How does The Giles School differ from a Montessori school?
Montessori and other popular methods of educating children encourage students to be self-directed while the teacher remains an observer only. Montessori teachers are even often called “guides” or “directors” rather than teachers. In contrast, The Giles School offers structured tasks supported by positive reinforcement. Children learn to read, write and speak foreign languages because they are shown how and are encouraged when they mimic the skill. The tragedy of many popular education models is that the younger the children are, the more open-ended the structure often is. Precisely at the age when children are most receptive to stimulation and mirroring, the majority of educators shy away, letting children “learn through discovery”. Learning should be interactive but also directed, so as to speed up the learning process. By teaching the class as a whole, all of the children can learn more quickly, instead of letting the children discover their own way. Learning through play, song, inte
