Mathematics

Children typically progress from a solid understanding of basic mathematics to a more abstract concept. For example, a Montessori child can readily identify the difference between 1, 10, 100, and 1000 because they have experienced it countless times - they felt it originally in the pink tower when they were 3 years old and later again in the Montessori Mathematics materials. The idea of squares and cubes is defined through the use of the Montessori Bead Cabinet. As such, the Montessori Sensorial materials lead into the Mathematics area very well. A child attending a 3-6 Montessori classroom will have no doubt have learnt with material such as the trinomial cube. In a 6-9 classroom, he or she will be ready to take on another phase of the material. Instead of relating to it as Sensorial material (eg matching up colours and shapes), a 9 year old may be ready to use it to understand complex mathematical constructs. This might include the mathematical equation for the cube of a+b+c with a variety of variables – just one example of how Sensorial materials cross over into Mathematics in Montessori.