erin!balser

For On the Danforth, the student magazine that we here at the Book and Magazine publishing program at Centennial College produce, Jen and I interviewed Michelle Lane, the founder of the Lane Montessori School for Autism. She was a fabulous and very impressive woman.

Michelle founded the Lane Montessori School for Autism in 2003. She wanted to create a unique program for children with autism and special needs that combined the traditional Applied Learning Behavior Methods with the Montessori teaching methods developed by Maria Montessori in the late 1800s.

LMSA combines traditional Montesori teaching practices with Applied Behavior Analysis practices. The classes are very small–only four students each–and the students receive a lot of one-on-one attention. Lane’s school integrates traditional autism approaches with the Montessori approaches. Lane believes that the blend of these two approaches is best for children with autism.

“Children with autism are largely visual learners,” Lane says. “They learn concrete concepts through hands-on learning, as opposed to abstract concepts. It’s about understanding the world around them.”

The teaching practices maximize the learning potential of Lane’s students. The predictable daily routines and traditional teaching and learning methods provide stability for the children. The hands-on activities fully engage children and the interactive and multi-sensory approach stimulates and encourages them.

Through these methods children with autism can learn to mimic and mirror socially appropriate behavior and adopt them as their own. Research shows that children with autism best respond in when in small groups.

While the students are currently segregated from other Montessori programs, they play with other Montessori classes weekly and the school’s main objective is to work with these children so that they may eventually integrate into a traditional Montessori program.

So far, it’s been a successful venture. “The parents response have been overwhelmingly positive,” Lane says. “They’ve noticed their children have improved tremendously in terms of developing self esteem, and, most importantly, are happier.”

Because of her innovation, Lane was awarded the Premier’s Award in 2005. Her acceptance speech is below.

While Montessori practices, ABA practices, and the debates between segregated school programs versus integrated school programs for children with special needs remain hot topics, one cannot question Lane’s passion for her work or for the children she works with.

“I love what I do,” she says. “My heart opens up even more for these children.”

Autism teaching practices are a subject of great controversy. I’d love to hear your thoughts about the practices at LMSA or elsewhere!

For more information about the school, head to it’s official website. For more information about autism and programs available in Ontario, go to Autism Ontario.

Images by +pAula+. Licensed through Creative Commons.