The Montessori Curriculum
The Montessori curriculum for the young child encompasses the whole
child. A child is introduced to materials and lessons when he is
developmentally ready to receive them. The classroom offers a variety of
appealing work which will engage the active learner in his quest to
understand the world around him.
There are four central areas in a prepared Montessori Environment:
- Practical Life: This area allows the child to begin to hone her
powers of concentration, order, coordination of movement, and
independence. The materials found in this area foster the mastering of
every day skills such as pouring, sweeping, washing, dressing oneself
and lessons in courtesy.
- Sensorial: The materials found in this area develop the young
child's understanding of perceptual qualities through exploration with
Montessori materials. These materials offer the child the opportunity to
concretely discover conceptual qualities such as one-to-one
correspondence, gradation, and temporal relations. Many of these
materials provide a foundation for future math work.
- Language: The Language curriculum allows the child to associate
phonetic sounds to written symbols. The child will be introduced to word
composition, the mechanics of writing, and later reading.
- Mathematics: The materials found in the Montessori Math area allow a
child to concretely explore abstract concepts and operations. The young
child will be introduced to numerals and their associated quantities,
liner counting, decimal system (exploration of place value), and
mathematical operations. The child will also be exposed to fractions,
time, and currency.
In addition to these areas, the classroom is rich with materials in
Geography, Science, Cultural exploration, Art and Music.
Enrichment Programs
The core curriculum is further enhanced at Town and Country Montessori
by visits from experts and volunteers in the following areas:
Spanish - all children receive weekly lessons
designed specifically for the young child by a trained educator.
Music - all children receive by-weekly music
instruction by a long-time music educator.
Norwalk Maritime
visit - monthly visits from marine biologist affiliated with the
Norwalk Maritime Museum.
Art - monthly in-depth art
exploration led by parent volunteers with specific backgrounds in Art.
Yoga - all children practice yoga led by trained yoga
instructor. |
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