Maria Montessori was a truly remarkable woman. Born in 1870, she was the first woman to be granted a medical degree from an Italian University.

When Dr Montessori became a director of a school for intellectually disabled children she became interested in the work of Itard and Seguin. She was able to achieve remarkable results and these children competed successfully in public examinations. Dr Montessori began to wonder what was possible to achieve using these methods with normal children.

Her life work began with a group of pre-school slum children in 1907 when she opened her famous "Casa dei Bambini" or "Children's House".

Through her observations and work with these children she discovered their remarkable, almost effortless ability to learn. Children taught themselves! This simple but profound truth formed the cornerstone of her life long pursuit of educational reform.

Maria Montessori
1870 ~ 1952