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Our Mission And Story

Our Mission And Story

by | Uncategorized

Welcome to The Montessori Foundation. The Montessori Foundation and its membership organization, The International Montessori Council, are non-profit educational organizations, that nurture, inspire, and support the development of strong, successful Montessori schools...
Five day a week attendance

Five day a week attendance

by | Communication, Emotional Intelligence (EQ), Family Resources, MFA, Montessori Administrators, Montessori Education, Montessori Parenting, Montessori Teachers, Primary (3-6), Toddler (18 months-3 years)

A parent wrote, “I am the board president of a Montessori School . Our school is a pre-K through K school. We are considering a move to change the slots we offer. Currently we offer 3 half-day slots and 3 full-day slots as well as 5 half-day and 5 full-day slots. We are the only […]

How to Use Attrition Charts to track your enrollment

How to Use Attrition Charts to track your enrollment

by | Administrative Team, Finances, Montessori Administrators, Re-enrollment, Recruitment & Admissions, School Leadership, The International Montessori Council

Independent schools normally depend on tuition to cover their operating expenses, which means that accurate up-to-date information is essential. Despite this fact, too often, administrators rely on their memory or sense of what feels right when considering whether the current enrollment trend is normal or something to celebrate or fret over. One thing is certain: […]

How to Use Attrition Charts to track your enrollment

The Blueprint Process Condensed

by | Montessori Administrators, School Identity, The International Montessori Council, Uncategorized

The Montessori Foundation encourages schools to clearly set down their core philosophy and beliefs into a very specific formal written document, The Blueprint, and thereafter to use it as a road map in making decisions, setting new policy, and evaluating the educational program. This document explains the process of initially developing the Blueprint for the […]

Portfolios of Children’s Work

Portfolios of Children’s Work

by | Child's Work, MFA, Montessori Education, Montessori Teachers

Portfolios of children’s work can make it much easier for parents to get a sense of their children’s progress. Parents often feel frustrated with Montessori because, with no text and workbooks, they feel like they haven’t a clue what their child may, or may not, be learning in school. American parents don’t like to experiment […]

Montessori and Letter Grades – Philosophically Incompatible

Montessori and Letter Grades – Philosophically Incompatible

by | Communication, MFA, Montessori Parenting, Montessori Teachers, Parent-Teacher Communication, School Leadership

We are often asked by Montessori teachers and parents, ‘when do most Montessori schools start incorporating letter grades, if ever?’ When teachers assign letter or numerical grades, they are evaluating children either against the other students in the same class, or against an arbitrary external standard and set of expectations. As Alfie Kohn and many […]

Toward Best Practice: The Exercises of Practical Life

Toward Best Practice: The Exercises of Practical Life

by | Early Adolescence (12-15), Educational Program Coordination, Empowerment, Kindergarten, Later Adolescence (15-18), Lower Elementary (6-9), Mixed Ages, Montessori Administrators, Montessori Curriculum, Montessori Education, Montessori Middle School, Montessori Secondary / High School, Montessori Teachers, Practical Life, Primary (3-6), The International Montessori Council, Upper Elementary (9-12)

By Tim Seldin and Jonathan Wolff The exercises in Practical Life are the very heart of Montessori education. As young children wash tables, pour liquids, polish silver, sweep and dust, they are developing the inner aptitudes of calmness, order, concentration, coordination, and fine motor skills. At the same time, through the process of learning to […]

Sequence to Provide Structure, Feedback, and Accountability for a Montessori Program

Sequence to Provide Structure, Feedback, and Accountability for a Montessori Program

by | Communication, Montessori Education, Montessori Teachers, Parent-Teacher Communication, School Leadership, The International Montessori Council

This article was written in 1996. Our current practice is somewhat different, but we continue our search for a comfortable balance between freely chosen individually paced work, and a scheme to keep parents informed about what their children are doing in school. The article needs to be updated, and will be. These days we use […]

Five day a week attendance

The Work Cycle

by | MFA, Montessori Education, Montessori Family Life, Montessori Parenting, Montessori Teachers, Parent Education

FIRST PLANE OF DEVELOPMENT The work cycle is dependent on a three-hour uninterrupted period. It begins with preliminary work of a low order followed by a period of restlessness called false-fatigue. After this comes a period of more strenuous, challenging work which induces a period of rest (state of repose) when completed. There should be […]