“Where the child is guided by nature.”
PRIMARY FULL DAY
Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
5-days a week
Contact us for current tuition rates
Give us a call:
253-857-8051
Please Note: Our school year calendar is coordinated with the local school districts schedule of holidays and school closures.
//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
OUR PROGRAMS
Montessori Farmhouse School offers full day primary (ages 2.5 to 6 years-old) programs, extended care
and unique enrichment learning opportunities in a multi-age class environment.
> Learn more about the benefits of a mixed age
class environment.
Our classroom sizes are intimate to ensure every child can
focus freely with the Montessori materials and the support
of a guided curiosity to learn.
> Learn more about our Montessori materials!
SUMMER PROGRAMS
Our Summer 2023 Program is available.
Please contact Office for details
Only available for students Enrolled.
//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
EXTENDED CARE
Child Care Services:
Before school from 7:00 a.m. to 8:30 a.m.
After school from 3:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.
The flexible hours of our extended care program helps to accommodate family work schedules and also provides an opportunity for kids to enjoy more social time - a popular request with the kids!
+ Outdoor Time
+ Cooking Activities
+ Group Play
Contact us for current hourly extended care rates
////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
What will my child learn in a typical day at Montessori Farmhouse?
The concepts of the Montessori preschool curriculum
can be distinguished by the following areas:
CURRICULUM
PRACTICAL LIFE EXERCISES
1. Care of the Environment - cleaning, sweeping, washing clothes, gardening, etc.
2. Care of the Person - dressing, cooking, setting the table, washing dishes, hand washing and more.
3. Grace and Courtesy - walking carefully, carrying things, moving gracefully, offering food, saying "please" and "thank you."
By means of these activities the child learns to make intelligent choices, to become physically and then mentally independent and responsible. The child learns to concentrate, to control muscles, to move and act with care, to focus, to analyze logical steps and complete a work cycle of activity.
SENSORIAL EXERCISES
The sensorial materials are designed as tools that develop the young child’s concentration, order, coordination, independence and the ability to make finer and finer distinctions in observing the world. They are attractively presented to stimulate the developing senses of sight, sound, touch and smell which are all at work for the child.
Example lesson: All sensorial activities are accompanied by movements showing kinesthetic perceptions. The Knobbed Cylinders build on the ability to observe and make distinctions as the child chooses each cylinder to fit correctly in the block. The child’s reasoning power is stimulated through noticing and correcting any errors.
GEOMETRY & MATH
Rods, cubes and geometric solids allow the child to discover mathematical relationships through manipulation. Linear counting one to one hundred is introduced beginning with counting the quantity (number) and then associating the quantity with the symbol (numeral) that represents the quantity. The base ten system of organizing is introduced with units, tens, hundreds and thousands in the quantity and in the numeral. Addition, subtraction, multiplication and division are introduced using these concrete materials.
Both the Montessori and Mortensen materials and methodology provide a mathematical highway for the development of the “mathematical mind”. However the Mortensen materials are much less expensive, often more efficient in demonstrating numerous mathematical concepts than traditional Montessori materials, less frustrating to manipulate and can lead more easily into abstraction.
Example lesson: The geometric cabinet is designed to develop visual and muscular discrimination of shape, training the eye to understand the form. Children begin with the demonstration tray of a circle, triangle, and square. They begin by gently removing a shape from the tray, trace around the outline using two fingers and then trace the frame. The child continues until all shapes have been traced and replaced.
LANGUAGE
Language is considered to be one of the basic learning areas in a Montessori program. It spans every other area and is an integral part of each, as well as a special area in and of itself. The program materials follow a developmental sequence in which the child grows in language concepts and prepares his hand and eye for writing and reading.
Example lesson: In the Montessori environment, writing nearly always precedes reading. This writing is not done by the child’s use of a pencil but instead done with the Movable Alphabet; a set of wooden letters where by the child can say the sounds and lay out the correct letters. They begin with a small object saying the name very slowly so he can hear each sound ”c–a–t”. They select the letters and lay them beside the object, spelling out “cat”.
LIFE SCIENCES: BOTANY & ZOOLOGY
An atmosphere of love and respect for plants and animals is the best foundation for a lifetime of comfort and interest in nature. Nothing can substitute seeing and smelling flowers and watching the daily growth of a flower or vegetable in the garden.
Example lesson: Children are keen observers of their natural world. They are born scientists asking the how and why of things. A Sink and Float activity has the child placing objects into a basin of water and observing whether it sinks to the bottom of the basin or floats at the top. The child can make a hypothesis about what will happen by asking, "Do you think the shell will float or sink?" By asking why they think that, gives you an amazing insight into their reasoning and knowledge.
CULTURAL
People, Geography, and History: Children are given concrete examples, stories and pictures of people all over the world, in order to build a foundation in history and geography. History and geography lessons are given with this final understanding in mind: the interconnectedness of humans with the earth, the plants and animals, and with each other.
Example lesson: The Montessori Cultural Curriculum is broad, covering geography, botany, zoology and history. The children use the continent map puzzles to make discoveries about the people who live in different countries. The children learn about food, music, clothing, traditions, holidays, customs, housing, as well as the plants and animals of the region as they compare their lifestyles to others. They learn about the flags of the world and reverently carry them in the Montessori prepared environment. They learn to appreciate the wonder found in the similarities and differences found around the world.
MUSIC
Music appreciation is developed through song and folk, ethnic and classical music played on real instruments. A favorite instrument in the classroom is the jambe, a rope-tuned skin-covered goblet drum that originates from West Africa and played with the bare hands.
Children join in when they please or make music whenever they are inspired.
Example lesson: In the Montessori classroom children are exposed to music. They learn lovely songs and practice to carry a tune. They receive a bit of ear training and are exposed to a variety of musical expressions and a bit of music history. They are even introduced to musical notation through the use of the bells. The Bells consist of two series of bells ranging from middle to high “C.” The control bells are painted black or white, and correspond to the black and white keys of the piano. The other set “brown bells,” are unpainted with a natural wood finish. Children begin by matching the bell sounds with the control. After much successful practice with matching, children become so familiar with the diatonic scale that they can put the bells in order from middle to high C, by ear alone.
ART
Experiencing art using various methods and tools, including those derived from nature, helps children to focus and concentrate, develop hand-eye coordination, work in a peaceful environment and develop ways of approaching life as it is integrated through art.