Montessori Method Questions

How will my child do if she or he has not had Montessori schooling before?
Most children are quite adaptable. It can take everyone a few weeks to settle into the school year, even in a traditional classroom. For a few children new to Montessori, it can take up to several months to get used to their new environment. Therefore, it is important to take a long-term approach. Families can help with this adjustment, and with their child's success, by encouraging independence at home.

Can a child without a preschool background in Montessori benefit from the program?
In a Montessori program, children are treated individually, so they seek stimulation and interest at their own levels and not in accordance with the group. Dr. Montessori maintained that "education is an aid to life." There is no period in a child's life that cannot benefit from the Montessori approach to education.

Is Montessori for all children? What kind of student will do well in Montessori?
Montessori education has been used successfully for over 100 years with children of all socio-economic levels, of all academic abilities, and from all ethnic backgrounds. No single educational approach can work for all children, and there may be some children who do better with more teacher-directed instruction, fewer choices, and more consistent external structure. Children who are easily overstimulated, or those who tend to be overly aggressive, are examples of children who may not easily adapt to a Montessori classroom. In general, a child who can become excited about a toy, game, or topic (dinosaurs, space, animals) and spend time exploring it and concentrating on it if left uninterrupted, should do well in Montessori.

What happens when a student leaves Montessori education?
The habits and skills that a child develops in a Montessori class last a lifetime. Since Montessori education is successful in developing concentration, self-discipline, a love of learning, good self-concept, and social skills, the child is better equipped to enter new situations and to easily adjust to a different school environment and continue a lifelong pursuit of knowledge. Students who have moved on to middle school after years at Alliance have, in general, done very well.

Can the Montessori approach help a child with difficulties in reading, spelling, or math?
Dr. Montessori observed that every child has an intuitive goal of selfdevelopment, and it was only necessary to give him or her useful tools to accomplish learning. Her materials allow just that. Each child in the Montessori classroom moves at his or her own pace, and is not rushed through concepts. Montessori materials are self-correcting, and children may use each material as long as and as many times as they wish until they master a concept. And, because the children are not all working on the same thing at the same time, they are each focused on their own work, not on comparisons with neighboring students. Reading and spelling include a strong foundation in phonics, comprehension based on visualization, and whole language (learning to read for meaning and using context clues). Grammar materials, like other types of Montessori materials, are color-coded. Movable grammar materials excite the children's interest and help them to accomplish more difficult tasks at their own pace. Montessori's concrete approach to mathematics allows a clear, simplified understanding of our number system, and allows a child to visualize and feel concepts concretely before moving on to abstract work. A child is able to perform the work with minimum interference from the adult and therefore receives the ultimate satisfaction of self-accomplishment. 

How will a gifted child do in a Montessori classroom?
In Montessori, gifted children stay engaged in learning and do not become bored, because each child works at his or her own pace, and is never rushed or held back due to the abilities of classmates. A Montessori teacher will facilitate a gifted child to move ahead in an area he or she has mastered.