Prepared environment in Montessori kindergarten

Za Mariu Montessori su svi čuli, no često njen lik i pojam „Montessori pedagogija“ ljudi povezuju sa strogom metodom koja od djece zahtjeva red, rad i disciplinu. No svatko tko si je dao malo truda i krenuo u istraživanje literature o Montessori pedagogiji zna da nije tako. Maria Montessori je bila izvanredna žena, kažu za nju nerijetko „žena ispred svog vremena“, kroz svoj život se zalagala za prava žena i prava djece, a danas mnogi pohađaju edukacije kako bi radili s djecom prema njenoj metodi. Kroz svoj životni put razvila je Montessori pedagogiju koja je kroz godine i godine stekla dugu tradiciju i svjetski ugled. Do dan danas najpopularnija je upravo u Italiji gdje je i osnovana, no postaje popularna i po drugim europskim zemljama, a i ostatku svijeta. Montessori pedagogija je pedagogija u čijem središtu je dijete, a Maria Montessori razvila je i svijetu predstavila poseban pribor koji se koristi na poseban način, a kroz koji djeca razvijaju samostalnost podučavajući sami sebe te imaju potpunu slobodu izbora. Za provođenje Montessori pedagogije od iznimne je važnosti pripremljena okolina, čija se važnost vidi iz više aspekata, a o čemu će se posebno govoriti u ovom radu. Za pripremljenu okolinu važan je jedinstveni Montessori materijal kojeg je Maria Montessori osmislila na temelju svojih opažanja i koristila ga kao pomoć učenju djeci s poteškoćama u razvoju, ali kasnije i za djecu bez poteškoća. Od velike je važnosti i spremnost i rad odgojitelja koji tu okolinu priprema, te promatra djecu i pomaže im u rastu i razvoju kroz poticanje i nuđenje materijala ovisno o njihovim interesima.Maria Montessori is a worldwide well known name, but often people associate her and the term "Montessori pedagogy" with a strict method that requires order, work and discipline from children. But anyone who has put in a little effort and researched the literature about Montessori pedagogy knows that this is not the case. Maria Montessori was an extraordinary woman – "a woman ahead of her time", throughout her life she protected women's rights and children's rights. Today many educators take Montessori education to learn how to use her method in their work. Throughout her life, she developed Montessori pedagogy, which over the years and years has gained a long tradition and world reputation. To date, Montessori method is most popular in Italy, where it was founded, but it is also becoming popular in other European countries and the rest of the world. Montessori pedagogy is child-oriented pedagogy, and Maria Montessori has developed a special didactic materials of special use, through which children develop independence by teaching themselves and have complete free choice. For the implementation of Montessori pedagogy, the prepared environment is extremely important, the importance of which can be seen from several aspects, and which will be discussed in particular in this paper. Importance for prepared environment is the unique Montessori material that Maria Montessori designed was first used on children with disabilities, but later also for children without disabilities. Of great importance and readiness is the work of educators, who prepare this environment, observe children, help them grow and develop, trough encouraging and offering materials regardless of their interests