Creativity and the Montessori Method

After enjoying the music video made by students at Hope Christian School, I thought it was necessary to highlight a group of Milwaukee Public Schools that not only support creativity, but use it as a general basis for learning.

Montessori schools run publically and privately in both in Milwaukee and across the United States. They are quickly becoming a choice school for many parents, as their method of teaching is unique and highly effective.

According to the Milwaukee Montessori web site, more than 85 percent of their graduates qualify for advanced courses upon entering high school, and 88 percent of the class of 2008 went on to become high school honor roll students.

The Montessori Method helps children learn from their own natural guidance by removing obstacles that get in their way.

Creativity is encouraged because there is no “wrong” answer to any problem. Children are free to experiment in their own way in all areas of development.

 

“Every child has tremendous creative capacity; it is our responsibility to develop and harvest it,” Lt. Gov. Barbara Lawton told Wisconsin Task Force on Arts and Creativity in Education.

Teachers play a passive but important role in the classroom. Their primary goal is to free students from dependence on direction. Of course that won’t happen for many years to come, but the initial steps provide a solid foundation for the future.

Everyone knows the joy young children find in simple things like a cardboard box. The Montessori Method takes children's own natural curiosity and turns it into a lesson that will one day help them achieve more complex accomplishments, whether they choose to become a horticulturalist, a doctor, or a technology guru.

 

Hurry in, this is the last day to enroll your preschooler in the Three Choice program at Central Services. Also, don't forget to get the H1N1 vaccination there, too.