Nursery World - School to offer guidance on adopting Montessori methods

Five years on from becoming the first state primary school to introduce Montessori teaching, Gorton Mount Primary School in Manchester is producing a 'how-to' guide for other state schools that are considering adopting Montessori methods.

Last year the school's Early Years Foundation Stage Profile results went up by 20 per cent in all areas of learning.

Gorton Mount is in the 10 per cent most deprived areas in the country. The guide points out that the area has high rates of unemployment, crime and drug misuse, with poor health and literacy levels.

More than half of the 456 children aged from three to 11 years at Gorton Mount have special educational needs, with 69 per cent of children on free school meals and 45 different languages spoken at the school.

Head teacher Carol Powell credits the school's success to the one-to-one element of Montessori teaching, which sees teachers as 'facilitators'. She said that the approach improves children's 'concentration and risk-taking'.

Register now to continue reading

Thank you for visiting Nursery World and making use of our archive of more than 35,000 expert features, subject guides, case studies and policy updates. Why not register today and enjoy the following great benefits:

What's included