By Tamara Mount, November 14, 2014
Time and time again, Dr. Maria Montessori’s ideas from 100 years ago are proven by modern science. Hilltop has been participating in the state-wide campaign, Let’s Grow Kids (http://www.letsgrowkids.org/), a public education campaign to raise the awareness of the importance of the early years in development. This campaign is to make Vermonters aware of facts that Maria Montessori noted in her early writings, “The most important period of life is not the age of university studies, but the first one, the period from birth to the age of six. For that is the time when man’s intelligence itself, his greatest implement is being formed. But not only his intelligence; the full totality of his psychic powers. At no other ages has the child greater need of an intelligent help, and any obstacle that impedes his creative work will lessen the chance he has of achieving perfection.”
Or, as Let’s Grow Kids puts it, “Eighty percent of a child’s brain is developed by age three and 90% is developed by age five.” And, “Getting kids ready for school means more than helping them with their ABCs, packing their lunch boxes, filling their backpacks, and getting them to the bus on time. It starts the day they’re born with quality early experiences.” Montessorian’s have known it all along – the early years of development are critical and are worthy of investment – the investment of providing the quality experiences that happen at Hilltop every day.