Montessori Madness!: A Parent to Parent Argument for Montessori Education

181 Pages·2009·0.85 MB·English

by  Trevor Eissler

Sevenoff, LLC
Copyright © 2009 by Trevor Eissler
All rights reserved.

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Argument for Montessori Education should be addressed to:

Sevenoff, LLC
P.O.Box 1459
Georgetown, TX 78627
[email protected]

Printed in the United States of America.

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Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Eissler, Trevor
I. Montessori method of education II. Montessori—parent participation III.
Child development IV. Montessori, Maria, 1870-1952
LB 1029 M75 E83 2009 371.392 EI
ISBN 978-0-9822833-0-1
Library of Congress Control Number 2009901854

The author is grateful for the following permissions:
For excerpts from The Secret of Childhood by Maria Montessori, copyright ©
1966 by Fides Publishers, Inc. Used by permission of Ballantine Books, a
division of Random House, Inc. For an excerpt from Einstein’s Mistakes: The
Human Failings of Genius by Hans C. Ohanian. Copyright © 2008 by Hans C.
Ohanian. Used by permission of W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

This book was my project.
But over time, one by one, others went out of their way to offer assistance,
suggestions, insight, constructive criticism, and encouragement. Their efforts
dramatically improved the content and quality of the message. As the project
progressed, I slowly realized, and came to deeply appreciate, that what was once
a solitary endeavor had become a community effort. The final result is a much
more effective appeal to the reader because of that cooperation. It is yet one
more testament to the power of the principles Maria Montessori held dear. I must
thank Robin Eissler, Susan Eissler, Ara Eissler, Adrian Eissler, Vicki Rees,
Susan Cavitch, Lacy Murphy, Rebecca Lowe, Judith Kemper, Jody French,
Chrissy Davol, Barbara Gordon, and Mindy Reed. I am grateful to be a part of
such a wonderful community.
AUTHOR’S NOTE

This book deals extensively with teachers and students. The pronouns “she”
for teacher and “he” for student were chosen instead of the more proper “he or
she” for both. These were the pronouns selected by Maria Montessori in her
writing, so to follow her choice seemed in the best interest of clarity and
continuity.
To Oliver, Ellie, and Evan:
The sky is the limit. Or is it? Let’s go find out.
Contents

Foreword by Rebecca Lowe
INTRODUCTION Madness
ONE Watching Our Kids Grow
TWO Should We Homeschool?
THREE The Factory Model of Education
FOUR An Unexpected Option
FIVE A Home. A School.
SIX Why I Am Convinced by the Method
SEVEN The Sensitive Periods
EIGHT The Absorbent Mind
NINE The Prepared Environment
TEN Rewards
ELEVEN Competition
TWELVE Punishments
THIRTEEN Concentration
FOURTEEN Discipline
FIFTEEN Responsibility
SIXTEEN Freedom
SEVENTEEN A Comfort with Error
EIGHTEEN The Fear of Error
NINETEEN Controlling Error in Real-time
TWENTY The Guide
TWENTY-ONE The Community
TWENTY-TWO A Walk with Montessori
TWENTY-THREE Conclusion
Further Reading
Notes
Foreword

Rebecca Lowe
Executive Director, Community Montessori School

I
was a Montessori teacher for 22 years. One of my students was a four-year-
old girl who could not remember the sounds of the alphabet. We followed the
Montessori practice of writing before reading. Every day we made words and
stories with a movable alphabet. The little girl not only began to read that year,
she went far beyond, composing story after story with vivid illustrations. She
became proficient at reading and writing at age five, and—what’s more—she
discovered she loved words!
Another student couldn’t keep still. This boy ricocheted off the walls and
treated the beautiful wood materials roughly, as if they were disposable toys. I
presented lesson after lesson to him, observing to see which activities helped
him to focus. The puzzle map of the world finally caught his interest. When he
saw that he could construct his own paper map of the world by meticulously
pricking a pin along the edge of the small wooden continents, he became
committed to finishing a simple map and then to making similar maps for each
continent. By pin-pricking around every country for each continent, he created
seven intricate and beautiful maps—and emerged a calm, focused, and happy
child.
These children are not unique. There are many others just like them, happily
learning every day. In my Montessori classroom, I saw countless children, some
shy, some boisterous, some even unhappy. All experienced transformations as
remarkable as the girl and boy described above. They changed over weeks and
months to become amazing children—themselves—because they were given the
opportunities and respect needed to grow into eager and self-directed learners.
This process continues in Montessori classes worldwide.