Montessori vs. Waldorf: 5 Crucial Differences Every Parent Should Know

The prominent Montessori and Waldorf educational methods have been around since the first half of the 20th century. Yet, they seem more popular these days than ever before. More and more private schools bearing one of these names are opening up across the globe.

The problem parents face nowadays is the clutter of information, making the choice between Waldorf schools and Montessori schools difficult. So, let's pose that big question:

The Montessori method was founded and named after Maria Montessori, one of the first Italian female physicians. She was also a teacher - that’s how she perfected her educational method. Moreover, she opened the first Montessori school in Rome in 1907.

The first Casa dei Bambini (Montessori school) was focused on the educational journey of underprivileged children. Later, her Montessori approach to childhood development spread worldwide, with more than 15.000 Montessori schools introducing her methods into early childhood classrooms.

The first Waldorf school was founded in 1919 in Stuttgart. The owner of the Astoria Waldorf cigarette factory invited Rudolf Steiner, an educator, and a spiritualist, to open a school for factory workers’ children.

After that first school, in 1928, the Waldorf school expanded to the United States, New York City specifically. That Waldorf school is still open under the name Rudolf Steiner School. Finally, there are more than 3000 schools around the world that follow the same philosophy.

Waldorf education focuses on a child's imagination and imaginative play, and Montessori schools focus on practical life skills. Waldorf schools follow the idea of stories, music, and art being preferred over academic studies in the earliest stages of education. Waldorf method advises schools to introduce core academics to older students.

Maria Montessori firmly believed in children’s “work.” That's how she referred to child’s play. During her teaching years, she discovered that children enjoy learning real-life skills more than make-believe, pretend play.

Consequently, having practical skills gave children more confidence and made them more independent. Some of these skills are:

She also included math, spelling, science, and other academic fields into her curriculum through play.

On the other hand, Waldorf education favors fantasy and pretend play until age 7. Also, Rudolf Steiner believed that children’s education is at its best when all its aspects are taught simultaneously - artistic, athletic, academic, and social.

This is probably the biggest difference when comparing Montessori and Waldorf. In most Waldorf schools, classes look like the traditional classes we’re all used to. In a Waldorf classroom, children are seated at their tables, facing the teacher, and listening to their lectures following their academic curriculum. Children learn by being guided by their teacher and following their cues.

However, in the Montessori classroom, things are quite different. Maria Montessori was a big advocate of child-led and hands-on learning experiences. Learning materials are spread out around the classroom, and a child can choose what they’ll learn and when.

The role of the Montessori teacher is to be a guide more than a lecturer. They are there to encourage children to learn important skills in the natural environment at their own pace.

Both Montessori and Waldorf education methods emphasize a child as an individual student. Still, if you choose Montessori, you can expect your child's activities to be designed by your child more than their teacher.

A Montessori preschool learning environment is designed to accommodate the child-led education process. Not only that, but they also have a designated place for every single item and learning material. This is for two reasons:

Materials in the Waldorf classroom encourage creative and imaginary play. “Outdoors” are also a big part of Waldorf classrooms. Children learn to use homemade toys and items, and their learning environments can sometimes resemble a fairytale.

Since music, dance, theater, and writing are such a huge part of the Waldorf method, classrooms must be prepared for that. Waldorf classrooms favor nature and arts over technology.

Montessori classrooms also include mixed-age classrooms. They usually go from 3-6, 6-9, 9-12, etc. Maria Montessori discovered that peers are great teachers - kids pick up a lot by simply playing alongside their friends. This type of play is called parallel play.

However, the age gap inside Montessori classrooms provides an opportunity for various social interactions like learning from older kids or taking leadership.

In this regard, Waldorf classrooms resemble those we all grew up in - all children in one group are the same age. However, they will stay with the same teacher for 5-8 years. This is longer than is the case with the Montessori philosophy of education.