Minnesota Montessori Accelerated Learning Center

Every child is born with a desire to learn.

According to Dr. Maria Montessori, the mind of a young child has a great capacity for absorbing a tremendous variety of experiences. “The most important period of life is the period from birth to the age of six,” said Dr. Montessori, “for that is the time when a person’s intelligence itself is being formed.” If the child’s experiences during these years are limited, the most impressionable years are lost forever.

The essential concept of the Montessori approach to education is that every child carries unseen within, the adult that she/he one day will become. In order to develop his/her full physical, intellectual, spiritual, and emotional potential the child must have the right physical, intellectual, and emotional environment during the years of early childhood.

Montessori is based on respect: respect for the child, respect for his family, and respect for all life. The youngest child is treated with great respect for his independence and dignity as a growing human being.

Montessori educators recognize that no two children are the same. They grow in their own ways, at their own individual pace. As children develop they may find that they learn a given skill in ways that their classmates may not. Montessori teachers respect the differences among the children and allow them to blossom.

METHOD

Montessori is a philosophy and method of education which emphasizes the potential of the young child and which develops this potential by utilizing specially trained teachers and specially designed teaching materials.

Montessori recognizes in each child a natural curiosity and desire to learn: the Montessori materials awaken this desire and channel this curiosity into a learning experience which each child can enjoy. Montessori materials help the child to better understand what they learn by associating an abstract concept with a concrete sensorial experience. In this manner, the Montessori child is actually learning, and not simply memorizing. The Montessori Method stresses that the child learns and progresses at their own pace so that fast learners are not held back, and slow learners are not frustrated by their inability to keep up.