Activities develop eye-hand coordination, gross and fine motor skills, concentration, attention to details and a sense of order. Practical Life encompasses four main areas: Control of Movement, Care of Person, Care of Environment, and Grace and Courtesy.
Exercises provide the child with the means to increase his perception and understanding, thus forming the basis for abstract thought. Sensorial materials assist the child in learning to order and classify by touching, seeing, smelling, tasting, listening. These materials also lay the groundwork for writing, reading and mathematics.
Instruction begins at age two and a half with vocabulary enrichment. A phonetic approach to reading is incorporated with a sight-sound-touch presentation of the alphabet. Basic reading and writing skills are emphasized at this level.
Is not learned via rote memorization. The Montessori approach to teaching math begins with concrete objects, moving to the abstract ideas, and then associating the two together. The curriculum goes from learning quantities, to the decimal system, and on to addition, subtraction, multiplication and division.
Subjects are on interdisciplinary study of the life of Man on Earth throughout time and in all geographic regions. It includes the study of Music, Arts and Crafts, History, Geography, Botany and Zoology. It allows the child to learn his universe and the interrelatedness of all life.