Primary « Curriculum
The Primary cycle is a three-year program for 3 to 6 year olds. While there are many benefits to a multi-age classroom, the most significant is that it promotes peer learning. Children at this age are eager to master the challenges of learning letters, numbers, shapes, continents, order and sequence, and are beginning to learn to read and write. Montessori materials help structure learning and guide them from simple to more complex skills and concepts. Our three Primary classes blend reading and math readiness skills with practical life skills (for example: sorting, classifying, cutting). The academic program includes world cultural studies, science exploration, art, social skills and play. Classrooms include inviting indoor and outdoor space.
The Kindergarten year is designed to give 5 and 6 year olds the maximum opportunity to develop self-confidence and self-esteem, using skills they have built over the previous two years. These skills include reading and math readiness, concentration, self-discipline, independence, order and coordination. While core content is included in the home-based classroom, Kindergarteners from all three classrooms gather together daily for art, music, Spanish, or PE and additional group lessons in Language Arts, Math and Science. This third year of the primary cycle offers many opportunities for Kindergarteners to learn leadership skills. The year culminates in a one-night camping trip as well as in their publishing a newspaper featuring their own stories and drawings.
Curriculum Details
Primary Language Arts
Ages 3-4: The focus is on pre-reading and writing skills, including: visual and auditory discrimination; speaking and listening skills; left-to-right patterning; rhyming; pattern recognition; sound/symbol association; letter formation and recognition; literature appreciation and written language in environment.
Kindergarten: The focus is on whole language; phonetic instruction and phonemic awareness including sound/symbol relationships; invented spelling; beginning decoding; written language in environment; beginning sight word vocabulary; creative writing; literature appreciation and structure; speaking and listening skills and Handwriting Without Tears manuscript writing program.
Primary Math
Ages 3-4: The concepts we focus on include discrimination of size, shape, and volume; patterning; counting one-to-one correspondence; simple graphs; basic geometric shapes - two and three dimensional; concepts of addition and subtraction; writing numerals; attribute sorting and classifying; estimation; introduction to the concept of fractions.
Kindergarten: Quantity/symbol relationship to 9,999; skip counting; patterning; graphs; geometric nomenclature - two and three dimensional; concepts of addition and subtraction; writing numerals; attribute sorting and classifying; estimation; further exploration of the concept of fractions.
Primary History/Geography
Ages 3-6: land and water formations; continents; maps; study of cultures: needs of people (food, clothing, shelter, arts); geography; concept of passage of time and calendar.
Primary Science
Ages 3-6: living/nonliving; plant and animal care; life cycles; vertebrates and invertebrates; environmental education; Physical Science experiments (sink/float/magnets...); seasons; weather; five senses.
Primary Health/Advisory
Ages 3-6: sameness and differences; emotions and self-esteem; communication; safety; social skills; grace and courtesy; personal hygiene; problem solving/peacemaking.
Primary Art
Ages 3-6: The focus is on creative exploration and expression through: two and three dimensional art with mixed media; patterns, shapes and line; exploration with clay; painting with tempera; drawing with colored pencils, crayons, markers and pencils; collage and assemblage; color mixing; exposure to proper usage of scissors, glue and brushes; art appreciation
Primary Music
Ages 3-4: Builds on each child’s natural love of music by learning/singing/dancing/playing a repertoire of songs, singing games, movement, and poetry, which reflect diverse styles, eras and cultures; express beat through movement, dance, body percussion (clapping, patting, stepping, etc.), playing on a variety of percussion instruments; introduction to various basic concepts, such as fast vs. slow; sing in tune with classmates; movement: locomotor (step, skip, leap, etc.) and non-locomotor (twist, bend, stretch, etc.) movement; explore skills in listening, moving to and describing a variety of music; introduction to working cooperatively; introduction to technique on various percussion instruments.
Ages 5-6: Rhythm: Express beat through movement, dance, body percussion (clapping, patting, stepping, etc.), playing on a variety of percussion instruments; identify various basic concepts, such as fast vs. slow; Melody: Sing in tune with classmates, experiment with breath control and various elements of vocal technique, continued exploration of various basic concepts, such as loud/soft, high/low; Song Repertoire/Games: Sing songs and play singing games which reflect diverse styles, eras and cultures; Folk Dance: Introduction to simple folk dances from many cultures; Movement: Opportunities for improvisation - locomotor (step, skip, leap, etc.) and non-locomotor (twist, bend, stretch, etc.) movement; Music Appreciation: Explore skills in listening, moving to and describing music; intro to instruments of the symphony orchestra; “Carnival of the Animals,” by Camille Saint-Saens; Ensemble: Introduction to technique on various percussion instruments, including barred instruments.Primary PE
Ages 3-4: Movement exploration; body awareness; fundamental motor skills; sensory motor activities; sportsmanship (continues through all years); introduction to use of equipment: hula hoop, jump rope, balls.
Kindergarten: Teamwork/social awareness; movement exploration; sensory motor activities; fundamental motor skills; body/physical space awareness; parachute games; cooperative games; rhythmic activities; tumbling; physical fitness evaluation.
Primary Spanish
Ages 3-4: Introduction to Spanish; exposure to the sounds and rhythms of Spanish; songs, felt board stories, puppetry; receptive vocabulary development; basic greetings.
Kindergarten: Numbers 1-10; basic greetings; nuclear family; response to oral commands; singing songs; listening to stories; discussing cultures; basic vocabulary: animals/fruits/numbers/colors/shapes/opposites.
