What is Montessori?
Maria Montessori, born in Italy in 1870, the first female physician in Italy, her clinical observations led her to analyse how children learn, how they develop themselves from what they find in their immediate environment. In 1906 she founded her first Casa del Bambini, for sixty children of working parents in Rome. Doctor Maria Montessori died in 1952 but her work continues. Today there are thousands of Montessori schools throughout the world. Maria Montessori discovered that children under six have extraordinary powers of mind. They take in their environment with what she termed ‘the absorbent mind’. The absorbent mind is at its peak receptivity during the pre-school years.
The Prepared Environment
The classroom is made up of children of mixed age groups based on Montessori’s theory of child development, based on three-year cycles. The children learn to take responsibility for themselves and each other, to get along with children of different ages and abilities, to respect each other’s work and work space and to treat each other with courtesy. They also take an active role in maintaining their classroom by putting materials away in their proper place ready for the next child to use. The classroom becomes a thriving community where children are treated with respect and dignity and want to treat others with the same respect and dignity. The pre-school classroom embodies Maria Montessori’s concept that the environment can be designed to facilitate maximum independent learning and exploration by the child. The materials invite activity.
When a child first enters the classroom practical life activities provide the link between home and school. Through the sensorial experiences of sight, touch, sound, smell and taste children learn to clarify, classify and comprehend their world. This leads on to the mathematical journey and the representation of language through sounds and writing. Art and music, science, geography and history are all important parts of the Montessori pre-school curriculum. At City Heights Montessori the Montessori children also get the opportunity to attend gymnastic sessions, swimming classes, trips to the art gallery and other learning and recreational experiences in the wider community outside the classroom. The senior Montessori class covers the 3-6 year age group with the expectation that many children will stay until they are six and then go on to Montessori primary classes in Dunedin.
The Child’s Day
City Heights closes only on statutory holidays and briefly at Christmas and New Year. It is open from 7.45 a.m. to 5.30 p.m. weekdays for full and part time enrolments of children from three months to six years of age. So that your child is fully part of the centre community and gains the maximum benefit from the education programmes we prefer a minimum of 15 hours enrolment per week in childcare preferably spread over a minimum of four days. Montessori classes are from 8.45 am to 4.00 pm Monday to Friday. We prefer children in Senior Montessori class to attend a minimum of 30 hours a week and Junior Montessori children to attend a minimum of 20 hours, both age groups over four days a week. Shorter hours may be arranged by agreement. Because of the structured Montessori learning programme we have developed behavioural and developmental criteria to enable all children to gain the maximum benefit. One of these is that children are fully toilet trained before going into the Montessori classes. Centre staff and parents work together to help children meet the criteria.
Settling in
Settling in involves separating from parents and forming new trusting relationships with strange adults in a different environment. Younger children need frequency of attendance in order to form a strong bond with their new care-giver. If enrolling less than four days a week the days need to be spread throughout the week. Newly enrolled children, especially if they have not previously attended pre-school, need a parent to spend a short time with them the first few times. A cuddly or special toy brought to the centre may help your child settle in. The more frequently your child attends the sooner they form a strong bond with their individual caregiver and the easier the settling in process. Newly enrolled infants and toddlers need to have a reasonably lengthy period attending centre before having a break away. If you are planning a holiday, please consider enrolling your young child after the break rather than before it, as it is upsetting to the child to have to settle in and then have time with their parents and have to resettle when they come back. When your child moves into another room it is not necessary for you to settle the child in to the new room as the children will be settled by their teachers, who will be familiar to them.
Programme
The daily programme includes time in mixed age groups
as well as time in small same age groups. The programme
for older children includes regular trips for nature
walks, gymnastics, visits to the library, museum
and from time to time, swimming. Drama, music, art,
stories, free play, access to interactive learning
computer programmes and structured exercises in
language and mathematics are all included in the
programme. Teachers plan individually and for the
group. Each child has an individual teacher or ‘special
friend’ responsible for your child’s
care and education. The teachers also observe the
children and in consultation with parents plan and
implement the individual and group programmes based
on the children’s interests and emerging abilities
and following the national and Montessori curriculi
a record of which is kept in the child’s profile
which you can view at any time.
Sample Montessori Programme
- 07 45
- Centre opens, children begin to arrive
- Before 08 45
- Free play Children in Infant and Kindy rooms and art area or outside
- O8 45
- Senior. Montessori and Jnr Montessori classes commence. Senior Montessori have a self-serve morning tea.
- 10 30-10 45
- Morning tea served to Junior Montessori.
- 10 45-12 15
- Montessori classes continue
- 12 30 – 1.00
- Children’s lunchtime served in Montessori rooms.
- 1.00 – 2.30/3.00
- Sleep / siesta-time for younger Montessori children, quiet time for all children in centre.
- 1.00-3.30
- Montessori extended day session.
- 3 30
- Play-time, get ready for afternoon tea, Montessori teachers supervising Montessori children and ensuring their smooth integration into the centre programme.
- 3.30 – 3.45
- Afternoon tea, all children together in Art room.
- 5.30
- Centre closes.
