{"tema_id":"4","string":"Freedom within limits","created":"2023-02-02 18:36:46","code":null,"modified":"2023-10-10 16:49:43","notes":[{"@type":"Definition","@lang":"en","@value":"The Montessori principle of freedom within limits recognizes that children and adolescents thrive when given autonomy within a prepared environment that provides clear expectations and boundaries. While children are free to choose their work and follow their interests, they do so with respect for others, their environment, and their community. This balance fosters independence while nurturing discipline from within and social cohesion. In the early years, prepared environments allow for freedom of movement and choice within reasonable limits, which enables children to exercise free choice while respecting classroom ground rules. As adolescents enter the third plane of development, they expand their relationship to freedom within limits by actively challenging boundaries, developing autonomy, and learning through experience. They begin to recognize that the world itself operates on a principle of freedom within bounds, shaped by legal, social, moral, and ecological responsibilities. Through this journey, they cultivate discipline, empathy, and a sense of stewardship. In Montessori education, the freedom to choose and the responsibility to engage in purposeful work are fundamental. "},{"@type":"Bibliographic note (Maria Montessori Sources)","@lang":"en","@value":"Montessori, M. (2007). From childhood to adolescence (Appendix A, \u201cErdkinder,\u201d pp. 56-67). Montessori-Pierson Publishing Company. (Original work published 1948) "},{"@type":"Bibliographic note (Maria Montessori Sources)","@lang":"en-US","@value":"Montessori, M. (2012). The 1946 London lectures (Lecture 33, pp. 232-236). Montessori-Pierson Publishing Company. "},{"@type":"Bibliographic note (Maria Montessori Sources)","@lang":"en-US","@value":"Montessori, M. (2007). The absorbent mind (pp. 81\u201383; pp. 219\u2013238; p. 259). Montessori-Pierson Publishing Company. (Original work published 1949) "},{"@type":"Bibliographic note (Maria Montessori Sources)","@lang":"en-US","@value":"Montessori, M. (2007). Education and peace (pp. 96-106). Montessori-Pierson Publishing Company. (Original work published 1949) "},{"@type":"Bibliographic note (Maria Montessori Sources)","@lang":"en-US","@value":"Montessori, M. (2019). The secret of childhood (pp. 124\u2013125). Montessori-Pierson Publishing House. (Original English-language work published 1936) "},{"@type":"Bibliographic note (Montessori Related Sources)","@lang":"en","@value":"Frierson, P. R. (2019). Intellectual agency and virtue epistemology: A montessori perspective. In Intellectual Agency and Virtue Epistemology: A Montessori Perspect. (p. 272). Bloomsbury Publishing Plc. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.5040\/9781350018853 "},{"@type":"Bibliographic note (Montessori Related Sources)","@lang":"en","@value":"Frierson, P. R. (2022). The Moral Philosophy of Maria Montessori: Agency and Ethical Life. In The Moral Philosophy of Maria Montessori: Agency and Ethical Life (p. 262). Bloomsbury Publishing Plc. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.5040\/9781350176409 "},{"@type":"Bibliographic note (Montessori Related Sources)","@lang":"en","@value":"Portales Rosas, D. S., Rodr\u00edguez Nieto, I. M., & Gaytan-Reyna, S. E. (2025). Impact of Montessori Strategies on Children\u2019s Autonomy: A Pre-Experimental Study. LACCEI, 2(13). https:\/\/doi.org\/10.18687\/LEIRD2025.1.1.329 [in Spanish] "},{"@type":"Bibliographic note (Modern Scientific Insights)","@lang":"en","@value":"Haggard, P. (2008). Human volition: Towards a neuroscience of will. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 9(12), 934\u2013946. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1038\/nrn2497 "},{"@type":"Bibliographic note (Modern Scientific Insights)","@lang":"en","@value":"Reyero, D., & Gil Cantero, F. (2019). Education that limits is education that frees. Revista Espanola de Pedagogia, 77(273), 213\u2013227. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.22550\/REP77-2-2019-01 "},{"@type":"Bibliographic note (Modern Scientific Insights)","@lang":"en","@value":"Mattos, J. C. de . (2026). The pedagogy of virtues: The occasion method: Gift, freedom, and the formation of character in children and adolescents. PhilPapers. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.5281\/zenodo.22335838 "},{"@type":"Contributors","@lang":"en-US","@value":"Rog\u00e9r Dijk, Montessori School Community Amsterdam "}]}