There are a lot of myths about Montessori. One myth that I have often heard is that the children get free reign to choose anything and do anything they want to all day. Well, that's partly true. We put things on the shelf that we feel the children will find success in, we set the shelves up so the children feel success, so they can choose anything on the shelf, however, if it's something we don't we don't want to use or maybe they're not ready for, we just don't put it on the shelf. So that's just one example of a myth. Another myth is that Montessori is a religious-based school. Not all Montessori schools are religious-based. Our school at Northstar Montessori Preschool in Saline is not a religious-based, but some are. So you just have to kind of shop around and find what fits your needs. One of the other myths that I have heard is that the children are made to do things very specific and there's no room for social interaction. That is partly true but partly not. We show the children how to get out a rug and how they can get their works and put their works on a rug and that is their responsibility, but if another child wants to play with them all they have to do is ask the child. There is a ton of social interaction in our school, and some schools, it's much more of a quiet environment. Our school is more quiet than other schools and maybe not as quiet as others. But it's important the children get a well-rounded education. So this is an example of how we show the children to take care of their environment. We always have them get out a mat. So they have a mat for their workspace. Always hold one thing in their hand at a time. When they get their activities off the shelf, hold it with great care, hold it with two hands. This shows them how to care of their things at home as well, take great care in their toys and make sure they always put them back. So you put the activity on the mat before you sit down. You pull out the chair with two hands, this helps to avoid any accidents or children getting hurt, when the children sit down and they do the activity. When they are done, they leave the activity on the mat, stand up, push their chair back in, then they get the activity off the shelf. We show the children how to always finish what you start. Always clean up after yourself. Now, I'm going to put the mat away holding two hands. So that is how we show the children to take great care and respect of their environment.
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