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The Materials are not the Method

by Joyce St. Giermaine

Most newcomers to Montessori are awestruck at the array of colorful materials, purposefully arranged throughout the classroom. It is an amazing sight for adults and children. The materials almost call out to be picked-up, handled, and treated with respect.

The materials, however, are not the ‘Method.’ The ‘M’ in Method is capitalized, at least in my mind, for a reason.

Think of Montessori as a five-star restaurant, recognized for the best cuisine for miles around. You make a reservation, and the day arrives when you are finally seated at a beautiful table: linen tablecloth and napkins, fresh-cut flowers, exquisite water goblets, and silverware that is just the right weight to rest comfortably in your hand.There is soft music playing in the background, the lighting is just right. The restaurant is warm and inviting, the waitstaff is calm and respectful and happy to attend to your every need. In the food-service industry, we would call this ‘ambience.’ In Montessori, we would call it a ‘prepared environment.’

When the food is served, it is everything you expected and more. You leave the restaurant feeling satisfied and happy; you made a good choice.

For a minute, let’s consider how you would feel if the food were not particularly good. No amount of ambience will make up for a mediocre meal, especially if you are paying top dollar for it. Now, let’s consider how you would feel about receiving the same great meal at a small restaurant, with plastic cutlery, rock music blaring in the background, and a predominantly take-out clientele. It would certainly be a different experience, and you might actually be in the mood for something loud and fun, but maybe not every day or for a special occasion. You might be willing to overlook the lack of ambience if the food is good. If the food isn’t good, you probably won’t return.

Not all Montessori schools can be compared to an expensive five-star restaurant, nor should they. Montessori education takes place in the most prestigious locales throughout the world; it is also found in migrant-worker camps and impoverished countries, where parents and teachers make their own materials from whatever is available to them in their region.

Montessori materials are ‘tools’ that Dr. Montessori developed to complement and expand the principles of her Method. Although there is something called a ‘control of error’ incorporated into the design of each material, the materials, themselves, are not a substitute for the lessons they represent. Going back to our restaurant analogy: ambiance, excellent food, and great service need to go together to produce a quality product.

Montessori materials are deceptively ‘simple’ in appearance, but they are surprisingly complex in design and purpose. Think of the puzzle boxes you may have had as a child. There were star-shaped holes, round holes, and square holes, along with correspondingly shaped pegs. Most of us quickly concluded that the square pegs just didn’t work in the round holes. Some of us took a bit longer, and even if we continued to disagree on a philosophical level that round and square should be interchangeable, we eventually realized that it was a waste of time to continue to try to force something to fit, where it clearly didn’t belong. That’s control of error.

But what else did it teach us? Did we learn that the shapes were geometric figures? Did we learn the names of each shape? Did we discover on our own that one shape weighed more or less than the other? Could we close our eyes and recognize each shape by touch alone? Could we use our finger to draw the shape in sand? Could we sound out the letter ‘s’ in star? What else is round? A plate, the earth, a goldfish bowl? And so on. The possibilities are endless. That is the Method.

Take a look at the picture of Knobbed Cylinders. Notice the concentration and excitement on the little boy’s face. To the casual observer, he is having fun with a puzzle. To a Montessori teacher, he is learning to understand the concepts of length, circumference, weight, and depth. And he’s enjoying the satisfaction of his ‘work.’

At The Montessori Foundation, we get many phone calls from well-intentioned parents and ‘traditional’ educators, who want to incorporate Montessori into their school or home environment. Often, they just want to know where they can obtain Montessori materials. This comes from the erroneous belief that it is the materials that define the methodology. Despite the elegant simplicity of the materials, there is more than one hundred years of pedagogy and implementation behind their design, and Montessori teachers are specifically trained to incorporate each material into the bigger picture of what we call the Montessori Method.

At this point, our phone callers usually ask to buy the Montessori ‘manual’ to explain how to use the materials. They become frustrated and disappointed that such a book is not available, probably thinking that it’s a big secret that we are keeping to ourselves to the exclusion of the rest of the world. Not so. A good Montessori teacher, we explain, spends years of classroom study, along with classroom internship, working with children under the guidance of master Montessori teachers, to become qualified to provide lessons incorporating the Montessori materials.

Look for an article by Robin Howe on table washing. Here’s an example of ‘materials’ that everyone has in their home. It looks like a simple exercise, but, as you will see, it is not just about playing in water. It teaches responsibility for the environment, develops fine- and gross-motor skills, and creates an orderly sequence of steps, enhancing the child’s ability to focus and remain on task.

As you read through the descriptions of Montessori materials, please remember that every exercise and material has a specific purpose, usually involving many steps, along with a built-in control of error. It is the coming together of methodology and materials that is behind the genius of the Montessori Method. Although the teachers are never intended to be the focal point in a Montessori classroom, it is the teachers, with their knowledge of the intended learning objectives of each lesson, the proper use of the corresponding materials, and their ability to “follow the child,” who are committed to providing the environment and guidance to implement the methodology that allows children to learn new skills, incorporate new information, and maximize their years in Montessori.

In the Montessori classroom each child creates his or her own cycle of work based on individual interests. This cycle of self-directed activity lengthens the child’s attention span. The teacher, instead of directing a group of children in one activity, quietly moves from child to child, giving individual lessons with materials. The teacher or assistant may lead a few small-group activities, such as reading a book out loud, cooking, or gardening with two to six children.

The Montessori classroom is a vibrant and dynamic learning environment, where structure is created by each child selecting his or her activity, doing it, and returning the activity to the shelf. After the successful completion of a task, there is a period of self-satisfaction and reflection, then the child chooses the next activity.

Montessorians call this rhythm of activity a work cycle. Stephen Covey, in The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, refers to the habit of a work cycle as creating an upward spiral of growth and change. Covey describes a spiraling process of learn – commit – do that empowers us to move toward continuous improvement, both as children and adults.

The Golden Bead Material

The Golden Bead Material introduces the child to the decimal system with concrete representations of the hierarchy of numbers. Quantity and place value is explored by the child through activities in the operations of addition, subtraction, multiplication and division.

Introduction to decimal quantity

A tray containing Golden Bead Materials used in the introduction of the decimal quantities of 1, 10, 100 and 1000

Purpose:

Since the system followed under Montessori Method to teach mathematics is decimal system, introduction to the system before working with it is very important. This is done immediately after mastery over units, since the child is moving towards next hierarchy. This precedes linear counting because the child needs to understand the difference between units, tens, hundreds and thousands. Through this the understanding of teens and tens becomes easy, since the child understands it is not 1 and 1 which makes 11 but 10 and 1 make 11. Child learns the names of powers of 10.

Numerals and Counters

The direct purpose of this activity is to introduce to the child the association of number vs quantity. the concept of even and odd. The arrangement of counters below the cards are in pairs. The set which has complete pairs stand for even number and vice versa. The concept of even and odd is put into the child’s mind with all clarity through concrete material.

The activity by itself is reinforcement for the previous activities with number rods and spindle box.

Sandpaper Numerals

The 10 rough sandpaper numerals are mounted on smooth green boards.

Purpose:

The Sandpaper Numerals introduce the child to symbol 0-9 and their corresponding number names. By tracing the numerals in the style and direction in which they are written, the child is preparing for writing numbers.

While tracing on sandpaper numerals, the child through muscular memory gets the concrete perception of abstract symbols, even the directionality is mastered since there is tactile sense involved.

The child learns the names of the written symbols, learns gradation, and observational skills are developed.