Article #3

Integrating Technology  into the Montessori Elementary Classroom
by: Elizabeth Ross Hubbell


Out of all of the articles I have previously read this one is the most interesting. Seeing as though I have never taught in a Montessori school or classroom this article cleared up some misconceptions as well as gave me some ideas for my own classroom.

In the article the writer describes the day in the life of a student at this Montessori school. The article describes various ways that the classroom teacher integrates technology. My initial thought of  a Montessori classroom was that students free frolic and do whatever task they wanted to on their level. I'm not sure if all Montessori classrooms are this way but it was very well organized. As the student walked into the classroom her working records were on the table arranged by year.A work record is a piece of paper on which a table of subjects is printed. The teacher creates this spreadsheet in Excel and prints the child's name on it. It allows the student to know exactly where they are going for the day and the week. It also makes them aware of what specials they have and  and what subjects they can choose from. One thing that was incredible is that Spanish is considered part of the specials rotation, and these were 3rd grade students. Most students don't learn Spanish until middle school and this gives students the opportunity to be well advanced .

 The teachers are well organized and keep track of what lessons or projects the student had previously completed.  What I liked most about this article is that students in this classroom have multiple opportunities for technology integration. The student started her day with a research project using a kid friendly search engine called Yahooligans. She also had the opportunity to search for pictures on National Geographic. She knew how to copy and paste a picture into word and retrieve previous work that she had completed on the computer.

Students in this classroom have been successful in this because this skill has been modeled for the student.  In the classroom a computer was hooked to a TV screen to be used as the teacher demonstrated how to use the internet. This strategy is particularly important because students need to see skills being modeled and what they are to do when they work independently. This is a strategy that can also used with a smart board.

I also noticed that teachers had systems in place. As the student was working on the computer, other students who were interested in working on that computer could come up quietly and place their names on the bottom of the list. There were several programs students could use on the computers. They could use the computer for research, using the typing tutor, or type a story or poem. While other students have the opportunity to use the math and spelling software.

It seems as though this teacher has technology integration figured out pretty well. Students are afforded multiple opportunities to use technology in this classroom which is great. Although my classroom isn't ran like this at all there are a lot of ideas I can glean and use in my classroom for the future.

Hubbell, E. (2003). Integrating Technology into the Montessori Elementary Classroom.Montessori Life, 15(2), 40-41.