On Being a Montessori Directress

Thoughts & Reflections

We sat down with Charlotte Wood, a primary directress at Baan Dek, and asked a few questions about the nature of her work. We hope you find it helpful. This post is particularly geared towards prospective Montessori directresses, those who have expressed interest in a career.

Q: What do you like best about your job?
A: I like that every day is different. It keeps me on my toes. I love how you work and work and work on something with a child or with the class and all of a sudden, it happens, sometimes in the most unexpected ways. There are amazing things happening every day in my class.

Q: What do you like least?
A: It’s hard to have every day be different :) Children are autonomous, and we all have the right to make our own decisions in the classroom. Sometimes, the stars align and it all goes sideways. That’s when you just breathe and smile, and, really, it’s not that bad.

Q: Why do you feel that being a Montessori teacher is the right career path for you?
A: I was given this beautiful gift of a Montessori education, and I know it was formative to the person I am today. I love the benefits it gave me — I didn’t struggle with school. I like and crave challenges. Hard work is its own reward. I love learning. If I can give that to another, I would like to pay it forward.

Q: Would you ever teach in a tradition classroom and why or why not?
A: My undergrad isn’t in education, and teaching in a traditional environment holds no appeal for me. I am doing this work largely because of all the benefits I know it gave me, and I don’t see those same gifts bequeathed in traditional early childhood or elementary education.

We hope you enjoyed these thoughts from Charlotte Wood on being a Montessori directress.