Montessori Curriculum Explained

The Montessori pre-school classroom is a ‘living room’ for children. Children choose their work from among the self-correcting materials displayed on open shelves, and they work in specific work areas. Over a period of time, the children develop into a ‘normalised community’, working with high concentration and few interruptions. Normalisation is the process whereby a child moves from being undisciplined to self-disciplined, from disordered to ordered, from distracted to focused, through work in the environment. The process occurs through repeated work with materials that captivate the child’s attention.

In the Montessori pre-school five distinct areas constitute the prepared environment:

Practical life enhance the development of task organisation and cognitive order through care of self, care of the environment, exercises of grace and courtesy, and coordination of physical movement.
The Sensorial area enables the child to order, classify and describe sensory impressions in relation to length, width, temperature, mass, colour etc.
Mathematics makes use of manipulative materials to enable the child to internalise concepts of number, symbol, sequence, operations and memorisation of basic facts.
Language arts include oral language development, written expression, reading, study of grammar, creative dramatics and children’s literature. Basic skills in writing and reading are developed through the use of sandpaper letters, alphabet cut-outs and various presentations allowing children to link sounds and letter symbols effortlessly and to express their thoughts through writing.
Cultural activities expose the child to basics in geography, history and life sciences. Music, art and movement education are part of the integrated cultural curriculum.

The pre-school environment unifies the psycho-social, physical and academic functioning of the child. Its important task is to provide students with an early and general foundation that includes a positive attitude towards school, inner security and a sense of order, pride in the physical environment, abiding curiosity, a habit of concentration, habits of initiative and persistence, the ability to make decisions, self-discipline and a sense of responsibility to other members of the class, school and community. This foundation will enable them to acquire more specialised knowledge and skill throughout their school career.

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