About
The Doctress
of Peace
This is a page is ongoing work outlining the life of Dr. Maria Montessori and her work to create citizens for a more peaceful world.
1870 - Birth
Maria Montessori was born August 31, 1870 in Chiaravlle, Italy. She was born to Alessandro an Renilde Stoppani. The family would live here until moving to Rome in 1874.
For more information about her the local area and its influence on Maria Montessori's family, I would highly recommend the article, Chiaravalle: The Unknown Influence on Maria Montessori's Path from the Summer 2020 version of Montessori Life published by American Montessori Sociey.
Chiaravalle, Italy
Image found on https://www.italymagazine.com/chiaravalle
1876 - Primary and Secondary Education
Maria Montessori began her education at the age of 6 in a local school. Here, she received the typical education for all children at the time. After primary school, education for females stopped, but Maria wished to continue her education. With her mother's support, her father acquiesced to his tenacious daughter. If females entered secondary school, it was to become an educator, something young Maria knew would not be her path. She studied engineering in an all boys technical school.
Maria Montessori, aged 10
Image found on: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/eb/Maria_Montessori_%28um_1880%29.jpg/271px-Maria_Montessori_%28um_1880%29.jpg
1890 - University Years
Again, defying the wishes of her family and the cultural standards of females, Maria enrolled in the University of Rome in 1890. Despite early intentions to study engineering, she would receive study natural sciences, mathematics, and physics. She would graduate in 1892 while also studying in Italian and Latin.
University of Rome, 1890
Image found on: https://www.gettyimages.co.nz/detail/news-photo/the-university-sapienza-in-rome-italy-photo-from-1890-news-photo/1277805972
1892 - Medical School
Yet again, parental and societal pressures encouraged her to move to a career in education. Undeterred, Maria enrolled in medical school - one of the first Italian women to do so. She endured extreme circumstances like earning scholarships to afford tuition and smoking tobacco to mask formaldehyde. Most astonishingly, she would study on her own in the morgue at night because society deemed it inappropriate for males and females to examine naked bodies together. Her final two years studying pediatrics and psychiatry, she became Doctor Maria Montessori.
1900 - The Orthophrenic School
Maria Montessori is named the director of The Orthophrenic School. The school served children with developmental disabilities. It also functioned as an education center for new teachers. It is at the Orthophrenic School that Dr. Montessori, through observation of children, designs and implements materials aimed to develop the child's five senses.
1909 - Il Metodo della Pedagogia Scientifica applicato all’educazione infantile nelle Case dei Bambini
Dr. Montessori's first book is published. It is entiled Il Metodo della Pedagogia Scientifica applicato all’educazione infantile nelle Case dei Bambini (which translates to The Method of Scientific Pedagogy Applied to Child Education at The Children's House in English).
In its first English publication, the title is renamed as The Montessori Method.
1910 - Pedagogical Anthropology is published
Summary
Image found on: https://www.loc.gov/item/13016840/
1915 - The International Kindergarten Union
Summary
1915 - The National Education Association
Summary
1915 - The Panama-Pacific International Exhibition
The Panama-Pacific International Exhibit is held to celebrate the construction of the Panama Canal. One of the exhibits includes a class full of Montessori students working in a glass-walled classrooms.
Image found on: https://www.nps.gov/goga/learn/historyculture/ppie.htm
1949 - The Absorbent Mind is published
Summary
Image found on: https://amiusa.org/product/the-absorbent-mind/
1949 - The Formation of Man is published
Summary
Image found on: https://amiusa.org/product/the-formation-of-man/
1950 - The Discovery of the Child
This book is the fifth republication of Dr. Montessori's first publication, Il Metodo della Pedagogia Scientifica applicato all’educazione infantile nelle Case dei Bambini (The Montessori Method).
It is renamed as the The Discovery of the Child
Bibliography
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Biography of Maria Montessori | Association Montessori Internationale. (n.d.). Association Montessori Internationale. Retrieved February 11, 2024, from https://montessori-ami.org/resource-library/facts/biography-maria-montessori
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Langford, J. (2018, January 3). A piece of Her-story: Maria Montessori’s study | Montessori Child. Monztessori Child; Montessori Child. https://www.montessorichild.com.au/blogs/news/a-piece-of-her-story-maria-montessoris-study
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Mandolini, Francesco. (2020). Chiaravalle: The Unknown Influence on Maria Montessori's Path. Montessori Life. Summer 2020.
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Maria Montessori. (n.d.). Encyclopædia Britannica; Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved from https://www.britannica.com/biography/Maria-Montessori
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Maria Montessori. (2001, November 19). Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia; Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Montessori
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Who was Maria Montessori? (n.d.). Montessori Resources for Schools, Teachers, Families and Parents | American Montessori Society. Retrieved, from https://amshq.org/About-Montessori/History-of-Montessori/Who-Was-Maria-Montessori