Daily Program
- 8.30am = Arrival Time
- 9.00am = Activity Time - Indoor/Outdoor - children become involved in various activities, individual, small group and to a lesser extent in large group. Educators support the children's positive dispositions and nurture and extend their learning through opportunities, experiences and interactions. Encouraging lots of physical activities to support their holistic development
- 10.30m = Snack Time e.g. children help organise their snacks and prepare tables and serve drinks and plates etc
- 11am = Outdoor/Indoor activities/General activities/Arts & Crafts, following their interests, focus and attention, as above
- 11.50am – 12.00noon = Story/Song Time and prepare to go home.
(Afternoon sessions have similar routine to above)
The above is only a generalised routine, which is subject to change depending on time of year, birthdays, celebrations or other seasonal topics, which may arise from time to time. As we follow the children's interests and observe emerging interests, opportunities for extending their learning and experiences, the daily program is flexible enough to support and promote an emergent curriculum.
Activity Time
Settling In
KMS is an ideal place to make friends, and develop relationships with other people, the special environment is fun, and often involves working together and sharing ideas and experiences. On entering the school, the child is guided through a settling-in programme. The child is observed and assessed and an environment is then provided to meet each individual’s needs. Children are shown how to care for the environment through Practical Life exercises. Some examples of these are:
- Spooning
- Polishing
- Cleaning
- Preparing veg/fruit
- Threading
- Sorting
- Grading
- Setting tables and many many more
- Pouring
- Sieving
- Grating
- Sweeping
- Carrying
- Moving
- Washing
The children are shown how to care for themselves at the washstand. Exercises for self care areas include frames for buttoning, zipping, Velcro, laces, studs, hook & eye etc. Toilet training, care of the self, washing and drying hands, etc is also encouraged.
One of the great philosophies of the Montessori school is “help me to help myself” which often means the directress or adult showing the child how, at first, and then give the child the time to struggle towards success. This is done by repetition of the children to improve their own skills and concentration. The theory applies not only to the practical life exercises but also to the sensorial, maths, language and other subjects as well.
Sensorial materials are then introduced to the children. They are specifically designed to refine the child’s senses, namely, touch, tactile, hearing, smelling, seeing and tasting. The material is largely self-correcting which fosters independent working. The adult avoids disturbing a pattern of concentration, or intervention either to correct or praise is minimised. The child derives satisfaction from recognising the accomplishment. He/She performs the task not for the end result but for the doing involved in getting there.
Depending on each child’s progress at the sensorial level, the Maths and Language materials are gradually introduced. Again always starting with concrete materials and working towards abstract. For example, sandpaper numerals are introduced so that the child is learning both the visual concept and also learning the tactile feel for later written work. More advanced work with the maths and language materials are carried out in the second year but this again depends on the child’s individual needs and readiness for the equipment and knowledge.
Cultural Studies
These include science (living things, earth, space, magnetism, light, air, water, gravity, sound, motion, etc) geography (land, water, weather, globe, map work, flags, people, children, cultures of the world), history (time, prehistoric time, time lines, story of earth), music & drama (acting, mime, dressing up, songs, rhymes, instruments) zoology, botany, nature, cookery, arts & crafts, field work (woods, farms, theatre, zoo, beach). Outdoor activities include sand, water play, gardening, environmental issues, recycling, bird feeding, caring for pets (for safety reasons our family pet (collie dog) does not have access to the Montessori School area but she is visible to be acknowledged by the children if required)
Play Equipment
Also available in the classroom are jigsaws, duplo, blocks, constructive straws, playdough, clay, claysand, dress up clothes, teasets, home corner, play kitchen, farm/train sets, cars, picnic table, painting, colouring, books, etc.
These all encourage playtime/make believe activities during the day.
Group Work
Group work takes many different topics/activities and depending on the interests of the children are developed and worked on throughout the many areas of the Montessori methods of teaching and materials.
