Montessori education is based upon three planes of development: birth to age six, age six to twelve, and age twelve to eighteen. As Gretchen Hall, Director of Training at the Montessori Training Center of New England, described in her 2011 article How Science Fits Into the Whole Montessori Curriculum (The NAMTA Journal, Vol. 36, No. 1, Winter 2011), each plane is a distinctive psychological learning period characterized by the physical and psychological changes that take place during its span, as well as specific environmental needs to support development. The Montessori Method considers the unique needs of each age group by varying focus within each plane of development. In the first plane, the child focuses on the world and the facts. In the second plane, the child focuses on the universe and reason. In the third plane, the adolescent focuses on how to transform society.
Join us next over the next several Mondays as we discuss each Plane of Development and the importance of fostering the joy of learning.
