Montessori Daycare in Vaughan

The Five Areas of the Montessori  Daycare Curriculum:

Practical Life

The Montessori Practical Life Curriculum incorporates exercises and activities that children observe in daily life. These activities develop children’s independence, concentration, and fine motor skills. Typical practical life activities involve transferring, food preparation, lessons in grace and courtesy, and cleaning.

Example materials and activities include:

• Spooning
• Tonging
• Threading
• Sweeping

Sensorial

Sensorial activities teach children to refine their senses of sight, touch, sound, smell and taste so that they are able to organise sensory impressions and their understanding of the world. Through sensorial materials, children learn about similarity and difference, dimensions, colours and shapes, and distinguish between smells, taste and sound. Sensorial work also prepares children for mathematics, language and geometry by teaching children how to classify and sort.

Example materials and activities include:

• Pink Tower
• Colour Box
• Geometric Solids
• Trinomial Cube

Mathematics

The Mathematics Curriculum teaches children to understand abstract mathematical concepts and relationships through hands-on learning experiences. Children learn to count, identify and match numerals to their quantity, relate decimal quantities and symbols, and become aware of the functions of addition, subtraction, multiplication and division by using the Montessori materials.

Example materials and activities include:

• Numerals and Counters
• Hanging Bead Stair
• Teen Boards
• Hundred Board

Language

The Montessori Language Curriculum provides children with the knowledge and skills to build their vocabulary and understanding of language. The skills required for reading, writing and oral language are developed through hands-on experience using the Montessori language materials. Children learn letter sounds (phonics), letter identification and formation, how to combine sounds to make words, how to build simple sentences, and how to properly hold a pencil. Oral language skills are developed through daily social interactions, group time experiences, and lessons in grace and courtesy.

Example materials and activities include:

• Sandpaper Letters
• Moveable Alphabet
• Metal Insets
• Three Part Cards

Culture

The Culture Curriculum incorporates a wide range of subjects, including Geography, Botany, Zoology, Science, History, Music and Art. Through explorations of culture, children develop an understanding of their community, their world, and their social responsibilities. Children learn to respond to diversity with respect, appreciate music and art, and develop an awareness of sustainability.

Example materials and activities include:

• Land and Water Forms
• Continent Boxes
• Life Cycle Puzzle and Activities
• Map Cabinet

The Montessori Daycare Preschool Program is a structured academics and wellbeing program that prepares children for their transition to school. It expands on the foundational knowledge fostered by previous programs and assists in developing confidence, independence, problem-solving, creativity, and real-life skills.

Learning in the Preschool Community

The Montessori Preschool Program offers children a dynamic learning environment where they are empowered to choose their work, follow their interests, and progress at their own pace. Within this space, children develop their independence, refine their concentration, and explode into learning as they develop their intelligence and higher-level brain processes.

Between the ages of three and six, preschoolers move through sensitive periods for language, order, grace and courtesy, the senses, writing, small objects, music, reading, spatial relationships, and mathematics.

During this stage of development, the Preschool Curriculum introduces children to a range of advanced Montessori materials that expand on their knowledge of Practical Life, Sensorial, Mathematics, Language and Culture.

The design of the preschool classroom, and the educational materials within in, reflect these interests and provide rich opportunities for learning that nurture children’s complete development while preparing them for school and life.

Preschool Learning Goals

• Formation of individual letters and numbers
• Recognises numerals and counts by rote
• Reads simple sentences and constructs phonetic words
• Can write and recognise their own name
• Aware of the decimal system, addition, and subtraction
• Participates in physical activities and follows the rules of games
• Shows self-confidence and interacts well with others
• Ability to concentrate and work independently
• Responds to challenges and demonstrates problem-solving skills

Preschool Curriculum

Practical Life

Practical life activities focus on care of self, care of others, and care of the environment. In addition to teaching daily life skills, practical life activities promote independence, social skills, grace and courtesy, concentration, and coordination.

Example materials and activities include:

• Tonging
• Grating
• Threading
• Lessons in Grace and Courtesy
• Nuts and bolts

Sensorial

Sensorial activities are designed to help children develop and refine the senses of sight, touch, taste, smell and sound. These skills assist with classifying, sorting and discriminating between objects to interpret their sensory impressions. These skills are necessary foundations for language and mathematics.

Example materials and activities include:

• Red rods
• Superimposed shapes
• Geometric solids
• Sound cylinders
• Trinomial cube

Mathematics

Montessori mathematics materials assist children in developing an understanding of abstract mathematical concepts through hands-on experiences. Through the mathematics materials, students learn to identify and quantify numerals, count and sequence numbers, add and subtract, identify patterns, and learn about number systems.

