine motor skills and language abilities. Learning practical life skills, such as cleaning, pouring and setting the table are also prominent.
The older classrooms (Primary 3-6, Elementary and Adolescent) spend time working on the five different areas in the Montessori curriculum: practical life, sensorial, language, math and cultural (including science). Classrooms are structurally set up according to these areas. Large open spaces allow students the freedom to explore the room, selecting activities from a variety of learning tools designed for children at differing stages of development. Children learn at their own pace, moving through a sequenced curriculum, alone or with other children.
What is a Forest School?
At Peace Montessori, we’ve long been dedicated to nurturing independent, curious, capable learners through the Montessori method. As Fort Wayne’s first and oldest Montessori School, we were excited to expand in 2022 to become Indiana’s first Montessori Forest School.
Peace Montessori Forest school is a rich and fascinating place for the children to have the opportunity to visit, enjoy and learn. Set on 11 acres of woods, open meadow and a flowing creek our forest school offers children the opportunity to take their learning outdoors where nature itself becomes the guide. This program builds on the foundation of Montessori by extending the prepared environment into the natural world, encouraging hands on discovery, self-reliance, collaborations and a deep respect for the earth.
As the children grow into kindergarten and elementary, their lessons become more focused. Subjects such as Botany, Zoology and Ecology are explored both in the classroom and through hands-on experiences outdoors.
We stand back, in awe, as children learn to identify plants, bird calls and animal tracks, while also gaining the coordination and self-assuredness that comes with climbing, hiking and exploring outdoors.
We believe that childhood should be full of wonder, freedom and meaningful work - and that the natural world provides the ideal space for all three. With daily emersion in nature, students at PMFS develop confidence, resilience, independence and a deep love of learning that lasts a lifetime.
History of the Montessori
Movement
Born in 1870, Dr. Maria Montessori was Italy’s first woman physician, a pioneer in child development and founder of “The Montessori Method of Education.”
Dr. Montessori based this new education on her scientific observations of young children’s behavior. In 1907, she was invited to open a childcare center for the children of Rome, Italy. Having observed that young children learn best in a homelike setting, she called it ”The Children’s House” and filled it with developmentally appropriate materials that provide experiences contributing to the growth of self-motivated, independent learners.
Montessori’s dynamic theories included revolutionary premises as:
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Children are to be respected as different from adults and as individuals who are different from one another.
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Children create themselves through purposeful activity.
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The most important years for learning are from birth to age six.
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Children possess unusual sensitivity and mental powers for absorbing and learning from their environment, which includes people as well as materials.
Dr. Montessori’s Method of Education cultivates the child’s own natural desire to learn. She believed that young children have a universal lifetime ability to absorb knowledge from their surroundings just by living. The child’s mind is at its most receptive during these early years. In order to be calm and happy, children need to explore and discover. The Montessori environment, both inside
and outside, allows the child to move, touch, manipulate, and explore. In his environment, he learns to work independently, based on his own initiative, building concentration and inner discipline.
For a century, Dr. Maria Montessori’s beliefs have remained true. In 2007, we celebrated the 100th anniversary of the Montessori movement. Millions of children, educated in Montessori schools around the world, owe their love of learning to Dr. Montessori.