Work Models

  1. Flow Model
  2. Sequence Model
  3. Artifact Model
  4. Cultural Model
  5. Physical Model
  6. Metaphors

Research

  1. Design Problem
  2. Literature Review
  3. Work Models
  4. Design Patterns
  5. Design Experiments
  6. Lesson Ideas
  7. Montessori Computes
  8. Thinking About Circles

Related Links

Patterns and Design

Montessori

Coordination

How do artifacts move from one person to the next?  Where do they originate?  Where do they end up?

Teachers are responsible for preparing the classroom environment.  They decide on the layout of materials, which includes standard Montessori didactic materials (Neinhuis and Gonzagarredi are a couple of respected manufacturers) and teacher-created materials.  Layout of materials, teacher-designed materials, and accompanying activities are all designed according to Montessori principles.  Teachers make sure materials are ready for use each morning and rotate materials out of or into the classroom according the needs of the class.

Sixty-three percent of class time is devoted to the "Independent Work Period" or I.W.P (periods of student-selected work), 23 percent to group time and 14 percent to transitional activities (Neubert, 1992).

During the I.W.P., students can remove materials from the shelves.  Teachers may also remove materials to demonstrate their use to individuals or groups.  When a child is finished with a material, the child returns it to the shelf (the teacher may need to intervene to make sure this happens, but children usually do this on their own).  When the teacher finishes a demonstration, she generally makes it available to a child who is then responsible for returning it to the shelf.

Neubert (1992) observed the following child behaviors during I.W.P.:

  • Individual, independent activity (children often at same table using different materials): 41%
  • Working together on same activity: 28%
  • Other: 31%

Teachers "directed or were involved" in 11 percent of I.W.P. activities.  Although teachers consider observation an important part of the Montessori model, only about 3 percent of teachers' time was spent on observation.  "Eighty-three percent of [teacher-student] interactions observed were with one child, 12.5 percent with two children, and 4.5 percent with three or more children... Overall, 71.6 percent of all activity choices on average were child initiated, and 28.4 percent teacher initiated or teacher assisted." (Neubert, 1992, pp. 64-65)

Leone Learning Systems, Inc. (LLS) is a North Shore company that provides online courses for kids anywhere and local teaching and tutoring services for students in Chicago and the Northern Suburbs of Chicagoland. LLS also provides a free geometry software package for children age 6 and up, and free resources for teachers and parents. This site includes information about classes taught, availability for tutoring, learning activities for kids, lesson plans, and an ongoing software and curriculum research and development effort.