Areas of a Montessori Environment

 

Practical Life:  Children learn practical life lessons such as pouring, food preparation, and washing a table, as well as grace and cour

tesy lessons.   These daily lessons help develop a child's independence along with their abilities to concentrate, to control their own movement, and to follow a procedure composed of sequential steps.

 

Sensorial:  Montessori invented certain materials to aid in the development of the intellectual senses of the child.   The pink tower, brown stairs and knob less cylinder are all oriented to advance the child's ability to define quantities such as color, size, sound, texture and shape.   They help to develop the child's visual, auditory and tactile senses.

 

Language: The language material includes objects to be names, matched, labeled and classified to aid vocabulary development. Storybooks, tapes and records are used to acquaint children with teh components of a story.  The whole language approach is encouraged as children

create oral and written stories about interesting events in their lives. For recognition and familiarity of letters, textured letters are used to allow the child to feel and see the alphabet.  Phonics and the moveable alphabet lead them towards reading.

 

Mathematics:  Montessori math materials give children concrete experience with number and numeral correspondence. For recognition and familiarity of quantity, textured numerals are used to allow the child to see and feel shapes.

 

Culture: The Montessori child is taught from the first fundamental lesson about the world map.  Lessons grow from that initial contact, guided by the child's interest in a particular culture or geographical area.   In this area of the classroom, the child is exposed to parts of flowers, trees, animals/insects.  Daily history lessons are incorporated as well as seasonal nature walks.

 

Additional weekly activities:

• Hebrew lessons

• Mandarin

• Gymnastics classes

• Instructed music class

• Cooking

• Art