Primary

Practical Life

The cornerstone of any prepared Primary Montessori classroom is the Practical Life area. Practical Life connects the child’s home environment with relatable exercises such as handwashing, polishing, food preparation, and how to wait for one’s turn.  The exercises are real and functional, inviting children to gain the basic skills and experiences they need in order to thrive independently.

Sensorial

Sensorial lessons helps the child bring order and classification to their world.  The child gains an understanding of similarities and differences between objects. The purpose of the materials are to identify shapes and colors, discern tastes and scents, distinguish volume and pitch, and experience differences in weight, texture, and temperature.  In addition, the Sensorial area introduces a broader perspective of the world through maps, stories, and photographs that exposes them to the rich diversity of people and places on our planet.

Language

Language is full of discovery as the child is led on a path towards “total reading’. Total reading is the ability to capture the content, essence, style, and emotion of the author; in other words, to comprehend a text intellectually, as well as emotionally and spiritually. Through songs, conversations, poetry, books, and a host of language lessons, the child falls in love with the world of literacy.

Math

Math in a Montessori environment takes an innovative approach to arithmetic that begins by offering the child concrete experiences with materials that provide strong impressions of quantity. The Math area introduces numeracy, counting, and nomenclature (1- 1,000,000); the process of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division; the squaring and cubing of numbers (1-10); memorization of essential math facts for each of the four operations; fractions.

Art and Music

Art and Music are embedded in the Montessori curriculum. Children have the opportunity to study art and music throughout the day, every day.  The classroom is surrounded by prints of masterworks of art representing different periods, styles, and cultures. The guide makes the introduction to various media of art including cutting, painting, drawing, sculpting, collage, and sewing. Music is incorporated into a variety of sensorial, language, and group presentations. The bell cabinet is one of the signature materials in a Montessori environment in which the children explore a series of scaffolding music lessons throughout their Primary years.

Kindergarten Included

Montessori is a continuum of education that allows your child to build upon experiences each year. Your child will stay in the Primary classroom for 3 years, including the traditional “kindergarten year” – when the seeds of learning come to fruition. Reading and writing come to life from sounds and symbols. She is introduced to numbers and the decimal system. She learns about geometric figures and the political countries of our world. She leaves the program with a strong set of academic skills; but, far more importantly, with the attitude that learning is fun, exciting and boundless.