A Montessori Approach

---

“Montessori is an approach to supporting the full development of the human being. The Montessori approach offers a broad vision of education as an ‘aid to life’. As an educational system, it is used in over 22,000 schools worldwide, and has a longer track record of success than any other educational approach in the world. 

The Montessori approach to education, inspires children towards a lifelong love of learning, by following their natural developmental trajectory. Children become confident, responsible, independent learners, who trust in their own abilities. The inclusivity and positive social development facilitated by the Montessori programme forms the basis for a persistent attachment to learning and knowledge.” – Montessori Australia

---

I have always been a conscious parent – at least I’ve tried to be.  From the moment my daughter was born, I’ve been very aware that I was raising an adult, not a child and I was ready to put her first. I like to think I got all my ‘selfish’ out before having her (and I LOVED it!).

As her parent, I let her experience a lot of things for herself and tried not to hold her back. Her favourite thing at 12 months old was “gardening” in the mud and being licked to (a very giggly) death by Nana’s chihuahua. I learned early not to overreact when she fell over and “Up you hop and shake it off” stills works today, as long as you do the shaky dance!  I love to let her explore the world she lives in.

I learned her cues quickly too and I respected them. If she didn’t want to go to another adult for a cuddle, I didn’t make her. I didn’t stay out late and I scheduled my life around her routine. I stood as her protector, “The Naysayers of the Touchy Hands”! Seriously, what is it with complete strangers reaching out to touch babies? While my parenting foundations didn’t make me popular, it mattered little because parenthood isn’t a popularity contest and there’s not a single thing I would change about those first couple of years.

It was a back-handed comment that led us to the “alternative” school we love. I remember the day I rang the Brisbane Montessori School; the woman on the end of the phone was the first person I’d talked to that understood where I was coming from as a parent. There was someone else out there that was working from the same page of the same book!

I took my daughter for a visit at 18 months old and when she was 2, she announced she wanted friends and it was time for her to go to school. So off she went.

Much more than just a school, Montessori is a way of life. At the introduction seminar, I was told “You’re a parent! Congratulations! Now it’s time to step up your game.”  YES! I thought…and knew I was in the right environment for us!

My daughter has just finished her second term of Cycle 2 which is the equivalent of grade 1. While she can read, write, add, subtract, multiply and divide – she can also look an adult in the eye confidently and have a conversation, she has a greater understanding of herself at 6 than most 2o year olds I know and she understands how she is impacting the world around her.

It’s been a few years since I first wrote this and we’re currently in her last year at Montessori as we prepare to enter High School in 2021. I still stand by every word I’ve written here and I’m incredibly grateful for a Montessori foundation as we enter this next stage.

<2nd UPDATE> And now it’s been a couple of years since I updated and we’ve left Montessori and entered High School. I STILL stand by all I’ve written and am STILL grateful for every second.

A Montessori education certainly isn’t for everyone, but it works for us. MOST importantly, it works for my daughter and she loves learning. Investigating your options is the first step. There are so many options available to parents these days, you just need to start looking.

I’ve loved our journey and I’m so hopeful for the future.  I can’t help but tear up just a little when I look back at where she started.