Understanding where we come from is as important as learning where we’ll go next.
Maria Montessori
Dr. Maria Montessori is the visionary behind Montessori learning. With a deep dedication to understanding children’s and adolescent’s emotional, intellectual, social, and spiritual needs, Montessori pioneered the holistic approach to teaching we continue at our center.
The Legacy Begins
Born in Italy in 1870, Maria Montessori was taught to value learning at an early age. She was one of the first women in Italy to earn a diploma and quickly after graduating, she began her work in human development. Beginning in schools and clinics for children with mental and physical challenges, Montessori immediately realized that every child is a unique human and should be treated as such.
Dr. Montessori and her associates shaped their teaching style around their student’s capabilities and desires. In 1907 she tested this ideology out when she opened a child daycare center called Casa Dei Bambini, in a poor district outside of Rome. At first, the children were difficult to manage.
However, Maria realized that her students were excited about learning when they engaged with materials and tools that interested them. Through scientific observation, she created a nurturing environment that allowed her students to thrive by giving them the freedom of choosing their own paths. This ultimately allowed them to successfully teach themselves, utilizing the teachers as facilitators along the way.
Responding to the rise of fascism in Europe, Dr. Montessori also began giving speeches and lectures on "Peace and Education". She believed that the future well-being of humanity would be improved by introducing activities promoting peace and fellowship to children. Her whole method was focused on creating a peaceful world and social justice.
The other cornerstone of Montessori’s philosophy is Cosmic Vision. At its core, cosmic vision describes the interconnectedness of all things and views the role of education as comprehensive, holistic, and purposeful. Dr. Montessori believed that this cosmic vision is essential for education because it provides children and adolescents with a framework to understand the world and their place in it.
Breakthrough Teaching Stands the Test of Time
This holistic approach to teaching is Dr. Montessori’s legacy. She challenged the entire premise of education over 100 years ago and developed an innovative program we still use. She traveled the world and observed a wide range of students separated by borders, language, and socio-economic situations. However, she recognized universal tendencies that exist in all children and adolescents: the desire to self-construct. That is at the core of Dr. Montessori’s work.
At Houston Montessori Center, it is our responsibility to continue her legacy so Montessori educators have the tools and skills necessary to positively shape our future.
Becoming a Montessori educator is a life-long journey. It is an evolving process to fully understand the intricacies of Montessori philosophy and implementing those principles in a classroom.
Montessori’s legacy is much more than a method for educating children. It is a way of seeing children and adolescents, of respecting all sentient beings, and of constantly striving to perform purposeful work. While our work at HMC starts in the classroom, her legacy fuels hope, inspiration, and passion in everyday life.
The Legacy of the Infant & Toddler Course
In 1982 a group of early childhood teachers, Darla Miller and Marge Ellison began brainstorming the possibility of establishing an Infant & Toddler-level teacher education course. Paperwork was submitted to and approved by AMS as the second AMS infant & toddler program. The first graduating class of AMS credentialed Infant & Toddlers teachers from HMC included Lynne Aiken who is Infant & Toddlers Level Coordinator at HMC.
By the late 1980s, Montessori Infant & Toddler programs were beginning to blossom across Houston. Darla Miller worked with Sue Thornton and Grace Hively to establish an AMS infant & toddler course as part of North Harris College. In 2015, the college priorities changed, the course finally found its way back to its origin, Houston Montessori Center.
The Legacy of the Early Childhood Course
The first AMS Early Childhood course at HMC began in 1974 under the direction of Marcella Dawson. HMC board members, Marge Ellison and Carolyn Edgar, were part of the second class. This early start of our Early Childhood course fostered many strong early childhood teachers locally and provided the impetus for the creation of many new Montessori schools especially in Texas.
Over the years HMC has offered the usual summer model for the Early Childhood course as well as an evening model, a model connected to a university, and a Saturday model. Today, HMC offers an integrated onsite and online model.
The Legacy of the Elementary Course
Houston Montessori Center has one of the first Elementary courses in the United States. In 1977 the first Elementary course was held at Loyola University in New Orleans under the direction of Lorna Terhune. The following year the course was held in Houston. Since none of the elementary materials were available for purchase at that time, the teachers had to make the materials first in order to practice the lessons.
Betsy Coe was a part of this course. There was a saying back then, “we are building a car as we are driving it.” For many years afterwards, HMC offered the Elementary course at numerous additional sites since there were so few teacher education centers offering elementary training in those early years.
The Legacy of the Secondary I-II course
The secondary course was conceived back in 1982 when Betsy Coe started a Montessori middle school at School of the Woods. In creating the secondary course, Betsy’s first step was to go to the source by reading From Childhood to Adolescence and then contacting as many Montessorians who had first-hand information from Maria Montessori about the program.
She watched Mario Montessori Sr’s interview discussing the adolescent level in 1981. She spoke with Mario Montessori Jr and Betty Stephenson. Long time Montessorians Peggy Loeffler and Sylvia Richardson shared stories with Betsy from Miss Lena (Wikramaratne) about the secondary program. She and Phil Gang received their PhD focusing on adolescents at the same university at the same time so they had many conversations about Montessori and the adolescent years.
In the early 1980’s Mario Montessori Jr gave his permission for an urban secondary model, launching the stage for experimentation. Betty Stephenson gave her approval to Betsy’s adolescent program. Now, many years later, the adolescent program is no longer a new frontier. Over time HMC has created many adolescent programs all over the world based on Montessori’s ideas and insights in the Erdkinder metaphors that guide secondary programs.
The Legacy of Administrators Course for School Leaders.
In June 2006, HMC added an administrator’s course. The board and faculty felt that the Center was doing a great job of preparing teachers and realized there could be a disconnect when teachers went back to their schools. In order for Montessori schools to be effective, the leaders need to be able to lead the Montessori way.
Leaders need to know and understand Montessori philosophy in order to guarantee that Montessori principles are embedded throughout all the operations of the school, ensuring proper support of the adults and the children.
Michael Eanes, Jonathan Wolff and Dana Kaminstein were the first instructors. Betsy Coe, Marge Ellison, Amy Henderson, and Nahla Nasser, HMC board members and faculty, were in the first HMC administrator’s class and still serve as staff and/or advisors to the program.
The Legacy of the Materials business.
The materials business grew out of a middle school student venture. In 1984 Dr. Coe’s middle school students decided to offer Montessori card materials as one of their class businesses. At that time computers were a novelty in the classroom and most of the students did not know how to use a computer. The students decided they could learn computer skills and review the Montessori elementary materials by make card materials to go with the Montessori apparatus. The students began making the materials and housed the school’s laminator in the classroom for their work. They began receiving many orders (remember the array of Montessori vendors was not present at this time) and worked constantly during their breaks to fill orders. The business became too successful and overwhelming. The class decided to turn over their business to the Houston Montessori Center. At first teachers in the summer were contracted to making materials and over time it has been successful service to the Montessori community in providing quality, low cost Montessori card material that matches the sequence learned in the courses. Today the business is overseen by Sandi Brock where she continually updates and refines the materials to meet schools’ needs.