Bringing Montessori To America

Bringing Montessori to America tells the little known story of the collaboration and clash between the indomitable educator Maria Montessori and the American publisher S. S. McClure over the launch of Montessori education in the United States.

A fresh, comprehensive biography of the pioneering educator and activist who changed the way we look at children’s minds, from the author of Oriana Fallaci. Born in 1870 in Chiaravalle, Italy, Maria Montessori would grow up to embody almost every trait men of her era detested in the fairer sex. She was self-confident, strong-willed, and had a fiery temper at a time when women were supposed to be soft and pliable. She studied until she became a doctor at a time when female graduates in Italy provoked outright scandal. She never wanted to marry or have children—the accepted destiny for all women of her milieu in late nineteenth-century bourgeois Rome—and when she became pregnant by a colleague of hers, she gave up her son to continue pursuing her career. At around age thirty, Montessori was struck by the condition of children in the slums of Rome’s San Lorenzo neighborhood, and realized what she wanted to do with her life: change the school, and therefore the world, through a new approach to the child’s mind. In spite of the resistance she faced from all sides—scientists accused her of being too mystical, and the clergy of being too scientific, traditionalists of giving children too much freedom, and anarchists of giving them too much structure—she would garner acclaim and establish the influential Montessori method, which is now practiced throughout the world. A thorough, nuanced portrait of this often controversial woman, The Child Is the Teacher is the first biographical work on Maria Montessori written by an author who is not a member of the Montessori movement, but who has been granted access to original letters, diaries, notes, and texts written by Montessori herself, including an array of previously unpublished material.

This book traces the evolution of women's leadership and its influence on the Montessori Method's development. New research illuminates the unique roles of two historic early childhood educators and also updates the historical record and reveals the human dimension behind one of the most colorful chapters in American educational development.

This book traces the early history of the Montessori movement in the United States through the lives and careers of four key American women: Anne George, Margaret Naumburg, Helen Parkhurst, and Adelia Pyle. Caught up in the Montessori craze sweeping the United States in the Progressive era, each played a significant role in the initial transference of Montessori education to America and its implementation from 1910 to 1920. Despite the continuing international recognition of Maria Montessori and the presence of Montessori schools world-wide, Montessori receives only cursory mention in the history of education, especially by recognized historians in the field and in courses in professional education and teacher preparation. The authors, in seeking to fill this historical void, integrate institutional history with analysis of the interplay and tensions between these four women to tell this educational story in an interesting—and often dramatic—way.

Paula Lillard, director of a Montessori school ranging in age from 18 months to fifteen years, provides a clear and cogent introduction to the Montessori program for the elementary and later years. In detailed accounts, Lillard shows how children acquire the skills to answer their own questions, learn to manage freedom with responsibility, and maintain a high level of intellectual stimulation by using the Montessori method. This is an essential handbook for parents and teachers who have chosen the Montessori alternative for the older child.

A guide to raising a baby from birth to age one by applying the wisdom of Montessori, from the bestselling author of The Montessori Toddler and a coauthor with expertise in infant care and education. The Montessori Baby guides new parents in how to interact with babies in ways that assist their development and foster a respectful relationship between parent and child.

What really happens inside a Montessori classroom? How do teachers teach? How do children learn? This fascinating day-by-day record of a year in the life of a Montessori classroom answers these questions by providing an illuminating glimpse of the Montessori method in action.

The Montessori Method is an all-encompassing introduction to Dr. Montessori’s popular alternative approach to educating and nurturing children as they develop, written by the Italian physician. The Montessori teaching method focuses on a child’s natural abilities and interests, and encourages hands-on learning. Removing the formality of traditional elements of education, such as examinations, Dr. Montessori’s approach to teaching gives children the opportunity to learn from their mistakes and develop at their own pace. First published in 1912 and featuring original illustrations, this introduction to the method is clear and simple, making it an ideal read for teachers and parents alike. This volume features the following chapters: - How the Lesson Should be Given - Exercises of Practical Life - Nature in Education - Education of the Senses - Intellectual Education - Method for the Teaching of Reading and Writing - Teaching of Numeration: Introduction to Arithmetic