“Self-proclaimed,” of course, does not mean much. Montessori works – splendidly – if it is done authentically; but I must admit that by now most so-called Montessori schools in America aren’t implementing an authentic Montessori curriculum. Also, you do not say if she went to a Montessori preschool. It is in the three years of preschool where they learn how to learn, and by the time a child is six, she has passed many of the sensitive periods when learning concepts is easy.

All normal (at least 95%) children with cooperative parents (i.e. will take sage advice on home environment and parenting techniques) who enter our program at 2½, will be reading and reading well (at least at a third or fourth grade level, if not at a ninth) by the time they are five and would normally be entering kindergarten. Of course, Montessori children learn to write before they can read. Reading generally happens spontaneously one day, when it occurs to them that they can read what they just wrote, and then there is no holding them back.

They will also be doing four figure math (+,-,x, & /); can name all the States of our Union, or all the countries of North and South America, on unmarked maps; name all the shapes in plane and solid geometry; explain the metamorphosis of a frog or butterfly; and readily distinguish between a Monet and Picasso. Not all Montessori schools achieve these results; but the good ones can and do.

It is a mistake to assume that there is no curriculum and that the Montessorians are only acting as referees. There is a sequence to the didactic materials, and it is her job to make sure that each child receives a presentation on all of them in due course. They encourage and assist children constantly, and make sure they do not get stuck too long in one place. Obviously, teaching phonics to the three-year-olds takes much direct interaction.

Of course, the task is much harder than it should be, because they must first “un-teach” them the names of the symbols. Why do parents insist on teaching their toddlers the names of letters instead of their sounds? Shouldn’t it be obvious that the only time we ever use the name of a letter is when audibly spelling a word, and it will be years before they need to do that?

So the structure or “framework” is there underneath, and the Montessorians keep meticulous records of presentations and a child’s progress. There are very firm boundaries and self-discipline in a Montessori classroom, because it is expected, and nonsense or disruptive behavior is simply not tolerated for a moment. Children come to a Montessori school to work, not to play. Creating a mind is serious business, and the process is respected. More to follow. ◄Dave►

I went to a Montessori pre-school. I have happy memories of it. I’m sure I learned a lot. But I’m glad I wasn’t there much longer.

My nieces were, until recently, attending a self-proclaimed Montessori school. My oldest niece, who was 6 at the time, was struggling mightily with her reading. She’s smart, but there is dyslexia in her family and in any event she didn’t take to reading or writing intuitively. Because of the lack of structure, forcing her to attempt to intuit that which is not intuitive, the pleasure of learning gave way to frustration, eventually leading to a fear and loathing of the written word.

Fortunately, she’s now in a much more traditional public school, and the instant improvement was marked.

Learning how to properly use any language is not necessarily organic, and that’s even more true when it comes to reading and writing. Learning requires guidance, which requires an active TEACHER to teach, not just a line judge to bounce off of. Too much “teaching” can be destructive, certainly, but then so can too little.

It’s like “teaching” certain plants to grow by building trellises. Too much, and the plant is smothered. Too little, and there is no framework upon which its full height can be realized.

There are some things that must be actively taught, like math, history, spelling, and grammar. They are things that aren’t always pleasant to learn, but must be known and known by a certain time in a child’s life.

And children also need to learn that their actions have consequences, and sometimes failure is NOT acceptable, and that carelessness IS a big deal. Children also crave firm boundaries, and respond to discipline (in the sense of an athlete being disciplined, not punishment) in a very productive way.

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The role of culture as teacher cannot be understated. There are reasons certain traditions, mores, and religions endure and thrive – it’s because they contain the truth and wisdom obtained (often at great expense) over the ages. They form a trellis for us, without which we individually cannot reach our full potential.

(Equally, there are reasons certain cultures and religions have doomed their adherents to lives of poverty and oppression for centuries.)

Leftists want the government to be that trellis, and certainly government is a part of it. But the left would reject any other component, and FORCE us all half way up the trellis of THEIR choosing whether we wanted it that way or not. They would cut back faster growing shoots and prop up the sickly ones in the name of fairness. When that failed to produce a healthy plant, they would add to the trellis more and more until the plant was completely smothered.

They would then blame the vines for their malaise.

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It goes back to my conception that not enough government can be just as destructive to individual liberty as too much.

And more, the only way to provide an adequate framework for us to reach our full potential (and to protect us from temporarily feel-good but ultimately self-destructive behavior) without being FORCED is to embrace a compelling but ultimately voluntary culture.

Objectivism correctly focuses on the importance of individual liberty, but posits that non-governmental societal pressures are, like government, almost purely impediments to success. It assumes and celebrates the notion of being able to simply drop out of society – going Galt, as it were. It does not understand that while government FORCING you to be “charitable” and “moral” (for lack of a better word) is bad, a culture or religion PRESSURING you to do those things for reasons other than the fear of jail is often very, very good.

This is why social conservatives are right and valuable – and wrong and destructive when they, too, forget this line between force and pressure. (See, e.g., Huckabee, Mike)

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Them’s my two pennies – disjointed and incomplete though they may be.