The most common misconceptions about montessori
MYTH: Montessori classrooms are disorganized and chaotic since students are allowed to do what they want.
REALITY: Montessori classrooms are a calm peaceful environment to work in. Montessori encourages and emphasizes individual choice and responsibility for a student in the work they choose - as this engages the learner. However, the choices they have are limited - based on their current level of learning and their individualized work plan. Every student has a work plan for the week; the older the student, the more responsible the student is for managing the structure of that work plan. So while students do get to choose their work in a given day, their choices are limited to their current goals; In addition, the overall day follows a set structure and there are choices and freedoms within that structure. The goal is to help students learn to use their freedom and choices well.
MYTH: Montessori is for _______________ (we hear everything from: special needs, advanced learners, etc.)
REALITY: Montessori is a highly individualized educational philosophy built on the research of Dr. Maria Montessori. It serves any student who is able to operate with some independence in their learning and can grow into greater independence. The beauty of Montessori is that it doesn’t expect all children of the same age/grade to be in the exact same place in their development; we don’t teach to the average, we teach to the individual. For example: this means we have kids from various grades doing the same math lesson, until they master this and graduate to the next lesson.
MYTH: Montessori education is super expensive.
REALITY: Montessori is an investment in your child’s education and future - and yes, like all investments, that comes with a cost. As an independent school, Roots is priced competitively with local schools in the Plymouth-Canton area and less than schools in surrounding communities (ie: Ann Arbor, Birmingham). More importantly, one of our foundational commitments is to make Montessori education accessible to those may not otherwise be able to afford it. That being said, we invite applicants to complete the Financial Assistance application to establish financial need so that assistance may be awarded as needed. You can find out more about this here.
There are a lot of myths and misunderstandings surrounding Montessori education. A primary cause of this is that Montessori is not a trademarked term. Any school can say they are a Montessori school without actually implementing authentic Montessori education. This is why it’s super important for parents to know if the school they are considering is accredited by the American Montessori Society. (And just FYI: Roots is well on it’s way to full accreditation - which is a three year process. You can learn more about the AMS accrediting standards here)
We’ve taken time to address some of the most common misunderstandings about Montessori above. If you have additional questions or uncertainties, we welcome your questions and apprehensions; you can email us here or schedule a visit.
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