Special Needs and Montessori - Can it be done?

Montessori for Special Needs

Can it be done?

Um. Yes. Montessori started with special needs and found the experiences were applicable to the universal child. Even with "typically developing" children, there are always slight modifications to be made to suit personal interest, time of day, personality quirks and more. So we Montessorians just look to the individual child's needs in how to present the key experiences for their plane of development.

Previous Montessori Nuggets - not an all-inclusive list:

• General thoughts on Special Needs
• A link to the book Montessori and the Special Child by Reginald C Orem
• Special Needs Identification and Treatment with Montessori Methods

A foundation to understanding that Montessori is useful for all children - the universal child, regardless of personal interests, personalities or learning needs:

• Some Sources of the Montessori Method and Facets of Its Founder (this link allows the resource to be read online; only downloaded if you are part of one of their affiliates)

Montessori Books about Special Needs: 

• Didacticism: Montessori and the Disadvantaged Student (affiliate link to Amazon)
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Additional Resources for Special Needs as related to Montessori:

• Montessori 4 Autism: Releasing the Inner Child 
• Living Montessori Now - always has some excellent lists of resources
• Montessori and Special Needs/Early Intervention - extensive list of related articles
• Montessori Education for Autism

NOTE: The word "disadvantaged" has changed in meaning over the years. Previously, it was used to describe socio-economic factors with perhaps some inclusion of special needs. Currently, the word disadvantaged is more often applied to children with special needs, but can still be used in other ways. There is a book by Reginald C Orem about Montessori and the Disadvantaged - it is more focused on the socio-economic factors, more-so than special needs factors.

Special Needs in Montessori

Dr. Montessori started her work with special needs children - this is where the first discoveries were made on what became known as the normalization of children.

Dr. Montessori discovered a universal child - and this universal child is not affected by special needs or challenges. THIS universal child is well-met in every authentic Montessori environment.

Is it true that today many allegedly Montessori environments cannot handle a variety of special needs? Yes, it is a sad truth. But that is not the Montessori method that is not open to children of special needs - it could be a wide variety of factors including but not limited to any or a combination of the following.
If your environment is not capable right now of addressing all special needs, considering how the following could be adjusted:

• physical space (a school renting basement space with no elevator will not be able to accommodate many physical needs). 
• lack of adult preparedness (easy to address)
• lack of adult desire or interest (not so easy to overcome; but if the need arises, could it be overcome?)
• observation skills - are true observation skills in place? 
• is the adult able to truly "follow the child" - this could mean some modifying of some (very very few!) materials in order to follow a particular child in his particular needs. 
• does the child need a more one-on-one helper? Can the environment support this helper? Can this helper also be trained in Montessori (as a Montessori assistant, or at least to study the theory) - so as to understand more appropriately when to give various types of help? 
• Are the other children relatively normalized? if so, they will welcome children of various needs. 
• What other considerations should be added to this list? 

A true Montessori environment will be able to address these concerns. But no place is "perfect". If your environment isn't quite there - consider how to get there. Even if you homeschool, what might need to change IF you have a child with special needs? 

The main point: observe and respond. 

Montessori and the Special Child

Montessori and the Special Child by R.C. Orems is the first comprehensive guide to utilizing the Montessori Method with special needs children, written for the use of parents and anyone interested in this field.

Recall that Dr. Montessori started with special needs children; then worked with typically functioning children living in the inner-city slums.

Interesting that so many still think of Montessori as an upper-middle-class private school phenomenon.

The link is to a downloadable pdf file of the book as it is available on US Archive's website.

Language and Speech Development

AMI Trainers insist:
DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE THE ENTIRETY OF THE LANGUAGE ALBUM.



When the language album is providing a set of keys to the child, these same keys unlock information for the adult to guide the child in further learning; and special assistance as needed.

Because they are keys, every presentation is necessary in some form or another. It could be a quick presentation, the child demonstrates he's got it and is beyond it, so you move on quickly - but don't skip anything assuming the child already knows it - let him prove himself!


Every presentation, yes - every material? Do you need a complete set of card materials for every interest a child has? NO! Have a small number of card sets (less than 5) that go "all the way through" the entire sequence of card material. Then have additional sets at varying stages to provide information and experience-review at the child's age and interest. You might only create a booklet of something (child creates the cards if interested); or you might create only 4-part or 5-part cards for something (and the child creates their own booklet).

