Maria Montessori

"To make the child follow our discipline as submissively as possible, we have arranged a system calculated to make him despotic."

"The principles of true teaching must spring from the eternal principles by which all mankind has sought the betterment of life."

"The life we are given is not merely an individual possession, but is committed to us in trust for the whole world."

"The environment is best described as a 'prepared environment', one which has been carefully calculated to assist the child's development."

"One test of the correctness of educational procedure is the happiness of the child."

"Obedience is not a natural condition of childhood."

"The child must make his own discoveries, and we should provide the material, but be careful not to make the discoveries ourselves."

"Development is a series of rebirths."

"I have observed that the principal causes of failure in students is that they become discouraged by a single mistake."

"The child is truly a miraculous being, but the miracles come about only when there has been the proper preparation."

"The creation of a thousand forests is in one acorn."

"Peace is the first thing to be desired in the world, and this we can obtain only through the development of man."

"Art belongs to us all. It is the expression of feeling through creation."

"The senses are the organs by which the individual places himself in direct relation with the external world."

"To serve humanity, one must work to develop man himself."

"The test of a civilization is in the way that it cares for its helpless members."

"The child's absorbent mind is one of the wonders of nature. The child absorbs his environment and becomes himself."

"Movement is a fundamental need of the developing child, not an incidental activity."

"Love is a precious seed that must be nurtured and protected."

"The adult has forgotten how to play, but the child knows instinctively that play is serious business."

"Discipline is not domination, but guidance toward freedom and responsibility."

"We should concern ourselves with establishing values, not memorizing facts."

"The child's life is entirely bound up with doing. Through doing, the child understands, acquires knowledge, and develops mentally."

"The future of civilization depends on the education of the young."

"The true teacher is one who leads the child to knowledge, not one who pours knowledge into the child."

"A person cannot live only for himself. He must serve humanity as well as himself."

"The hand is the instrument of the human intelligence."

"Education should be a system of supports, not a system of constraints."

"The child is the builder of the man, and there is no man existing who was not made by the child he once was."

"We must recognize that within the child lies a mighty power which can aid us in building a better world."