An Assistant in a Montessori Classroom Is Not Just Extra Help. They Are Part of the Team

Asistent v montessori třídě není pomocná síla. Je součástí týmu

9. 9. 2026

When we hear “teaching assistant”, we may picture someone who helps in the classroom wherever help is needed at the moment. In a Montessori environment, however, the role is far more significant. An assistant is not just another pair of hands. They observe the children, care for the environment, help keep the classroom running and, together with the teacher, create the conditions in which children can work as independently as possible.

In the Hanky ve středu dění podcast, Hanka Trejklová, Hanka Slabá and Mili Pažická focus on the role of the assistant and on cooperation in the classroom. Drawing on many years of their own experience, they show why a well-functioning teacher and assistant pair can shape the atmosphere of the whole class.

An assistant is not a subordinate teacher

In the conversation, Hanka Slabá recalls her experience as an assistant in a mainstream school a long time ago. The teacher gave her tasks the child was supposed to complete that day, and her job was mainly to lead the child to finish them. At the time, she saw the relationship between teacher and assistant mainly as one between a superior and a subordinate.

In a Montessori classroom, cooperation should look different. The teacher and the assistant have different roles and responsibilities, yet they work as partners. They need to know where they are heading together, what they expect from each other and who is responsible for what. As the conversation points out, they sometimes spend more time together in the classroom than with their partners at home. Without communication and mutual trust, it is hard to manage.

Knowing what an assistant should do is not enough

During their training, teachers learn how to work with children, prepare the environment and present materials. But few are taught how to work with another adult in the classroom. Likewise, an assistant may start with great enthusiasm to help, but without a clear idea of where their role begins and ends.

A well-functioning tandem therefore does not happen automatically. The teacher must be able to say what they need from the assistant, and the assistant needs to know their responsibilities. Sometimes eye contact or an agreed signal during the day is enough; at other times, they need to sit down after work and talk through what happened in the classroom. The better the adults work together, the less their cooperation disrupts the natural flow of the class.

Theory ends the moment children walk into the classroom

In the podcast, Mili recalls her first teaching practice. Prepared and full of expectations, she wanted to try presenting the pink tower. But first she lost track of the child she was supposed to show it to. When she finally found him and offered the presentation, the child simply said: “No.”

Almost everyone who has ever walked into a classroom with a perfectly prepared plan knows a similar experience. Children do not behave by the book. One needs more words, another rather a clear demonstration, another we first have to engage, and sometimes we do not manage any of what we planned in the morning all day. Theory gives us an important foundation, but it is the children and our everyday experience with them that teach us the real work.

A good assistant needs to be able to observe

One of an assistant’s most important skills is observation. They need to notice not only the individual child but the whole group. Who is working right now? Who is looking for an activity? Where is a conflict arising? When does it make sense to step in, and when should the child be given space to handle the situation on their own?

Equally important are caring for the prepared environment, working with rules and being able to lead some group activities. An assistant is therefore not someone who simply waits for the teacher to give them the next task. To be real support for the class, they need to understand why we do things in a certain way in a Montessori environment.

A good team helps, above all, the children

In the end, everything comes back to what matters most. Neither the teacher nor the assistant is in the classroom for themselves. Together they support the children, their independence and an environment in which they can thrive. When the adults do not understand each other, the whole class feels it very quickly. When, on the other hand, they know their roles, trust each other and can communicate, they can complement one another.

And perhaps that is why we should not see the assistant as someone who stands next to the teacher waiting to see where help is needed. They are the teacher’s partner, a second pair of eyes and an important part of the team that creates the environment for children together.

You can listen to the full conversation between Hanka Trejklová, Hanka Slabá and Mili Pažická in the Hanky ve středu dění podcast (in Czech) here: