Freedom within a prepared environment

Montessorian Susan Stephenson has just opened the first AMI Montessori classroom in Bhutan. Here’s the story in just two pictures:

BEFORE:  Children sit still on plastic chairs at group tables in a dark, dowdy classroom.  They learn from listening to the teacher, and from posters on the wall that are all well above head height:

 

AFTER: A clean, sunlit classroom in which children are invited to choose their own work lesson, on which they can work at their own pace in a peaceful, beautifully appointed environment without interruption—a great example of what Dr Montessori called “freedom within a prepared environment”:

 

Which would you choose for your child?

Visit Susan Stephenson’s website here for more on her Bhutan adventure, or the Association Montessori Internationale (AMI) website for more on the Montessori method and movement.