The Montessori Academy at Edison Lakes acknowledges the impact of critical learning periods in early childhood on developing social, emotional, intellectual, physical, and moral competencies. The influence of a Montessori education respects the uniqueness of each person and preserves and nurtures an innate capacity to reach full potential as contributing world citizens. This is accomplished through individually paced academic instruction and activities directed by Montessori certified professionals working in concert with students and their families. Our curriculum provides for concept development and skill acquisitions in prepared classrooms with a focus on learning-by-doing. Our methods enable students to develop respect for individual differences as they engage in purposeful, collaborative learning. Our students use inner discipline, concentration, and task completion for lifelong critical thinking and discovery.

The Montessori Academy at Edison Lakes builds its classrooms on the principles of Dr. Maria Montessori (1870-1952), an Italian pediatrician whose research in early childhood and elementary education during the early 1900s gave birth to an educational system that has since grown worldwide. Dr. Montessori believed that by placing children in a stimulating, specially prepared environment, their natural curiosity would help them become self-motivated learners. She stressed individually paced learning, freedom of choice and movement, and the importance of self-discovery. Education was preparation for life, not merely a search for intellectual skills. To this end, Dr. Montessori designed materials for all subject areas and activities which children experience sensorially and interactively in a multi-age, multi-ethnic classroom setting.

The teacher prepares the environment, programs and activity, and then functions as a guide and exemplar, providing encouragement. "Never let children risk failure until they have a reasonable chance of success," Dr. Montessori said. At every step of learning, the teaching material is designed to test understanding and correct errors. Patterns of time management, concentration, task completion, and thoroughness established in early years produce a competent learner in later years.

Montessori education was introduced in the United States in 1912 when Alexander Graham Bell established one of the first schools in his own home. Americans enthusiastically welcomed Dr. Montessori in 1915 to establish classrooms for the World Exhibition in San Francisco, California. Today the Montessori method thrives in the United States, with more than 3,000 schools established since 1957. The year 2007 marks the 100 year centennial of the Montessori method, which originated in 1907.