Elements in the Extraordinary Role of the Montessori Teacher

Anne Burke Neubert, in A Way Of Learning (1973), listed the following elements in the extraordinary role of the Montessori teacher:

1. Montessori teachers are the dynamic link between children and the Prepared Environment.

2. They systematic observe their students and interpret their needs.

3. They are constantly experimenting, modifying the environment to meet their perceptions of each child’s needs and interests, and objectively noting the result.

4. They prepare an environment meant to facilitate children’s independence and ability to freely select work that they find appealing, selecting activities that will appeal to their interests and keeping the environment in perfect condition, adding to it and removing materials as needed.

5. They carefully evaluate the effectiveness of their work and the design of the environment every day.

6. They observe and evaluate each child’s individual progress.

7. They respect and protect their students’ independence. They must know when to step in and set limits or lend a helping hand, and when it is in a child’s best interests for them to step back and not interfere.

8. They are supportive, offering warmth, security, stability, and non-judgmental acceptance to each child.

9. They facilitate communication among the children and help the children to learn how to communicate their thoughts to adults.

10. They interpret the children’s progress and their work in the classroom to parents, the school staff, and the community.

11. They present clear, interesting and relevant lessons to the children. They attempt to engage the child’s interest and focus on the lessons and activities in the environment.

12. They model desirable behavior for the children, following the ground-rules of the class, exhibiting a sense of calm, consistency, grace and courtesy, and demonstrating respect for every child.

13. They are peace educators, consistently working to teach courteous behaviors and conflict.

14. They are diagnosticians who can interpret patterns of growth, development, and behavior in order to better understand the children and make necessary referrals and suggestions to parents.