You Don’t Need Much to Do Montessori

Not to long ago, I was thinking about how the Montessori philosophy of education has really morphed into a different beast over the last few years. I feel like what sometimes gets lost in implementation is that Maria Montessori began her work in a place far removed from today’s average preschool environment.

It wasn’t in a fancy private school, surrounded by expensive wooden toys.

Far from it.

After beginning a career in teaching special needs children, Maria went on to work with underprivileged children from low-income families. Without vast amounts of resources at her disposal, she made use of what she had around her.

And that’s something I connected with when I first learned about Montessori: the simplicity of Montessori’s work and the manner in which she encouraged children to use their imagination.

The purpose of these toys isn’t to distract a child with garish lights and loud noises but rather get them learning about the world around them and the things in it.  That’s why there is so much focus on giving them things to play with that are natural to their setting like spoons and bowls, a dustpan and broom, as well as letting them explore through manual work like manipulating clay and design.

I guess the point I am trying to make is that you don’t need much to do Montessori. The simplicity of this philosophy is what makes it so appealing.