Montessori编辑历史

# Montessori Method

## 1 History

### 1.1 Origins with Maria Montessori

Maria Montessori (1870–1952) was the first woman in Italy to earn a medical degree. Her early work with children with intellectual disabilities led her to develop educational materials and methods based on observation of children's natural learning behaviors. In 1907, she opened the first Casa dei Bambini (Children's House) in the San Lorenzo district of Rome. There, she applied her principles to a class of children from low-income families, noting that when given freedom to choose activities within a prepared environment, children displayed intense concentration, self-discipline, and spontaneous learning.

### 1.2 Expansion and global recognition

Montessori's methods gained international attention through her writings and lectures. By the 1910s, Montessori schools had opened in Western Europe, the United States, India, and beyond. The first Montessori training course was established in Rome in 1909. Following a period of decline in the mid-20th century, the method experienced a resurgence from the 1960s onward, with widespread adoption in both private and public educational settings worldwide. Today, thousands of Montessori schools operate on every continent.

## 2 Core Principles

### 2.1 Respect for the child

Montessori education treats each child as an individual with inherent dignity. Adults refrain from interrupting concentrated activity, allow children to make choices, and communicate with kindness and honesty. The child's pace and interests guide the learning process, fostering self-esteem and intrinsic motivation.

### 2.2 The absorbent mind

Montessori identified the first six years of life as a period when the child unconsciously absorbs impressions from the environment—language, culture, social norms—without effort. This "absorbent mind" enables rapid, natural learning. The prepared environment should therefore offer rich, orderly stimuli that the child can assimilate spont