Southbank Basinghall Program
Purpose
This center’s educational program is based on the Montessori Method of Education. The classrooms are specially prepared for the age of the children and contain age appropriate materials coving the five areas.
This policy will provide guidelines to ensure that the educational program (curriculum) and practice at Southbank Basinghall Centre is:
- Based on an approved learning framework
- Underpinned by critical reflection and careful planning
- Stimulating, engaging and enhances children’s learning and development.
Southbank Montessori Basinghall Centre is committed to:
- Providing an educational program that is based on reflective practice, critical analysis and planning
- Supporting each child to achieve learning outcomes consistent with the national Early Years Learning Framework and national quality standards.
- Providing an educational program where children can learn through play and are supported to make decisions, problem-solve and build relationships with others
- Creating an environment that supports, reflects and promotes equitable and inclusive behaviors and practices
- Involving families in the development and review of educational program and practice.
Southbank Montessori Curriculum and practice:
Practical Life:
- A carefully chosen selection of small motor activities designed to develop the child’s independence, coordination, concentration, sense of order and care of the environment and themselves.
- Focus on basic movements, fine motor skills, and independence. Development of child’s intellect and concentration will also help develop an orderly way of thinking.
- Applied applications are care of maintenance in everyday life skills
- Preliminary applications such as basic life movements such as sorting, pouring, folding and carrying.
- Control of movement- how to refine coordination
- Grace and courtesy- social interaction. Conversation and greetings and expressions
Sensorial Materials:
- Self-correcting Montessori materials which assist the child in refining their ability to accurately judge and compare size, shape, colour and texture to enable them to become more perspective and analytical in their observations. These materials also prepare the child for mathematics.
- Tactile-activities focus and engage through he sense of touch
- Visual- learning to discriminate between similar and different objects
- Olfactory and gustatory- exercises through smell and taste
- Auditory- identifying sounds, to refine hearing and heighten sensitivity to the environment
Language:
The language activities are an important area as they enable the child to learn the phonetic sound for each letter. When they are confident with these sounds they then begin to read starting with small phonetic words. As each level is mastered more rules are introduced to enable the child to read.
In 2-3 year classroom spoken language is developed through stories, singing, conversations with the children and adult role modeling.
Language Curriculum Outline
Indirect Preparation for reading and writing:
- Practical life exercises that provide left to right movement and sequences
- Cylinder blocks and metal insets to prepare hand for handwriting
- Geometry, botany and geography materials to develop sense of shape and direction
- Spoken language skills and vocabulary development
- Word games leading to phonemic awareness
Reading Mechanics
- Sound-symbol correspondence
- Reading nomenclature from classroom studies
Comprehension
- Listen purposefully and enjoy a range of literary forms
- Identify characters and their some feelings
- Participate in group discussions with limited speech
Mathematics:
At Southbank Montessori Basingahall Center math curriculum is designed to support children’s natural interest in math and provide a strong foundation in numeracy through the use of specially designed math materials such as sequencing puzzles, grading to number rods. Through concrete mathematical experiences, the youngest children learn about dimension, size, number, shape and sequence. Then with the use of increasingly abstract materials, children make the passage from concrete experience to paper and pencil exercises, all the while relying on the foundation of understanding built through their direct experiences. Every math concept is taught with a corresponding material.
From there they move on to understanding the decimal system and hierarchies. The older children will cover addition, subtraction, multiplication and division.
Math Curriculum Outline:
- Association of quantity and symbol for numbers 1-10
- Linear counting and number combinations to 10
- Geometric shapes, forms and nomenclature
Cultural studies:
The children are provided with materials to experience geography, history, science, music and art. If required the directresses can provide to the families a complete list of the materials in each area and their child’s attainment in those areas. The directresses provide this information at their 6 monthly parent meetings.
