While we want Emma to have some structure in her learnings (more work vs play), we encourage her to understand that she's unique in her wants &amp; needs; therefore in her development, we advise her to learn through discovery and work things out by herself or through cooperation with others.  We also strive for her to learn about the world and be independent.  We feel this process matches well with the Montessori method of teaching where there's a lot of practical, flexible and experiential situations for students to choose their activities, complete hands-on tasks, and get uninterrupted time to figure out things- all with great guidance from warm, supportive teachers.