Perhaps a little boy is interested in the parts of a car engine at age 5 and he's already reading; he does not need the spoken language card set for this topic. AND he can make his own 3-part cards if desired. Remember the 3-part cards (and higher levels) are used as REVIEW of already-learned information, providing reading practice and practice with definition usage. They are not used to TEACH.

However, if he is having some speech or language difficulties and you are starting the language album over, you might modify the reading classification cards to have a spoken language game with him.

Following the primary language album to a T, allows for the easy identification of special needs. Most needed adaptations will be intuitive; some not so much, but you'll have documented information to take to a professional assessment and any needed therapists.

And there is a plethora of internet information now for modification ideas in needed areas. Start with the keys; identify any additional needs, and provide for them at that time.

Speech Development Issues

Montessori materials can pinpoint (and remediate) issues at very young ages, and in very precise ways.
A series of Montessori Nuggets will focus on some of these benefits to using pure Montessori materials.


SPEECH:


When the spoken language games in the primary Language album are played in their entirety and beginning at ages 2 1/2 - 3 1/2, they can provide SO many clues to a child's speech development. The spoken language components are so foundational to all other language works.

Indeed, primary trainers emphasize that if there is a delay or issue with reading, writing, vocabulary or any other language area within a classroom or a home, the best thing to do is to start the language album from the beginning all over again because something was missed. Then you can hone in on areas (without drudgery!) that need improvement. Note: you might not even ever figure out what was actually missing, because perhaps the children pick it up seamlessly the second time through.

Some of the things the adult can learn from these games:

• does the child have trouble with sounds in certain parts of words
• are some sounds just not heard by the child at all
• a hearing issue
• a speech issue
• a rhythm issue (yes, this impacts speech - think syllables, rhymes, songs)
• does the child not speak at all (no, you don't force this, but by age 4, they should be speaking even to school teachers whom they've known for several months)

AMI Trainers insist:
DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE THE ENTIRETY OF THE LANGUAGE ALBUM.


In summary, there are two Montessori Nuggets here:

1) The foundation and entirety of the language album. Do it all and have fun with it.
2) Use it to pinpoint issues that either need more work with the materials or may require a specialist.

Color-Blindness

Montessori materials can pinpoint (and remediate) issues at very young ages, and in very precise ways.
A series of Montessori Nuggets will focus on some of these benefits to using pure Montessori materials.


COLOR-BLINDNESS:


The chosen color scheme in the sensorial materials (and in math) minimize issues with a child with color-blindness. The child can still learn the concepts at hand, without being hindered by that color-blindness, as the materials will still look different from one another.

The teacher has the color tablets to discover and work with the color-blindness. But the child is not hindered anywhere else in most instances of color-blindness because of the design of the Montessori materials.


Color-blindness is not something with a treatment, however an awareness of it from the earliest possible age can provide the child with an understanding of why things don't look the same as they do with others; minimizes frustration all-around for parents, teachers, family, friends; and allows the child to get on with his life.

This child will need help coordinating clothing and may need some materials (mostly at home) adjusted so that he can function easily within the family. I have a friend who LOVES to golf; but he can't see a red flag on the green lawn, so he has to ask someone. Once it is pinpointed, he can make out the difference in texture, but rarely can he find it on his own. This sort of interdependence, with openness and honesty is something that can be developed from the youngest age, so there is no feeling of inferiority or other emotional issues that can result from a child "not knowing his colors".

Visit the Wikipedia page on color-blindness here.


normal vision in top row
dichromatic below (same apples)

Special Needs Identification and Treatment with Montessori Materials

Montessori materials and environments can pinpoint issues much earlier than typical tests and programs; but that does not mean that treatment is available at these younger ages. Interestingly enough, treatments for older children remarkably resemble Montessori materials. Not everything can be treated or remediated in the Montessori environment, but a surprisingly large percentage can. 

Watch this video (in pieces!) by Dr. Steve Hughes, Montessori parent and pediatric neuropsychologist at the University of Minnesota. He goes through how to maximize the potential of the Montessori materials with special needs children. 

Click here for the video. 

Click here for his main site where you can download the pdf of the slides from the video.