Example materials and activities include:

• Number rods
• Spindle boxes
• Hanging bead stair
• Addition strip board
• Hundred board

Language

Montessori language materials assist children in learning literacy skills and developing their vocabulary. Through conversation, singing, and hands-on materials, children learn letter recognition, phonics, vowels and consonants, and the early stages of writing and reading.

Example materials and activities include:

• Moveable alphabet
• Metal insets
• Object picture matching cards
• Three part cards
• Object boxes

Culture

The Montessori Culture Curriculum covers the study of the arts, geography, science, environment, national culture, music, and history. Through cultural activities, children learn about their community and the world. They discover similarities, differences, and develop an understanding, appreciation and respect for diversity and all living things.

Example materials and activities include:

• Land and water forms
• Continent boxes
• Botany cabinet and puzzles
• Life cycle puzzle and activities
• Map cabinet

Early Years Learning Framework

In addition the Montessori Curriculum, all Montessori Academy childcare centres also teach the Australian Government’s Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF): Belonging, Being & Becoming. The EYLF incorporates five learning outcomes that work hand-in-hand with the Montessori Curriculum to support children’s learning from birth to age five.

Five Key Outcomes of the EYLF:

• 1: Strong sense of identity
• 2: Connected with and contribute to their world
• 3: Strong sense of well-being
• 4: Confident and involved learners
• 5: Effective communicators

Preschool Daily Routine

The preschool routine outlines the typical daily flow for children aged three to six years in the Montessori preschool community.  It provides a consistent pattern of activities for learning time, meals, rest, and outdoor play.

The predictability of the routine helps children to feel secure and positively influences their emotional, cognitive, and social development. The preschool daily routine is adapted to meet children’s needs, support emerging interests, and nurture the development of each child’s personality and intelligence.

Our School Readiness and Kinder Preparation Program prepares children with the foundational knowledge and skills to transition confidently to any school setting. It combines school-styled workbooks with practical school readiness skills to develop a positive and confident attitude towards school.

Preparation for School

At Montessori Academy, we take a progressive approach to school readiness that begins on each child’s first day. Our education programs are designed to build strong academic and wellbeing foundations over time in a way that’s engaging, fun, and linked to children’s needs and interests at each stage of their development.

During their final year of preschool, children participate in a comprehensive School Readiness Kinder Preparation Program that targets core academic competencies and school readiness skills. This ensures children are well prepared to make a successful transition to any type of primary school environment.

The School Readiness Kinder Preparation Program incorporates a series of workbooks that introduce children to primary school subjects in a traditional learning format. This is complemented by a hands-on approach to teaching school readiness skills such as proper pencil grip, cutting skills, letter and number formation, emotional regulation, following instructions, problem solving, and concentration.

The primary aims of the School Readiness Program is to provide children with enriching learning experiences that nurture strong academic foundations and a confident approach to life-long learning.

School Readiness Skills

• Demonstrates independence and self-help skills
• Ability to communicate and express thoughts and feelings
• Capable of listening attentively and concentrating
• Asks and responds to questions
• Ability to organise work
• Demonstrates problem-solving skills
• Ability to choose and respond to challenging activities
• Shows respect for the classroom and packs away
• Demonstrates fundamental movement skills

How Montessori Academy Supports School Readiness

Prepared Environment

The Montessori classroom encourages children to take an active role in their learning. They explore, collaborate, and direct their own learning. This structure encourages children to develop confidence, independence, and a positive approach towards school and life-long learning.

Supporting School Readiness Skills:

• Freedom of movement and choice
• Independence
• Decision making and problem-solving
• Collaboration and social skills
• Belonging to a community

School Readiness Booklets

School Readiness and Kinder Preparation Workbooks cover a broad range of primary school subjects. They provide extensive opportunities for writing practice, reading, problem solving, counting and classification.

Supporting School Readiness Skills:

• Introduces children to primary school learning formats
• Extensive opportunities to practice literacy and numeracy skills
• Pencil-grip, hand-writing, and cutting skills practice
• Introduces children to language-based problem solving and comprehension
• Develops children’s understanding of subjects and topics introduced in Primary School

Daily Routines

Daily routines prepare children for the structure of the primary school environment. Throughout the day, students practice self-help skills, such as independent toileting, unwrapping their lunch, and putting on a hat and sunscreen.

Supporting School Readiness Skills:

• The Montessori Work Cycle develops children’s independence, concentration, problem-solving, and decision making skills
• Group times encourage collaboration, communication skills, and teamwork
• Show and Tell prepares children to communicate with confidence
• Self-serving meals and unwrapping lunches prepares children for independent mealtimes
• Scheduled school readiness time prepares children for the routine of primary school