Lower Elementary
Lower Elementary
Ages 6 – 9
Our Elementary Montessori program provides the children with a complete Montessori experience according to the highest standards taught by AMI which are inspired directly by the teachings and writings of Maria and Mario Montessori. The environment is prepared to promote the intellectual, physical, social, emotional and spiritual development of the whole child, according to his/her individual abilities and needs.
In this rich learning environment, the children are encouraged to move freely and purposefully. They may work at tables, on rugs, outside, with a group or alone. They are encouraged to collaborate with others and have the freedom to explore and engage with their environment. The children work in the environment with enthusiasm, without the promise of reward or threat of punishment. The three-hour work period allows each child to delve deeply into his/her work, learning and accomplishing more than adults would usually expect or require.
The combined age classroom, ranging from 6-9 years old, enables students to work academically at their own unique developmental stage rather than at a strict grade level. Our children learn to thrive in a diverse, mixed-age environment, providing invaluable opportunities for peer-to-peer learning and genuine leadership roles.
The Elementary Class follows the curriculum of the advanced Montessori Method, designed for children in what is called the “second plane of development.” This stage of development has many marked physical, psychological and emotional differences from the preceding plane and the classroom reflects those differences. The academic environment of the Elementary Class is designed to foster both independent work and collaborative study. Education is approached holistically and lessons are taught following the ideals of what Dr. Montessori called “Cosmic Education.” The plan of this education is to foster the comprehensive, interdisciplinary understanding of our world and man’s place in it. The curriculum is integrated so that from any lesson children have avenues to approach every other subject. After a lesson is presented, the students are encouraged to engage in some form of follow-up work that they freely choose. Often the new information sparks spontaneous independent investigation and study that far exceeds what would normally be expected for a formal assignment.
During these years, children enter a sensitive period for morality. Every year and semester starts with the Great Stories. These stories provide context for why we study each subject area. “God with No Hands” opens up the lessons on the created world. “The Coming of Life” tells of the importance of created life. “The Story of Human Beings” highlights the uniqueness of humanity and provides the framework for history as the study of the ways human beings have used their gifts through time. “The Story of Letters” is a journey into the wonders of the alphabet and how written language came to be. Lastly, “The Story of Numbers” is a deeper look into why we began using numbers and computations for transactions and how we use those same ideas today. All lessons refer back to these core stories, so we see our learning as part of our participation in the wonders of humanity, rather than a random checklist of knowledge.
Weekly student teacher conferences
Each week, every student will have a check-in meeting with the teacher to go over their work journal and talk about what they have been working on and discuss which lessons they would like to have and which works they need to practice.
Freedom and responsibility
Children learn that they are expected to work when they are in the classroom. There is much more freedom than traditional models of education, but the freedom is tied to responsibility, and through clear expectations of the teacher, they learn to take ownership and responsibility for their education and spend their time more productively than they would if they were simply told what to do.
Follow-up work
After every presentation, the children are expected to choose a “follow-up work.” They get to use their creative powers to decide what activity they would like to do to help them remember the lesson, which contrasts a teacher-directed homework project that may be done just as busy work with no personal care.
Social skills
Through group work, community meetings and grace and courtesy lessons, children in the classroom not only learn how to do well academically, but also socially and emotionally. The Montessori model of education is meant to encompass the whole child and everything is interconnected.
Going Outs
An important aspect of this stage of development, is the need to go beyond the classroom. The children will have opportunities throughout the year to plan their own trips to the library, grocery store, pet store, etc. This enables them to take ownership in the classroom as well as learn practical skills such as how to use maps and money, talk to employees, among many other skills.
“The secret of good teaching is to regard the child’s intelligence as a fertile field in which seeds may be sown, to grow under the heat of flaming imagination. Our aim therefore is not merely to make the child understand, and still less to force him to memorise, but so to touch his imagination as to enthuse him to his inmost core.” - Maria Montessori, To Educate the Human Potential
