Montessori albums are similar to the teacher edition of a text book of a conventional school in that they contain step by step instructions for giving lessons or presentations to children in a given subject. In Montessori, however, children don’t learn from text books, but primarily from their interaction with the materials. Albums contain the instructions for presentation of materials to the children by the teacher, or guide. Albums tell you how to give each specific Montessori lesson. They serve as a reference to the teacher, and often include pictures of the material, scope and sequence, suggested age and prerequisites for presentations, and sometimes blackline masters for any printed material. What they often do not contain is important information about the theory and philosophy behind the method.
In the past, albums may have seemed illusive, because they are traditionally created by people as they are going through training programs to become a Montessori certified teacher. Once in the classroom, the albums are an important reference, and therefore not often parted with. Also, unlike traditional schools that are required to throw out their text books every few years to reflect the latest state standards and requirements, many Montessori lessons stick to their roots, and have not changed as drastically over time. There are some training programs that actively discourage their graduates from sharing albums online as they see it as an infringement of intellectual property. Still others believe it is a bad idea to allow people to use a Montessori album without the accompanying philosophy classes that come with a certificate. Some training programs provide pre-made albums as part of their courses, that can be purchased, but this is not something that has always been readily available to a parent or educator wanting to learn how to deliver a Montessori lesson. Of course, you can now purchase albums online, but they can vary greatly in price and quality.
In this post, I will share links to free online Montessori math albums that contain instructions on how to present lessons.
WHERE TO FIND FREE MONTESSORI ALBUMS
Montessori Album | www.montessorialbum.com
I love this site, and even though I have my own albums from my Montessori training program, I regularly reference it. The color photos, clean visual format, and step by step breakdown makes it useful as a quick reminder before presenting a lesson that hasn’t been given in a while.
Info Montessori | www.infomontessori.com
This is another great online resource that has written descriptions, as well as videos of lessons being given. This site also contains a bit of a background on the theory of how and why things are done a certain way in the Montessori Method, and includes some great photos of Montessori shelves and materials.
This site contains downloadable, printable albums, including a 6-9 Lower Elementary Math PDF album. This is great for anyone wanting to create a binder that can be referenced offline.
Wikisori | www.wikisori.org
This site as the name implies is a wiki page, built by Montessori guides to benefit other Montessori guides. It has math albums for 3-6, 6-9, and 9-12, although not complete as this is a collaborative site. There are also parent and teaching resources on the site, as well as printables, and resources for DIY materials.
Montessori Teachers Collective | www.moteaco.org
This site has links to 6-9 elementary albums, including Geometry. There is also a scope and sequence page for the curriculum covering 3-12 years.
Montessori Commons | www.montessoricommons.cc
This site's stated purpose is to "share a comprehensive set of albums and spread Maria Montessori’s method. This content is and will always be free to access." There are math lessons from the Casa years for ages 2.5-6. The online album is grouped by topic, such as: Numbers 1-10, and contains detailed descriptions of each presentation. Several photos accompany the album as well.
Montessori World Educational Institute | www.montessoriworld.org
This site contains videos of historical training workshops for beginning and primary math given by Margaret Homfray. Margaret received her training from Dr. Montessori herself! She opened several training centers around the world, and was one of three women that Dr. Montessori authorized to sign diplomas in her method. Decades ago, Margaret came to California and held the lectures seen in the video to students at UC Santa Barbara, and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. Currently, the Montessori World Educational Institute offers hands-on workshops and home study diploma programs that use the albums written by Margaret. Lessons from the Beginning Math album can also be found on the website as links.
WHERE TO FIND PRINTABLES FOR LESSONS
CLICK HERE for Montessori math printables.
