The Role of the Teacher

Montessori teachers have four principle goals:

To awaken the child’s spirit and imagination

To encourage her normal desire for independence and high self-esteem

To help her develop the kindness, courtesy and self-discipline that will allow her to become a full member of society

To help the child lean how to observe, question and explore ideas independently

To achieve these goals, the first responsibility of the Montessori teacher is to prepare a beautiful, orderly environment that provides the necessary variety of purposeful activities for the child. She observes the children to know their individual needs and interests and directs the children toward work appropriate for them.

Through her training and experience, the teacher places enormous trust in the developmental powers of the child and will “follow the child,” just as Dr. Montessori did.

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