Academic Programs : Primary : Curriculum

Primary Curriculum

Practical Life
Exercises in everyday living skills help to develop coordination, increase attention span, and build ideas of sequence and logic while building fine motor coordination.

Sensorial
These materials focus on each of the five senses. Sensorial exercises heighten powers of observation, enrich descriptive vocabulary, teach classification and help children extend this skill into their world.  At the Primary level, science, geography, and music are sensorial explorations.

• Science - Students learn the physical characteristics of plants and animals and their natural environments. Enhancing vocabulary and using simple experiments to understand basic concepts of physical science are part of the science program.
• Geography - Children learn how land and water forms are created. Map work reinforces language, fine motor coordination, and memory development. Cultural studies emphasize the universal needs of human beings and an appreciation of diversity.
• Music - Music classes introduce children to the concepts of rhythm and melody. Within the classroom children work to recognize tonal differences, to play and compose tunes and to sing. Annually, the Primary students perform in a theatrical offering for the entire School.

Language
Teachers encourage the children to express themselves verbally through describing, explaining, telling stories, and forming opinions. Initially, a phonetic system is used to teach reading. As children gain confidence, their skills are broadened with more complicated letter combinations. Emphasis also is placed on the manual skills necessary for writing.

• Art - A variety of activities and media are used to develop an awareness of color, texture and form. Art work helps to develop fine motor control and communication skills; thus, it is considered to be part of our language work.

Mathematics
Children learn to associate number symbols with quantities. Dr. Montessori's very manipulative and appealing "golden bead" material forms the basis of the decimal system work. This material lays the foundation for understanding basic arithmetic operations and promotes a real understanding of the number system in preparation for more abstract mathematical concepts at the Elementary level.