Montessori Training Centre of BC
A Place of Education for adults on the nature of childhood
Montessori Assistants to Infancy – Diploma Course
“Whoever touches the life of the child,
touches the most sensitive point of a whole
which has roots in the most distant past and climbs toward the infinite future.”
Maria Montessori
Diploma granted
The Montessori Training Centre of British Columbia (MTCBC) works in affiliation with the Association Montessori Internationale. The courses offered must meet rigorous standards, in both content and teaching staff. The Diploma awarded by the MTCBC is in great demand by Montessori Schools both nationally and internationally. Individuals must enquire what local requirements set out by government regulatory bodies must also be met when applying for teaching positions.
Assistants to Infancy students are trained to work with parents perinatally, assist with the infant at birth, prepare beautiful and responsive environments, work in infant and toddler communities in schools and day care settings and in hospitals – wherever children under the age of three are found!
British Columbia Infant Toddler Educator 0 – 3
Infant Toddler Educator Certificate (ECE, Post Basic) The Assistants to Infancy Course is accredited by the provincial government. Graduates who hold an ECE certificate in British Columbia qualify for the Post Basic Infant Toddler Educator Certificate upon completion of the course. Applications for a certificate are sent to the Early Childhood Educator Registry, Ministry of Children and Family Development.
Faculty
An AMI Director of Training at the Assistants to Infancy Level, Maria Teresa (Chacha) Vidales has directed courses in Dallas, Texas, China and Australia. She also co-directed the Assistants to Infancy Course in Japan and San Diego, and collaborated with the course in Denver. Maria Teresa serves as AMI examiner, consultant, lecturer, and workshop leader. Maria Teresa also holds the AMI Primary diploma. She has operated a school in Mexico since 1989, and has been working with children close to thirty years. Chacha also served on the AMI Board of Directors. We are thrilled to be offering a 6th course under Chacha Vidales’ directorship.
As a daughter of Maria Teresa Vidales, Teanny Hurtado’s journey in Montessori began in Mexico City where she attended Montessori school from the age of 4 to 12 years. She holds her Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology and a Master’s Degree in Psychotherapy from the Universidad Iberoamericana, Mexico City. As an AMI Assistants to Infancy Diploma (0-3) holder, Teanny worked in Chacha’s Montessori school with this age group for more than 25 years. Here she opened the first Nido in Mexico in 1999 for babies aged 3 months old to walking. Currently she has been lecturing alongside Maria Teresa Vidales (Chacha) in courses in Mexico, China and Canada. Teanny is an AMI consultant in Mexico and the USA and gives workshops for teachers and parents. We are very pleased she is able to bring her deep passion for this age group to our course in Vancouver.
Assistants to Infancy Course Overview
The AMI Montessori Assistants to Infancy Training course graduates are prepared to be Montessori Infant Toddler Educators to work with parents perinatally, assist with the infant at birth, prepare beautiful and responsible environments, direct Infant Toddler Communities in schools and day care settings, in hospitals, and wherever children under the age of three are found! Spanish speaking students may do course work and take exams in Spanish. A Translation service may be arranged by the MTCBC for a group of students at the students’ own expense.
- Montessori Pedagogy and Philosophy: the natural development of the child from conception to three years of age
- Anatomy and Physiology
- Obstetrics Prenatal, birth, and postnatal development
- Nutrition and Hygiene Maternal care, digestive system, food preparation, and health issues
- Personality Development: The Nervous System and normal psychological development
- Development of Movement and Development of Language
- Environment Preparation of the home, Nido, and Infant Community as an aid to human development within the first three years of life
- Music, Art, and Social/Emotional Development
- Material Making Hand-made materials
- Observations: Practical training for observation of infants and toddlers in homes and Infant Communities
- Practicum in a Montessori Infant Community directed by an AMI Assistants to Infancy Diploma holder.
- Preparation of reference and curriculum albums
Course Calendar
First Summer
The first summer’s work begins with an overview of Montessori Pedagogy, following the child’s natural development, and focusing on the period from conception to age three. Students also study Anatomy and Physiology, Obstetrics, Hygiene and Nutrition in the medical components. Preparation for the Home Environment and materials to support the child’s Psychosensory-Motor Developments are carefully studied. Students make materials for children under 12 months, under the supervision of and marked by the Assistants to Infancy Trainers and Course Assistant.
Second Summer
The second summer furthers the students’ knowledge with a study of Child Neuropsychiatry and Community Environments. The focus is on preparation of the Infants Community (for children from 12 to 36 months). Written assignments are handed in regularly throughout the summer. Written and oral exams are given at the end of the second summer. Students are required to practice with the materials under supervision.
*MTCBC reserves the right to modify the schedule if required
Requirements for Certification
The Montessori Assistants to Infancy Diploma is granted upon satisfactory completion of the course requirements in:
- 90% attendance at lectures and supervised practice
- 250 hours observation and observation summaries of infants and toddlers which includes a one week practice in a Montessori Infant Community and 15 hours of community/social service
- material making assignments
- written assignments and research paper on the Symbiotic Period
- reference albums and resource manuals
- passing grades on written examinations
- passing grades in oral examinations conducted by Examiners of the AMI
Policies
Contact
Registrar: Adrienne Klassen – admissions@mtcbc-ami.org
Location
Montessori Training Centre of British Columbia Campus
1410 Nanton Ave. , Vancouver, BC V6H 2E2
(Entrance at corner of Nanton Ave. & Cartier St.)
* This program has been approved by the Private Training Institutions Branch (PTIB) of the Ministry of Advanced Education, Skills & Training.