San Diego Private Schools for Children

Programs

At Montessori Explorer, we provide individualized education programs for children in the primary classroom range from 2 1/2 -6 years. Between 3-4 years of age, children show an interest in exercises preparing them for writing. Objects like knobbed cylinders, geometric cabinets, sand paper letters and metal insets all help in the refinement of eye hand co-ordination. They can handle a pencil and are interested in reproducing the letters of the alphabet. The equipment children use at this stage will help them to develop the concentration and working habits necessary for more advanced exercises to be performed at the ages of 5 to 6 years. It is the intent of the Teacher to provide guidance and a positive experience allowing them to make choices within set limits. All this creates a viable atmosphere.

The classroom is divided into 6 major areas:

Practical life: Practical life exercises involve taking care of the “self” and the environment. These exercises improve the coordination, working habits, concentration and attention span of a child.
Sensorial: The sensorial material in the classroom helps the child to become aware of details by offering him strongly contrasted sensations. The Montessori Sensorial materials help the child to distinguish and categorize all the new lessons he/she is taught.
Language Arts: Children are taught phonics with the help of picture cards, object boxes and sand paper letters. They form words with movable alphabets. A child as young as 4 years of age gets started on reading and writing.
Mathematics: Pre-math starts at the age of 2 when the cognitive curriculum activities are presented in the practical life and sensorial curriculum. The children learn sequence, recognition, quality of numbers, addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. Some children are capable of doing decimal systems and fractions at 5 years of age.
Cultural: Children learn about history, geography, botany, zoology that includes various land and water forms, study of animals and plants etc. Reading and writing skills are used extensively in these activities.
Science: Children naturally wonder about various science-related concepts and phenomenons. They have science-related inquiries such as why is the sky blue? We offer a science curriculum that satisfies a child's natural questioning ideal for children ages 3-6.
Extra-curricular Activities: At Montessori Explorer we provide children with a special arts program. Every week we offer music and Spanish. Gardening and nature study is also a part of the curriculum. Children do cooking, and Art & Craft projects, creative writing, science experiments on related subjects on a regular basis. A special art program, Brain Gym, curriculum on virtue and Yoga are being introduced in the coming year.