Maria Montessori devised a didactic method that changed the previous view of the child and his abilities. This thesis contains the biography of Maria Montessori, as well as the most important features of Montessori pedagogy. The development of a child is described with special emphasis on the first stage of development, from birth to the age of six. The paper explains the basic concepts of Montessori pedagogy, such as the absorbing mind, human tendencies, periods of special sensitivity and the Montessori phenomenon. Maria Montessori attached great importance to the prepared environment, which includes a restrained Montessori educator, a specially arranged Montessori space and didactic material that she designed based on her rich experience in working with children. At the end of the theoretical part, the features of exercises from practical life are listed. The second part of the paper presents the action research that was carried out in the "Cekin" Kindergarten in Slavonski Brod. The aim of the research was to determine whether the independence of five-year-old children can be increased by implementing selected exercises from practical life in a period of three weeks. By comparing the results of the initial and final testing, it was concluded that by implementing exercises from practical life, 47.06% of children became independent in performing tasks.