10 Best Montessori Books for Teachers

“The secret of good teaching is to regard the child's intelligence as a fertile field in which seeds may be sown, to grow under the heat of flaming imagination.”

-Maria Montessori

As teachers, it’s our empathy, approach, and patience that can support a child’s connection to school.

In honor of MTEI's 10th anniversary, we've compiled a list of the 10 best books for Montessori teachers! Allow this list to help you understand your pivotal role in a child's life. 

Top Books for Montessori Teachers

1. The Absorbent Mind - Maria Montessori

This is essentially the holy grail of Montessori philosophy. Allow Maria to refresh your memory of how crucial the first 6 years of life are in a child’s development, of how they soak everything in effortlessly, and what a pivotal role the teacher plays in preparing the environment.

1. The Tao of Montessori: Reflections on Compassionate Teaching - Catherine McTamaney 

Each verse leaves you with something to ruminate on, and will remind you why your job is so essential and why it’s important to be intentional each day. 

1. Positive Discipline in the Montessori Classroom - Chip DeLorenzo, M.Ed.

Have days where you are pulling out your hair getting children to listen and follow directions? Chip DeLorenzo encapsulates the core of educators fostering student empowerment. This book presents Positive Discipline through a Montessori lens, providing tangible and relatable classroom illustrations and offering guidance on how to be kind and firm at the same time. 

1. The Montessori Baby, The Montessori Toddler, The Montessori Child - Simone Davies 

Davies does an amazing job of reminding us that all ages of child development can be tricky.  She gracefully reminds us that raising little ones is not easy, but we are not alone in our struggles and most importantly, it’s okay not to be perfect. She gives realistic strategies in her three books to raise productive, cooperative, independent little people in as harmonious a way as possible. 

1. The Essential Montessori - Elizabeth G. Hainstock

This book is a valuable resource for both seasoned practitioners and newcomers to the method. It's an indispensable reference for teacher training programs, school selection, classroom materials, and more.

1. The Child Is the Teacher: A Life of Maria Montessori - Cristina De Stefano

This biography is brimming with fresh narratives and intriguing insights into Montessori's life. It offers a unique perspective from an author outside the Montessori movement, granting access to Montessori's original letters, diaries, notes, and texts, unveiling a wealth of previously unpublished material.

1. Montessori for Every Family: A Practical Parenting Guide to Living, Loving and Learning -  Lorna McGrath and Tim Seldin

Unlock daily Montessori magic with this modern parenting guide. It distills key principles for easy home application, serving as a valuable resource to create a Montessori-inspired family life. Accessible to every parent and instructor, this practical guide accommodates various time pressures and resources.

1. Montessori from the Start: The Child at Home, from Birth to Age Three - Paula Polk Lillard and Lynn Lillard Jessen

Derived from Dr. Maria Montessori's principles for nurturing infants and toddlers, this hands-on guide is packed with guidance, stories, and support for fostering composed, capable, and self-assured children. It covers everything from crafting the baby's room to promoting essential life skills like self-dressing and fostering both independent and collaborative work.

1. The Whole-Brain Child: 12 Revolutionary Strategies to Nurture Your Child's Developing Mind - Daniel J. J. Siegel and Tina Payne Bryson 

In this groundbreaking book, neuropsychiatrist Daniel J. Siegel and parenting expert Tina Payne Bryson offer twelve key strategies for fostering healthy brain development in children. Explaining the science behind a child's developing brain, the authors provide practical insights to turn challenging moments into opportunities for vital growth, resulting in calmer and happier children.

1. Montessori: The Science Behind the Genius - Angeline Stoll Lillard

In this revolutionary book, Angeline Stoll Lillard explores the scientific validation of Montessori's insights, detailing eight foundational principles and their classroom applications. The book provides parents and educators with a clear understanding of the method's success. Lillard not only elucidates the scientific basis but also critiques traditional approaches and proposes a proven alternative.

“I wake up every morning and jump out of bed to go to work. I see every day in the way a child’s face lights up when I show them a lesson, pause to listen to them, or give them a hug that what I do makes a difference. The gravity of what I do has instilled in me the belief that continual growth and improvement are essential. There is no point at which, as a teacher, you have ‘made it.’ The only way we can ensure we show our best selves each day and model the traits we want to see in our students is to never become stagnant in our own pursuit of learning.” 

“It is not enough for the teacher to love the child. She must first love and understand the universe. She must prepare herself, and truly work at it.”

 - Maria Montessori

Refine the Montessori Method with MTEI 

Are you prepared to deepen your teaching practices and take it to the next level? Join the Montessori Teacher Education Institute (MTEI) today, and embark on a transformative journey that will elevate your knowledge on the proven scientifically based educational method and understanding of the natural development of the whole child.   Gain access to a wealth of knowledge, practical insights, and innovative techniques that will empower you to become a more effective and impactful Montessori educator. Don't miss this opportunity to refine your Montessori method — enroll in MTEI now and open the door to a brighter future in education!

I would suggest taking out 4, 6, 8, 9

Books to add 

the child is the teacher - https://www.amazon.com/Child-Teacher-Life-Maria-Montessori/dp/1635420849

This is a new biography full of new stories and interesting facts about Montessori! 

Montessori for Every Family: A Practical Parenting Guide to Living, Loving and Learning

Montessori from the Start: The Child at Home, from Birth to Age Three

The Whole-Brain Child: 12 Revolutionary Strategies to Nurture Your Child's Developing Mind

Montessori Science behind the Genius 

What the World Needs Now: How Teaching Montessori Can Change Your Life (and the World)

Get ready. This is about to sound crazy, kitschy and maybe a little simple. Assuming you’ve already made the choice to embark on a career as a teacher, imagine waking up and knowing you can make a difference not just in your classroom children’s lives, but in the world? This is how I’ve felt almost every day since jumping ship and making the decision to become a Montessori Teacher. I am amazed and humbled by the transformations that happen in a Montessori classroom when you learn to give a child the freedom to explore and soak in the world around them, and at the same time provide guidance and developmentally appropriate tools to assist them.

The Montessori Method of teaching is dramatically different from traditional education. Some of the ways in which it differs are misconstrued. When you study Montessori, you’re taught to “follow the child” and the materials are displayed on the shelf where the child is free to explore them. This sometimes taunts parents or prospective teachers with the image of young children running wild, sweeping materials off the shelf in an outrageous free-for-all not unlike a jungle. However, allowing children to explore materials unbelievably has the opposite effect.

Montessori emphasizes Freedom within Limits. The children are invited to explore the materials and are given the freedom to observe older children’s lessons, as the classrooms are multi-age[1] . But they are also taught they must first be shown the lessons by a teacher, which are taught in a very specific way. Instead of unruly chaos, you develop a classroom full of children whose natural curiosity and enthusiasm is stoked and primed to learn. You create a classroom full of children who are taught to follow their instincts, make decisions for themselves, and learn early on - with the help of well-trained teachers as guides - what it is they love and have an affinity for. How many adults do you know that could have benefitted from growing up in a Montessori environment and cultivating a sense of inner direction as a child?

Montessori classrooms also look very different from traditional preschool or elementary school classrooms. They are not adorned with signs, rules, and loud pictures displaying the alphabet. They are purposely beautiful, neat, orderly, and tidy to encourage children to feel calm, relaxed, and inspired to explore and learn. The lessons are similarly thought-out and purposeful to engage a child’s interest whilst (unknowingly to the child) teaching him countless lessons at once. For example, the Practical Life lessons, things like Washing Dishes or Bathing a Baby, cater to a child's natural instincts to explore and work with water, engage in purposeful movement that requires them to slow down and become aware of their body in space by transporting water from one side of the class to the other. These long, sequential lessons also teach them responsibility, care of the environment, and attention to detail. When cleaning up they are taught to do everything left to right so as to reinforce how we read and write later on. And best of all - the lessons are designed to interest children so they want to work with them for hours on end, amazingly transforming the attention span of a 3 year old by directing his energy and giving him purpose.

In Montessori training you will find every single lesson has multiple purposes and has been time-tested to develop children that are eager to engage with materials. The lessons focus not only on teaching children Math or Language skills, although the scope of what a 3-5 year old is capable of in these subjects will blow your mind (Binomial Addition and Multiplication at 5 years old?!) Teaching in a Montessori room, you will discover that when a child is left to follow his interests without pressure or prompting from adults, reading and writing come naturally. However, the Montessori curriculum focuses on developing the whole child. Teaching manners, leadership, even a complete peace curriculum. What emerges after 3 years in Primary is a child who excels academically, can confidently express themselves, and cares for other people and the world around him. He is beginning to realize he is part of something greater than himself.

When you make the decision to become a Montessori teacher, you don't do it for the money. It is not always easy. Some days you will laugh. Some days you may cry. You will worry about doing too much for the child and squandering his sense of independence, or not enough and missing the “sensitive periods,” but you will never doubt your purpose. And in those moments where you are frustrated with yourself or perhaps it's rained for a week straight and your kids haven't had any outsidetime to expel their 5 year old endless energy and you are tired, a little girl or boy will see you and instinctively give you a hug. Or take a new, younger friend by the hand and gently help guide him to work. Or simply ask you to show them a lesson, so innocent, sweet, and full of curiosity that you have helped awaken, and you will be filled up again to the very top. And you'll remember why yours is one of the best careers - not a mere job - but a calling.