In a Montessori environment, there is no specific, formal
curriculum to be followed each day. A session’s activities
fall into one or many of the following areas, which form an
integrated, open-ended curriculum – one which permits
each individual child to learn at his own pace, and maximize
his interests in specific areas.
Practical Life can best be characterized as exercises in “daily
living:. Using the child’s natural inclination as a point
of departure, several exercises are structured for the classroom
to help the child satisfy his need for meaningful activity.
He washes clothes, polishes shoes, pours water, sweeps the
floor, as well as basic exercises in grace and courtesy. Tasks
considered ordinary by adults, such as vegetable preparation
and washing dishes, are exciting to the child.. because he
is allowed to imitate adults. It is through these activities
in the practical life area that the child develops order, concentration,
coordination, independence, and self-confidence. Absorption
in these activities gradually lengthens his attention span;
he becomes more aware of details in following a regular sequence
of actions. Good working habits are developed, as he learns
his materials must be put away, before attempting another activity—areas
of development which indirectly and directly prepare the child
for other areas in the curriculum.
Didactic exercises in the Sensorial area allow the child freedom
for spontaneous discoveries, as he concentrates on the training
of his senses. The equipment stimulates the child to refine
discriminatory skills regarding form, size, color, weight,
taste, texture, temperature, and sound.
Mathematics in the Montessori environment begins in exercises
using concrete materials. He associates quantity and numerals,
not only seeing the symbol, but holding the amount in his hand.
Access to concrete mathematical equipment in the early years
enables the child to more easily and joyfully assimilate many
facts and skills of arithmetic. Gradually, he moves from the
concrete toward the abstract, with exercises in the decimal
system and mathematical operations. He works at his own rate,
enabling him to fully utilize the concrete material to understand
the abstract, and demonstrate to himself the basic operations
of arithmetic. Learning by discovery gives him the satisfaction
of self-accomplishment.
All the areas in the curriculum contribute directly or indirectly
to Language in the Montessori environment. Sandpaper letters
relate to sensorial experiences. A letter is traced with the
fingers, until the child retains its shape. He is then ready
to use his hand and finger muscles to reproduce a letter, thus
utilizing muscle control and coordination developed during
the practical life and sensorial stages. Names of the various
pieces of equipment in the classroom become a part of everyday
speech. Vocabulary is enriched, as the child works with exercises
in identification and classification. He is encouraged to converse
with others in the classroom, and take part in group discussions.
Materials used for developing language skills are basically
concrete, manipulative objects. Simple words are formed with
a moveable alphabet. In conjunction with the moveable alphabet,
the child uses objects sounding out its name and selecting
the appropriate letters. Once the child has mastered phonetics,
he is well on his way into the abstract world of written and
spoken language.
Geography is introduced to the child by acquainting him with
direction inside the classroom: north, south, east, and west.
He is exposed to the concept of an entire world using a globe
then to his continent, country, and the state in which he lives.
Wooden maps are used as puzzles in daily exercises.
Land formations are sensorial experiences acquired early in
the geography curriculum. Manipulating land forms and water,
the child makes an island, a peninsula, or an isthmus. Later,
he is able to locate similar formations on the maps.
Different areas in the world are presented to the child, comparing
their basic needs and similarities. Beyond location, direction
and size, the child is exposed to a country’s life style,
clothing, food and shelter. Science, botany and history are
taught concurrently, as the child becomes acquainted with varying
types of vegetation, animal life, soil and weather. It is our
goal to provide the child with a positive awareness of people’s
common needs and an understanding of the relationship among
continents, and the countries within them.
Science in the Montessori environment enables the child to
become more aware of the world around him. He explores the
mystery of living and non-living things, identification and
classification of plants, leaf formations and rocks. Simple
experiments are used whenever possible to assist the child
in his efforts to understand his environment.
Art gives the child an opportunity to express himself creatively.
Various media are at his disposal, throughout the school year,
to give him free choice in his exploration. Projects for the
most part unstructured may also be undertaken to stimulate
the spontaneous, creative abilities of the young child.
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