The Montessori Philosophy:

A World Discovery Montessori School bases its teaching methods and educational philosophy on those put forth by Maria Montessori, a pioneering Italian physician/educator. Dr. Montessori developed what she called the Prepared Environment, which already possesses a certain order and allows children to learn at their own pace, according to their own capabilities and in a non-competitive atmosphere. "Never let children risk failure until they have a reasonable chance of success".

Dr. Montessori has recognized that the only valid impulse to learning is the self-motivation of the child. Children move themselves toward learning. The teacher prepares the environment, directs the activity, and offers the child stimulation, but it is the child who learns, who is motivated through work itself (not only by the teacher's personality) to persist in a given task. If Montessori children are free to learn, it is because they have acquired "inner discipline" from their exposure to both physical and mental order. This is the core of Dr. Montessori's philosophy. Patterns of concentration, "stick-to-itiveness" and thoroughness, established in early childhood, produce a confident and competent learner in later years. Montessori teaches children to learn, to think, and to judge. It also introduces children to the joy of learning at an early age and provides a framework in which intellectual and social discipline goes hand-in-hand.