Development of the Montessori Method

Dr. Montessori began her educational work with children with intellectual disabilities. Observing their learning processes, she developed her method based on the principles of independence, freedom within limits, and respect for a child’s natural psychological development.

• 1907: Opened the first "Casa dei Bambini" (Children's House) in Rome.
• 1909: Published "The Montessori Method," outlining her educational philosophy.
• 1929: Founded the Association Montessori Internationale (AMI) to standardize and promote her method globally.

Montessori Method Principles

1. Child-Centered Learning: Tailored to each child's unique needs and interests.
2. Prepared Environment: Classrooms designed to facilitate independent learning.
3. Hands-On Learning: Children engage with materials that promote exploration and discovery.
4. Mixed-Age Classrooms: Fostering peer learning and social interaction.
   

Extended Timeline of Dr. Montessori

• 1870:  Born in Chiaravalle, Italy, August 31.
• 1896:  Graduated from the University of Rome with a medical degree. 
• Represents Italy at the International Women’s Congress in Berlin; delivers address on rights of working women, including equal pay for equal work. 
• Studies the writings of French doctors Itard and Séguin, who worked with disabled children.
• 1897-1898:  Audits courses in pedagogy at the University of Rome; reads all major works in educational philosophy over the past 200 years.
• 1899:  Attends women’s congress in London; received by Queen Victoria.
• 1900:   Works at the psychiatric clinic in Rome.
• Appointed director of the Orthophrenic School, a model school for training teachers of children with developmental disabilities. For two years, she experiments at the model school with materials to stimulate the senses. She succeeds in fostering the development of some of the children to such an extent that they achieve the same results on state exams as typically developing schoolchildren.
• 1901:  Begins a second degree—in education, experimental psychology, and anthropology—at the University of Rome. Visits elementary schools to do anthropological research.
• 1904-1908:  Lectures in anthropology and biology at the University of Rome’s school of education, incorporating her clinical observations of pupils in Rome’s elementary schools. These lectures become the basis of her book Pedagogical Anthropology (1910).
• 1907:  Opened the first Montessori school in Rome.
• 1911:  Resigns her teaching post at the University of Rome and gives up her private medical practice to concentrate entirely on education.
• The Montessori method is already being put into practice in English and Argentinean schools and is beginning to be introduced into Italian and Swiss primary schools.
• Model schools set up in Paris, New York, and Boston.
• 1912:  The English version of Il Metodo appears in the U.S. in an edition of 5,000 copies under the title The Montessori Method. Within a few days, it is sold out. It reaches second place on the year’s list of nonfiction bestsellers.
• 1913:  Runs the First International Training Course in her apartment in Rome, under the patronage of Italy's Queen Margherita. Students come from Italy and other European countries, Australia, South Africa, India, China, the Philippines, the United States, and Canada.
• Montessori Educational Association founded in the United States. Its membership includes Alexander Graham Bell, his wife, Mabel Bell, S.S. McClure, and President Wilson’s daughter, Margaret Woodrow Wilson.
• First trip to the United States.
• 1929:  Founded the Association Montessori Internationale (AMI) to preserve her education principles.  "Montessori" is not trademarked or copyrighted.
• 1949-1951:  Nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize three times.
• 1952:  Passed away in Noordwijk, Netherlands.