These are only some of the activities available to the children in our
prepared environment (additional activities, not listed here are brought
in as part of our weekly projects)
Please click on the following buttons to expand/collapse the details.
PRACTICAL LIFE (Personal, Social & Emotional Development)
Practical life exercises are designed to teach children life
skills. The basic principle behind these exercises is that they are
real, not make believe. By acquiring these new skills the child learns
manual dexterity, improves his/her eye hand co-ordination and spatial
awareness. The child also satisfies his/her inner need for order and
builds up his/her concentration skills.
Examples of Practical Life material
pouring
sweeping
folding cloths
sorting
magnets
food preparation
polishing
pairing
grace and courtesies
sewing
dressing frames
hand washing
watering plants
fruit slicing
arranging flowers
vegetable slicing
germination of seeds
SENSORIAL (Refinement of the senses: visual, tactile, auditory,
gustatory, thermic, baric, stereognostic, and chromatic).
The Sensorial material enables the child to see details of the
environment with greater clarity, therefore refining his/her field of
perception. According to Dr Montessori children live in a world of
senses. In order to continue their creative task, children need to
highlight impressions they have already received through sight, sound,
touch, taste and smell. Since there is nothing extraneous or superfluous
in the material there is only the essence of the concept waiting to
reveal itself to the child.
Montessori mathematics materials enable even a very young child to
achieve a natural appreciation of mathematical concepts through his or
her own efforts. This avoids the mental blocks which so often occur in
children faced with purely abstract concepts. Specially designed
equipment helps children to grasp concrete ideas along with sensory
experience of numbers, quantities and mathematical operations. These
young children work with the maths operations of addition, subtraction,
multiplication and division using the Montessori Golden bead material.
Gradually children can move confidently to complete abstract
mathematical problems. Many Montessori educated children leave the class
with a genuine love of numbers and mathematics
Examples of Mathematical material
number rods & cards
numbers & counters
decimal system
spindle boxes
golden bead materials
quantity games
sand paper numbers
various exercises for addition, substraction, multiplication
short bead stairs
seguin boards
LANGUAGE
In the Montessori Class room children learn to express themselves. The
freedom offered to the children creates many opportunities for them to
communicate with their peers and the adults. We emphasise the
development of vocabulary based on real experiences and the early
preparation required for reading and writing. Children are introduced to
language through our phonetic approach and begin the process of word
building and then blending sounds into meaningful reading. Further
advanced activities take the child well beyond the basic skills into
reading and writing for interpretation, creativity and pleasure.
Examples of Language Curriculum
Enrichment of vocabulary
Reading & writing activities
classified cards
sand paper letters
reading booklets
stories & poems
object boxes
reading folders
news periods
metal insets
word study
I spy games
movable alphabet
grammar study
question games
CULTURE
The Montessori approach covers a wide range of subjects which reflect
the broad interests of young children. The Montessori environment
stimulates these interests and extends knowledge and understanding of
art and crafts, geography, history, music, food, science and the natural
world. Cultures from around the world are explored and celebrated. Our
Montessori promotes an international view that embraces the need to
understand different peoples, ethnic groups and religions. Books,
resources and displays reflect positive images and opportunities are
created to celebrate other cultures such as Eid, Diwali, Hannukah,
Chinese New Year and Christmas.
Examples of Cultural Curriculum
Geography
Botany
Zoology
Science
puzzle maps
world of plants
world of animals
magnets
globes
leaf cabinet
mammals
sinking & floating
models of land & water
reptiles
weighing
flags of the world
amphibians
gravity
peoples of the world
fish
magnifying glass
electricity
PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT
We have the use of a small area of garden in front of the church
grounds. Children are taken for regular excercise to the garden and for
exploration in the extensive church grounds. Our children are supported
in developing an understanding of the importance of physical activity
and making healthy choices in relation to food.
CREATIVE DEVELOPMENT
Dr Montessori viewed creativity within the context of total development
- intellectual, artistic, emotional and physical. The child's creative
intergration is an intergration of self, which comes from participation
in the real from a young age. In our classrooms our children are
provided with opportunities to explore and share their thoughts, ideas
and feelings, for example through a variety of art, music, movement,
dance, imaginative and role-play activities, cooking and design and
technology.
Practical life exercises are designed to teach children life
skills. The basic principle behind these exercises is that they are
real, not make believe. By acquiring these new skills the child learns
manual dexterity, improves his/her eye hand co-ordination and spatial
awareness. The child also satisfies his/her inner need for order and
builds up his/her concentration skills.
The Sensorial material enables the child to see details of the
environment with greater clarity, therefore refining his/her field of
perception. According to Dr Montessori children live in a world of
senses. In order to continue their creative task, children need to
highlight impressions they have already received through sight, sound,
touch, taste and smell. Since there is nothing extraneous or superfluous
in the material there is only the essence of the concept waiting to
reveal itself to the child.
Montessori mathematics materials enable even a very young child to
achieve a natural appreciation of mathematical concepts through his or
her own efforts. This avoids the mental blocks which so often occur in
children faced with purely abstract concepts. Specially designed
equipment helps children to grasp concrete ideas along with sensory
experience of numbers, quantities and mathematical operations. These
young children work with the maths operations of addition, subtraction,
multiplication and division using the Montessori Golden bead material.
Gradually children can move confidently to complete abstract
mathematical problems. Many Montessori educated children leave the class
with a genuine love of numbers and mathematics
In the Montessori Class room children learn to express themselves. The
freedom offered to the children creates many opportunities for them to
communicate with their peers and the adults. We emphasise the
development of vocabulary based on real experiences and the early
preparation required for reading and writing. Children are introduced to
language through our phonetic approach and begin the process of word
building and then blending sounds into meaningful reading. Further
advanced activities take the child well beyond the basic skills into
reading and writing for interpretation, creativity and pleasure.
The Montessori approach covers a wide range of subjects which reflect
the broad interests of young children. The Montessori environment
stimulates these interests and extends knowledge and understanding of
art and crafts, geography, history, music, food, science and the natural
world. Cultures from around the world are explored and celebrated. Our
Montessori promotes an international view that embraces the need to
understand different peoples, ethnic groups and religions. Books,
resources and displays reflect positive images and opportunities are
created to celebrate other cultures such as Eid, Diwali, Hannukah,
Chinese New Year and Christmas.
We have the use of a small area of garden in front of the church
grounds. Children are taken for regular excercise to the garden and for
exploration in the extensive church grounds. Our children are supported
in developing an understanding of the importance of physical activity
and making healthy choices in relation to food.
Dr Montessori viewed creativity within the context of total development
- intellectual, artistic, emotional and physical. The child's creative
intergration is an intergration of self, which comes from participation
in the real from a young age. In our classrooms our children are
provided with opportunities to explore and share their thoughts, ideas
and feelings, for example through a variety of art, music, movement,
dance, imaginative and role-play activities, cooking and design and
technology.
