The Franklin Montessori School
Forest Hills Campus
4473 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
Phone 202.966.7747, Fax 202.966.8508

"The most important period of life is the first one, the period from birth to age six, for that is the time when man's intelligence itself, his greatest implement, is being formed."

— Dr. Maria Montessori

Dr. Maria Montessori believed that the goal of early childhood education should not be to fill the child with facts from a pre-selected course of studies, but rather to cultivate his/her own natural desire to learn. Montessori believed that children learn through their natural curiosity and the exploration of their environment.

Children from three to six years of age work together in the Montessori classroom. The mixed age environment provides younger children with models for everything from walking in a line or washing their hands to reading and writing. As leaders in the classroom, the older children develop an invaluable feeling of self-confidence. Ideally, children stay in one classroom with the same teachers throughout their time in school. This allows teachers the time to understand each child as an individual and to guide them through the curriculum in a way that best fits their particular learning style.

Montessori materials are beautifully constructed and are designed to attract children. The autodidactic materials encourage independence and allow the children to work at their own pace. Teachers introduce children to new materials based on the child's progress and learning style. Montessori teachers respect each child’s individuality and emphasize the process of learning over the product. In the classroom, the children are free to work with any of the materials for which they have had a lesson, for as long as they wish. The learning experience then becomes a process of spontaneous self-discovery, developing confidence, independence, and a love of learning.

The Montessori classroom is meticulously prepared to spark each child's natural desire to learn and includes six interrelated areas. These areas do not exist in isolation, but are designed to complement each other: Practical Life, Sensorial, Language, Mathematics, Social Studies, and Science.

To learn more about Maria Montessori and the Montessori Philosophy, go to the following website.