Pre-Primary Program
| Ages | 20 – 36 months |
| Morning Pre-Primary | 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 Noon |
| All Day Pre-Primary | 7:30 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. |
Philosophy
Dr. Maria Montessori observed the importance of providing opportunities and creating an environment to meet a child’s developmental sensitive periods. Sensitive Periods are intense fascination for learning a particular characteristic or skill. Through observation, Dr. Montessori recognized that these Sensitive Periods aided developmental milestones for human growth. In the Pre-Primary environment developmental sensitivities for gross motor, such as going up and down steps, a passionate love for established routines, or an innate interest in music and the development of pitch, rhythm and melody are fostered. Self-discovery, exploration and independence are developed through free play and socialization. Self-correcting and multi-sensorial materials and activities allow each child to experience the excitement of learning by their own choice.
This whole child approach provides activities that promote the development of social skills, emotional growth, and physical coordination as well as cognitive preparation for future intellectual academic endeavors. The holistic curriculum allows the child to experience the joy of learning, the time to enjoy the process, and ensures the development of self esteem by a “let me do it” means. It provides the experiences from which children create their knowledge and personality.
Together, working in a team effort, parents, teachers and the school administrative staff help to provide a first school experience to be joyful where initial impressions of school attitudes and learning are being developed.
Curriculum Overview
The Pre-Primary Program
The Pre-Primary program is designed around the basic Montessori concept of “freedom within limits.” The environment is prepared with age-appropriate materials and exercises that encourage each child’s natural curiosity and enthusiasm. The equipment in the prepared classroom environment and outdoor area, as well as the consistency of our routines, has all been carefully designed to foster the development of our youngest students.
The Pre-Primary day includes independent and small group activities that develop gross and fine motor skills, cognitive, social and language skills. Art, music and free play round out their busy day. And, since children in this age group love to be “on the go” ample opportunity is provided to explore the outdoor environment, engage in water activities or just run in the sun for a part of every day.
Skills for Life
An important part of each child’s social development revolves around practical life skills. They are encouraged to help clean up after art or activity periods. We also work with our students on cleanliness and hygiene, developing the routine of washing hands before and after meals and other appropriate times. We believe toilet training is a normal acquisition that is both developmental and learned and will work with parents to make sure the opportunity is available to the child when the time is right.
The time in a child’s life from 18 to 30 months is delightful, with new discoveries occurring almost every day; but we acknowledge that it can be a frustrating time too. To this end, we encourage frequent parent-teacher communication and to share pertinent information just as quickly as changes occur. In addition to this routine and regular contact, we schedule two parent-teacher conferences each school year.