Sally Young currently has two children at ISMS.
“I have one child in Nautilus (Stage 2) and another who has just begun the Parent Toddler Program (PTP). My kids are so happy, and that makes me happy too!.”
Stage 2 Classrooms (6-9 years)
- Alchira: The Dreamtime
- Athanor: A furnace that transforms base metal into gold
- Nautilus: from the Greek for sailor, also meaning a pearly-lined shelled cephalopod
In Stage 1 the children use concrete materials and all their senses to arrive at an understanding of basic concepts. In Stage 2 when they are presented with a wide variety of materials they consolidate and enhance these concepts.
The materials in Stage 2, while still sensorial and concrete, are designed to help the child learn to abstract broad principles from concrete experience. Many familiar pre-primary materials are used again but now become known by their names as in geometry, geography, grammar and algebra. Small children learn the correct names of isosceles triangles, for example, so they will not be alarmed when they meet these names in later study.
Stage 2 children are driven by the need to belong. Social skills gained in Stage 1 are now the internal drive of the child as they strive to belong to groups, large and small.
ISMS Primary - Stages 2 and 3 - Intellectual Explorers of the Universe
Montessori primary education builds on the pre-primary experience and changes with the needs of this child entering the second stage of development.
Mental independence
Whereas the pre-primary child strives for physical independence, the primary child strives for mental independence and is no longer satisfied with the immediate environment; she or he wants to know ‘why’. Typically children of this age show an innate sensitivity towards compassion, justice and idealism.
The primary child’s questioning mind, and developing ability to reason and abstract, excites and enthuses the child to want to discover more. In Montessori primary, a child’s own questions provide the basis for learning. Education and knowledge is not imposed but comes from the child’s own intellectual exploration.
The Montessori primary curriculum stimulates the child’s imagination and demonstrates the interconnectedness of different areas of study. Areas of study include noting the similarities and differences of the fundamental needs of man identified by Dr Montessori as being divided into the physical (food, clothing, shelter, transportation and defence) and the spiritual (art, cultural, beauty and social acceptance).
Department of Education requirements
The ISMS primary program satisfies the NSW Department of Education requirements, including English language, mathematics, geometry, history, geography, zoology, botany, science, health and personal development. Spanish, art, craft and music are also integrated into the classroom program, together with information technology (computing), which the children use for research and presentations.
Excursions
‘Going out’ is integral to the Montessori primary program, and many small group excursions into the wider world are organised to complement classroom study.
NSW curriculum expanded upon
Naturally, as ISMS is a school registered by the New South Wales Board of Studies, the NSW school curriculum is fully covered in the ISMS primary classrooms. The unique Montessori curriculum enhances and expands on the government-required curriculum.
Boundaries
Children in ISMS classrooms are free to follow their interests but within the boundaries and requirements set by the teacher following discussion with the child. Montessori teachers are not passive; they are directors skilled in observing, monitoring and assessing each child individually and in ensuring by direction that the basics of reading, writing and arithmetic and all necessary curriculum areas are (more than) adequately covered over each three year cycle.
Independent learning
Through the Montessori approach to primary education, the child develops a high degree of independence and discipline whilst their natural curiosity is reflected in their ability to select and complete appropriate work.
ISMS fully prepares our children for external testing including the Government’s National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy, and selective high school entrance examinations. Examination technique is embraced as an essential life skill that needs to be presented and mastered just as other life skills are taught in the Montessori classroom.