Program Description
Five days a week, half-day program: Monday-Friday, 9:00 am-11:45 am
Children must be walking steadily.
Children do not need to be toilet-trained.
Maximum of 10 students in a small, home-like setting with one trained Montessori teacher and one experienced assistant.
This language-rich environment provides a unique opportunity for children to exercise their independence in a warm, nurturing, and creative environment.
All furniture and materials in the indoor & outdoor learning space are carefully chosen and designed to aid in the development of movement and coordination, language, and cognitive development.
Children learn practical life skills such as how to pour their own water, serve themselves a snack, put on their coat, blow their nose, and clean up a spill (not to mention toilet-training!).
The classroom has plenty of room for social interactions, which reinforce the grace and courtesy lessons and provide opportunities to learn about sharing, taking turns, being patient, and being a good friend.
Activities are designed to develop coordination and independence as well as to encourage positive group interaction and increased self-esteem.
Teachers provide warmth, patience, and the encouragement necessary for each child to reach their unique potential.
Dr. Montessori believed that the first three years of life are the most fundamental in the development of human beings and their potential.
The CMS Toddler Community offers children aged 18 to approximately 36 months opportunities to explore their independence and connection to the world using their extraordinary capacity for learning. The environment is set up much like a home, with areas for preparing food, eating, changing clothes, toileting, group activities, individual work, and quiet moments.
Rather than a classroom setting, it is a nurturing environment that cultivates motor coordination, independence, and language. Some of the classroom activities include food preparation, tending to plants, sharing a beautiful song, and working with materials that help with large and small motor coordination.
Children can develop relationships with both adults and peers outside their own family, enhancing their social skills and helping them understand their connection to the community and environment.
In the Toddler Community, we focus on the child’s development of self-confidence, growing independence, and understanding that they are a respected member of a community. Children are free to explore and find works that spark their interest in a safe and carefully prepared indoor and outdoor environment.
Montessori materials emphasize exploration and experimentation, helping to develop the child’s ability to concentrate and focus, refine sensory perceptions, aid in gross and fine motor abilities, and language skills. Once the child shows readiness, usually around 2.5 to 3 years of age, they start their transition into one of our Primary Classrooms.