Prepared Environment

It will be obvious then that the prepared environment will have to contain a great many more things than just the small tables and chairs, cupboards, lavatories, etc.  We can group what is required under the following heads:

1.         The materials necessary for the carrying out of the exercises of practical life and similar occupations

2.         The sensorial materials

3.         The materials for the acquisition of culture- the Three R’s, history, geography, art, handwork, etc…

4.         Those things necessary for the development of his religious life.

(Standing, Maria Montessori: her life and work pg. 270)

The prepared environment is the special way that a Montessori classroom is set up in a way that respects the characteristics of each plane of development.  The classroom is prepared for the students to learn at their own pace, using materials as long as they need them, and creating an optimal place for “self-mastery.”  The classroom is set up with respect to their social, emotional, and intellectual needs