“Children taught themselves.” Maria Montessori

The Ladybird Manor Montessori curriculum is offered in conjunction with Early Years Learning Framework.

Ladybird Manor offers our children a wide variety of learning experiences utilising the Montessori approach to education. We have incorporated music, health and fitness in our curriculum. All of our programs will be documented for parents to see the intellectual, physical, social, and emotional progress of their child. Achievement report cards will be given to parents, and our educators will discuss your child’s progress during the parent, teacher meetings. 

At Ladybird Manor, the Montessori curriculum contains six fundamental areas of learning – practical life, sensorial, arts and craft, music and movement, mathematics and language, with science, botany, geography, history, zoology, as an extended curriculum.

Practical Life

The practical life area provides children with practical life activities, which gives the child a feeling of dignity, accomplishment, and self-confidence. The exercise of practical life is fundamental for the child’s development because it supports the tendencies and needs of young children. Particular emphasis is placed on activities that give children the chance to develop skills to care for themselves and their environment in the following areas – control of movement, and grace and courtesy.

Practical life activities are simple and can be accomplished by each child. They offer repetitive cycle, which helps the child establish patterns of order and sequencing, which includes daily living tasks such as pouring juice, polishing shoes, sweeping and buttoning a shirt. To the child, these are meaningful activities that involve caring for themselves, other people and the environment. They also help children to concentrate, expand their attention span and improve their hand-eye coordination.

Sensorial

Sensorial area allows children to use their senses to learn about the world. These materials isolate a defining quality, such as color, size, sound, texture or shape. They help to develop the child’s visual, auditory and tactile senses. Some Montessori materials, such as geometric solids are concrete representations of mathematical concepts that appear in later schooling.

Language

Language activities and materials increase vocabulary and conversational skills, develop writing, and reading skills and begin an understanding of grammar. The language materials include objects and pictures to be named, matched, labelled and classified to aid vocabulary development. Textured letters allow the child to feel and see the alphabet. Phonics and the movable alphabet lead the child towards reading.

Mathematics

Mathematics, geography, and science areas provide the child with ideas for their intellectual development. Hands on experience with mathematics materials give children clear, concrete impression on which to build their own abstractions. This is a concrete experience in our classrooms. Special materials such as spindle boxes and bead bars allow the child to see what “nothing” or zero looks like, or to see that multiplying 5 x 5 can be done with 5 bars of 5 beads each.

Art & Craft

Painting, color mixing, collage and printmaking are just some of the activities provided to show the care and use of art materials, to encourage creativity, and just to have fun! The Kindy level children do art appreciation activities based on the study of particular artists such as Monet, and Matisse.

Geography

Children are given an introduction to physical and cultural geography through the use of wooden puzzle maps and other activities. Studies about countries and activities with objects and snacks from other countries, and international celebrations are all part of geography.

Science

Science is based on nature related activities. Studies of plants and animals include parts of various plants, vertebrates, habitats and weather conditions that support particular plants and animals, and for the kindergarten level children – studies of the planets.

Ladybird Manor allows the child to engage in self-directed, purposeful activity. The Montessori materials are handcrafted, colorful and are displayed in an orderly and accessible way for the children. Each material has a specific purpose and will enable each child to direct their own learning. It also presents more than one concept or idea at a time and has what is known as a “control of error”. If the child has done something incorrectly, it will be self-evident. Children will use these materials spontaneously, independently, repeatedly and with deep concentration. At the end it will allow the child to absorb the lesson and gain inner satisfaction.

Ladybird Manor promises that your child will make the transition to traditional schools exceptionally well, both emotionally and academically. You can have comfort in knowing that they will be well prepared for this journey from day one, as the Montessori approach aims to encourage children to be independent, well-organised, self-motivated and adaptable. These qualities set an excellent foundation for the child’s future endorsements.

At Ladybird Manor Montessori Early Learning, we understand and advocate the National Early Years Learning Framework.

We deliver our Montessori program in collaboration with the Early Years Learning Framework “Being, Belonging, and Becoming”, which describes the principles, practices and outcomes that support and enhance young children’s learning from birth to five years of age, as well as their transition to school.