Dr  Maria Montessori, a multifaceted lady, the first woman with a medical degree in Italy, started the first House of Children in San Lorenzo in 1906, now a globally accepted alternative educational system. Rukmani Arundale, invited Dr Montessori to India in 1939, and several schools follow the system.
Start of an era
Sophie Sivasankar, under the tulage of  M Joosten, the representative for Montessori in India, armed with a diploma in pre-primary education from the Montessori Internationale - Amsterdam, started a pre-primary school in 1965, for the Tashi Nmgyal Academy in Sikkim.  Returning to Bangalore in 1975, Akshara Montessori House of Children started with ten students, expanding to the school in Ulsoor, which has 300 children. As many as 10,000 children have passed its portals in the 33 years of operation.
With the view of enabling children to continue till High School, a new building was visualised at Sathanur village, 7 km from Yelahanka. Sophie designed the structure, Sumant (her husband), supervised the building, inaugurated in 2006, with pre-primary to Standard V, which plans to expand to Class X.
Natural delight
Spread over a 3-acre area, the aesthetic building incorporating Kerala style of architecture, abounds with natural light and ventilation.
A manicured garden, a pond on one side, with frogs and tadpoles, enable children to learn zoology even before they learn to read. Children aged 2–6 years, have a mind like an open window, absorbing an incredible amount of knowledge, which stays with them. An amphitheatre and skating rink skim the periphery of the cycling track. On one side of the football field, is the Art Village, for dance, clay modelling and painting.   
“We don’t call ourselves teachers, we guide the children to develop, without restrictions,’’ says Sophie. The pre-designed education package, supplied from Hyderabad, teaches maths and colours.
The learning packages are neatly presented in boxes with lids,  a child can take one package at a time, putting it back on the shelf, when he finishes. There are no conventional books, the children touch and learn about rough and smooth surfaces, spell words with the movable alphabets.
Flexible curriculum
Children of age groups from four to six, interact in one class, as it is believed that younger children absorb more in the presence of older ones. Though the itinerary for the class is preset, if a child is not interested in checking out  math and  colours, he can make chapatis, learn to button a garment, check out textures of fabric, pair similar forms,  practical agricultural knowledge, sensitivity to nature, after which the child is not bored and is hungry for more.
A science lab, audio visual room, a well equipped library skirts the side of the building. Children are encouraged to refer to books, as teachers don’t write the lesson on the backboard for children to copy.  “Many parents are perturbed they have no homework. Since they have no concept of the education system, they don’t understand the child’s narration of the day’s activities. Yet, they assert that their children are more educated in diverse subjects, than those of the same age attending regular schools, says Sophie. Activities like cooking, dance, painting, etc, are greatly sought after. With a diploma in Bharatnatyam, and water colour painting from the Royal Drawing Society- London, Sophie takes these classes, totally dedicated to the physical and mental development of the children.
Contact:
Akshara Art of Learning-
Terrapin Station, Sathanur Village, Bagalur Post-
Bangalore-560049.
Ph:  080- 57700814