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Health & Fitness

I'm in Awe...The Science of Learning

I am in awe every time I hear Evergreen teachers explain the Montessori approach to math and language learning.  Three times in the last two weeks, our teachers demonstrated what makes their methods so effective– at Open House, Kindergarten-Year Night, and Elementary Discovery Night.

As I listened to Ms. Liotta, Mrs. John, Mrs. Sesko and Mrs. Hatziyannis, I recognized what sets Montessori teachers apart from non-Montessori teachers: they think a lot about the science of learning.  Their starting point is the way a child perceives the world, the way he takes in information through the senses, the way he organizes experiences, and the way he connects prior knowledge.  The learning objective (multiply these two large numbers, read this non-phonetic word, identify parts of speech, etc) is an outcome of his experience– not the focal point.  And in the end, these teachers’ students learn skills far beyond what I ever believed is possible.  

According to our teachers, it is more important that our children develop deep, conceptual understandings than merely memorizing a load of rote facts.

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We are so fortunate to have such brilliant teachers.

John DeMarchi is the Head of School at Evergreen School, a Montessori School in the Silver Spring, Kensington and Wheaton area.  Learn more at www.evergreenschool.com

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