2. MONTESSORI METHOD OF EDUCATION
• Developed by Dr. Maria Montessori
• A child-centered educational approach based on
scientific observations of children from birth to adulthood.
• It is a view of the child as one who is naturally eager
for knowledge and capable of initiating learning
in a supportive, thoughtfully prepared learning
environment.
• It is an approach that values the human spirit and the
development of the whole child—physical, social,
emotional, cognitive.
3. • The Montessori educational system is unique in that it
has successfully undergone continued development
for over one hundred years and has been used
effectively with mentally retarded, physically
handicapped, normal, and gifted children in
different countries around the world
4. MONTESSORI TEACHER
• Mentor, model, and guide
• She won’t be presenting information for rote learning;
rather, she’ll be demonstrating specially
designed learning materials that serve as a
springboard for investigation and discovery
• Teacher thoughtfully prepares a classroom
environment with materials and activities that meet
the students’ unique interests, academic level, and
developmental needs
5. MONTESSORI CLASSROOM
• Design and flow of the Montessori classroom create a
learning environment that accommodates choice
• There are spaces suited to group activity, and areas where
a student can settle in alone.
• Children work at tables or on the floor, rolling out mats on
which to work and define their work space.
• There are well-defined spaces or learning areas: practical
life, sensorial, mathematics, and language: each of
these areas features shelves or display tables with a
variety of inviting materials from which students can
choose.
6. • Area devoted to peace and reflection: a quiet corner
or table with well-chosen items—a vase of daisies; a
goldfish bowl—to lead a child to meditative thought.
• Preschool rooms feature low sinks, chairs, and tables; a
reading corner with a small couch (or comfy floor cushions);
reachable shelves; and child-sized kitchen tools—elements
that allow independence and help develop small motor
skills.
7. MONTESSORI
LEARNING MATERIALS
• Montessori learning materials are ingeniously designed
to allow children to work independently with very
little introduction or help
• Materials themselves invite activity (bright arrays of solid
geometric forms, knobbed puzzle maps, colored beads,
and various specialized rods and blocks).
• Throughout the room, children will be sorting, stacking, and
manipulating all sorts of beautiful objects made of a range
of materials and textures.
• Many of the materials are made of smooth, polished wood
(others are made of enameled metal, wicker, fabric).
8. • Also available to the children to explore are items from
nature (ex, seashells, birds' nests, etc.)
• Built-in “control of error” in many of the Montessori
materials allows the child to determine if he has done the
exercise correctly (self-correcting materials) (a teacher
never has to correct his work; he can try again, ask another
child for help, or go to a teacher for suggestions if the work
doesn’t look quite right)
9. MONTESSORI IN SPECIAL EDUCATION
FOR CHILDREN ON THE AUTISTIC
SPECTRUM
• Autism affects girls' and boys' everyday living and
learning in many ways:
(Language and communication, echolalia, lack of
imagination, social skills, different perceptions,
listening and attention, hyper-sensitivity to sensory
stimuli, behavior, special abilities)
• In a Montessori environment, children have an
opportunity to learn through hands-on explorations,
research, and experimentation instead of abstract
verbal instruction.
10. • The traditional teaching and learning methods and the
predictable daily routines employed in prepared
Montessori learning environments provide stability
for children with special educational needs (SEN),
including disorders on the autistic spectrum.
• All children are involved in hands-on activities
with which they become fully engaged.
• Special needs children respond very well to the multi-
sensory, interactive Montessori teaching/learning
approach.
11. • The Montessori approach provides continuous
stimulation.
• However, Montessori teachers should be aware that
children with autism might be extra sensitive to
sounds, light, tough, tastes and smells.
• The Montessori language and grammar materials are
heaven-sent to teachers of children with autism
(Command Cards)
• The Montessori daily routines and social graces
activities give all children endless opportunities to
practice polite social interactions.
12. • The practical life activities help all boys and girls to
fine-hone the visual-motor skills necessary for
carrying, lifting, folding and rolling.
• The open shelves and clearly visible learning
resources in a prepared Montessori learning
environment are a boon for children with
thought processing and imagination
difficulties.
13. • Montessori’s approach and methods blend
remarkably well with applied behavioral analysis
(ABA), which is currently the only scientifically
established method for treating children on the
autistic spectrum
• Any child, typical or with special needs, is on an IEP in
a Montessori classroom by default.
• Self- Paced Education
14. OVERALL BENEFITS OF MONTESSORI TO CSN
• Individual Work Time
• Mixed Age Groups
• On-going Child Study
• Materials and Environment
• Curriculum (multisensory, structured,
cumulative, and sequential)
• Parent involvement
16. BRAILLE ALPHABET
• Writing system which enables blind and partially sighted
people to read and write.
• It consists of patterns of raised dots arranged in cells up to
six dots in a 3x2 configuration.
• Each cell represents a letter or number.
• Numbers 1-10 is the same as letters A-J.
• Some frequently used words and letter combinations have
their own cell patterns.
• It has been adapted to write in many different languages
20. “Students in the Autism Spectrum learns best
through visual or multi-sensory presentations”
Self-correcting material that introduces the basic shapes to
the student
