was a well-known psychologist and educator from Italy. Montessori discovered the Montessori method of education, which is still used in private and public schools around the world today
Montessori was born in 1870 near the city of Ancona. At the age of 13, she started going to a technical school for boys to pursue her dream of becoming an engineer. Montessori became the first woman to graduate from the La Sapienza medical school in Rome. She also became one of the first female doctors in Italy.
In 1896, at an educational congress in Turin, Montessori gave a lecture on working with the handicapped. The Italian Minister of Education attended the lecture and was impressed by it. He then appointed Montessori for a few years to head an institution that worked with the disabled.
Later, Montessori had success with disabled children and developed the so-called Montessori Method. Montessori founded a children's home (Italian: Casa dei Bambini) in Rome on. There, Montessori taught children to develop their various skills. Later on, other countries such as the USA etc. became interested in the methods of such homes.
During World War II, Benito Mussolini wanted to turn all children into soldiers, and Montessori, who opposed this, was deported from the country. She lived in Spain until 1936, and when the Spanish Civil War broke out in 1939, Montessori moved to the Netherlands.
That year she was invited to visit India. Montessori visited India with her only son, Mario Montessori Sr. Together they successfully developed their educational theories in India. She was forced to leave the country because of the war, but left many chapters of her work in India.
Montessori spent the rest of her life in Holland until 1952. She is regarded worldwide as one of the best specialists in working with children.