Monday, April 8, 2019

What is the Parents' Role in a Montessori Education?


In Montessori primary school, the role of the parent is crucial in helping children get the best education possible. Because children spend so much more time with parents than teachers, this should not be a surprise, but it is important to convey how your role as a parent impacts the total educational process.


Role Model

When the private elementary school day is over, your child continues to observe and absorb external input. Your children watch everything you do, including how you interact with others, accept responsibility, and even your personal activities. As her primary role model, your role is to provide a good example that she can build on, from displaying self-control to showing an interest in learning new skills. Your moral compass is going to influence hers, so make an effort to put your best foot forward in everything you do.

Support and Encouragement

When you show an interest in your child’s activities, you encourage her to do more, learn more, and share her thoughts and feelings. Parents are a child’s primary source of encouragement and play a vital role in building self-esteem and personal responsibility. Encourage her to try new things and talk with her about her day. If she is angry or upset, help her work out her problems in a productive manner and offer suggestions for achieving solutions that are satisfactory for all parties involved.

Education and Instruction

A common mistake is to think that education ends when you pick your daughter up from her Montessori elementary school. The fact is, the topics she has touched on during the school day are only the beginning, and your parental role is to expand on her studies and generally build on what she covered in school. The classroom only occupies a small percentage of her formative years, but you have the ability to turn every day into an exciting and fulfilling experience she will carry with her for her entire life.

Montessori is a holistic approach to education intended to not only teach your children the fundamental aspects of learning, but it is also meant to teach her to be more productive, more involved, and better able to interact socially in the world she lives in. Her Montessori elementary school will provide her with the building blocks, but your role as a parent is to transform those blocks into a towering firmament of decisiveness and determination.