Tiny Blessings Montessori Preschool - Childcare Center
Pre School / Montessori ( 3 years - 6 years)
Practical Life- The Skills of Daily Living
The practical life area of the Montessori curriculum is the bridge for young children between home and school. Practical life activities help the young children to perform in their daily life routines. The goal of practical life materials are to be independent , have a sense of order, concentration and coordination. Practical life lessons include care of the person (buttoning, zipping, tying); care of the environment (cleaning, polishing, food preparation); small and gross motor development (pouring, cutting, balancing); and social development (interpersonal skills, grace and courtesy, speaking, participating in a group).
Sensorial - Exploring the world through the Five Senses
In this area kids will explore various materials colors, shapes, textures, smell and taste. Basically Exploring the World through the Five Senses.
Dr. Maria Montessori identified the period from 2-6 years as the age of the "absorbent mind". Children come to know and understand the world they live in through their five senses. The Montessori sensorial materials, such as the pink tower, geometric solids, sound cylinders and color tablets help a child understand and internalize the concepts of size, shape, color, taste, touch and sound. These materials build the foundation for developing skills in the areas of music, mathematics and language. This motivates kids to think critically, and make the ability to focus. In this sensorial section geometry will be introduced to the child through their senses.
Science / Botany / Bialogy / Geography
Kids will be learning parts of the human body, and the use of each organ of the body. In the Botany section they learn parts of flowers, parts of a tree, life cycle of a butterfly and dragonfly.
During the seasons of spring and summer, there will be outdoor activities such as cultivating fruits and vegetables of their choice in the garden. This develops kids’ interest in observing nature and learning more about the world and their surroundings.
In geography kids get to explore around the world and around the United States. Kids will be learning about various states, capitlals, countries, continents, and they will also be learning the Solar System. They will be doing hands on exercises with colored maps, globes and flags. Kids will learn to be diverse within themselves and classmates.
Mathematics
Lessons presented in the practical life and sensorial curriculum lay the groundwork for the child to begin to explore the world of math. The math area provides the child with ideas for their intellectual development. Hands on experience with math materials give children clear, concrete impression on which to build their own concept. This is a concrete experience in the Montessori classroom. Special materials such as spindle boxes and bead bars allow the child to see what “nothing” or zero looks like, or to see that multiplying 5×5 can be done with 5 bars of 5 beads each. The Montessori materials build on each other in a natural progression, encouraging the child to explore and discover. From this, kids will learn linear counting and recognition of numerals and Geometry, which will lead into addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. Hands on Montessori materials make abstract concept very visible.
Language - The Spoken word to the Written word
Language activities and materials increase vocabulary and conversational skills, develop writing, reading skills, and begin to understand grammar. The language materials include objects and pictures to be named, matched, labeled and classified to aid vocabulary development. Textured letters allow the child to feel and see the alphabet. Phonics and the moveable alphabet lead the child toward reading.