Maria Montessori believed that children are naturally capable of self-directed learning. To allow this self-direction to manifest, Montessori believed in giving children freedom to explore and express themselves. After a lesson is taught and the minimum curriculum standard is met, the parent or teacher lets the student make a choice about how to spend time learning and exploring the material. For example, if the student was recently taught basic addition and subtraction, she may use blocks to physically articulate these new math concepts in a tangible way, or choose to complete her assigned addition and subtraction word problems. While the teacher allows for this freedom, he also controls the limits of the assignment and environment. The teacher lays out more than one choice, such as blocks and a sheet of word problems, and then lets the student choose in the moment which to complete first.
Montessori observed distinct planes of development in children, all of which should be addressed in a child's Montessori education. Between the ages of one and six, Montessori observed children developing their individual personalities while exploring the limits of their physical senses. Between the ages of six and 12, Montessori observed children reasoning abstractly, developing a sensitivity for social interaction. Traditional Montessori education will, therefore, allow children to explore taste, touch, sight and sound. Baking and cooking activities can be used to ignite the student's sense of taste. Building, art or other hands-on crafts can appeal to the child's touch. The watching and interpretation of movies or other art pieces involve the student's sense of sight. Listening to and attempting to compose music on simple instruments, such as the recorder, can help the child develop her sense of sound. Finally, your young homeschool student will benefit from socializing with others his age. A structured social time can occur at daycare, or you can simply take your student to the park to play with others his age at scheduled times after instruction.
The Montessori method believes that the student's environment should be prepared in a particular fashion for maximum student success. This environment is called the "apparatus" and seeks to arrange instruction materials in a way that is organized, visible and meaningful. For example, you may have games, toys, art supplies and worksheets for your child's lessons. Montessori believed in organizing these tools on shelves according to difficulty and subject. The materials are organized in a way that attracts the child and promotes self-directed learning. After the teacher chooses how to display the items, the child has freedom to access them at any time to expand her learning on a subject.
A significant amount of school time should be reserved for the student's "free time." During free time, the student chooses what to do independently of the teacher, guided by his attraction to the materials on the "apparatus." This concept goes against a strictly structured, timed curriculum that must begin and end by a certain hour. As the child chooses what toys, instruments, games or supplies to pick up, the teacher observes to prepare for indirect instruction. When the teacher observes the child at a road block, she gently steps in to guide the confusion, disappointment, frustration or misbehavior. This guidance is always done in a positive manner.
Montessori believed that five categories must be present to make a complete curriculum. The first category is the "practical life" category. Practical life means the child's natural instinct to develop her physical coordination and is achieved through physical activities such as hands-on crafts and athletics. The second category is "sensorial," or the child's desire to learn through his senses. The third category is mathematics, or the exploration of basic numbers, addition and subtraction, usually done with physical objects rather than on paper. The fourth category is language and explores individual letters, small words, sounds and phonetics. The fifth category is "cultural subjects," and asks the teacher to include cultural items that expose the child to the wider world, such as map puzzles, music, art or books from other parts of the world.