A fundamental tenant of the Montessori philosophy is to approach each lesson in a measured, ordered way. Each item that is used is carefully placed on a floor mat or on the table and presented in a simple, clear way. This allows the student the opportunity to see precisely how to use the materials in a predictable manner and to quickly have a “job” that they can use and practice independently. Repeatedly using the job reinforces the concepts being learned and builds a power memory of the ideas presented.

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Montessori lessons are hands-on and there are many instances where a student will repeat the use of the materials many times until the concept it learned. Often there is paperwork that comes home with the student reinforcing the work the student is doing. Please check your child’s blue bag daily and if there is paperwork, please review it with your child and ask them, “how did you did this?” if it is language work, please ask them “what is this sound?” This kind of interaction is very helpful in reinforcing the effort and progress your child is making in the learning environment.

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During the week, we have “specials” like music, art, Spanish classes where the students are taught in a whole group setting and then are given specific tasks to complete, reinforcing the lesson.

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Kindergartners are working on their goals during the morning work cycle, then in the afternoon it is a Kindergartens only class in P4. Many lessons in Math, Language, Cultural and Science lessons are focused on.

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Welcome P4 families to our P4 blog. We are off to a good start to our new school year as our students are acclimating beautifully to classroom processes and procedures and starting to build friendships in the classroom. The primary drive of a Montessori education is to foster a sense of order, concentration and coordination so that each student can develop and grow their sense of independence.

The classroom is organized according to academic areas. A few areas are shown below.

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This is our “Sensorial” area, the area that explores the five senses.

We place a lot of emphasis on our students walking in with their blue bags, water bottles and lunch boxes so that they learn that those are their things that they are responsible for and they get in the habit of placing those items in their proper place in the classroom.

Please spend a few minutes showing your child the proper way of washing their hands. We are teaching them here at school, but with a little more practice at home this will help us expedite the process in the classroom. Thank you!

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Students are exploring different areas of the classroom. Each “work” has its own tray and proper place on a shelf in the classroom. Students very quickly can see the pattern and with some mild prompting (from their peers), children lean to return the work to its proper place!

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Please help your child be successful in choosing a morning and afternoon snack by providing reusable containers with labeling such as “morning snack” and then a separate container labeled with “afternoon snack.” Ideally, these snack items could be carried in their lunch box. If you need a separate snack holder, please be sure it it clearly labeled. Thanks.

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Finally, please be sure that all of your child’s clothes and masks are labeled with their names, it is most helpful!