Curriculum Information

Curriculum Information

The curriculum taught at Maple Montessori Nursery School is broad and balanced so that children are engaged and work hard, yet are still able to have lots of fun. We regard the acquisition of the traditional skills of reading, writing and numeracy as vital to their future learning and plan the teaching programme carefully for continuity and progression. At Maple Montessori we are acutely aware of the fact that children learn in a variety of ways. With that in mind, we always seek to deliver our curriculum in as exciting and innovative ways as possible, to cater for different styles of learners and to support children of all abilities.


Our carefully planned curriculum is tailored to the needs of the individual child allowing them to progress successfully in the Early Years Foundation Stage and foster a love of learning. Through skillful observation and assessment, activities and opportunities are planned to encourage children to develop holistically and gain pre-school skills with the minimum of pressure and lots of fun. The children are encouraged to become active learners through making choices and following their own interests. Each day they will experience a balance of child initiated and adult led activities. This encourages the children to discover a wide range of subjects through play and exploration, developing creativity and divergent thinking skills. 


We value the key role that you, as parents, play in your child's learning. At Maple Montessori we recognise the importance of teachers and parents working together in partnership to ensure the best possible start for every child's education. Through daily contact, termly parent/teacher meetings and annual written reports, we will share your child's social and academic progress and achievements.


Early Years Foundation Stage

We follow the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) curriculum. It has seven areas of learning which are categorised as prime areas of learning and specific areas, there is often overlap between the different areas of learning.


The three prime areas of learning are:

Personal, Social and Emotional Development

Communication and Language

Physical Development


These areas are important as they work together and underpin all future learning in other areas of the curriculum


The specific areas of learning are:

Literacy

Mathematics

Understanding the World

Expressive Arts and Design


Personal, Social and Emotional Development

This area of learning is embedded in everything we do and an important part of a child's development. There are clear expectations and we encourage a co-operative approach to all activities showing respect for each other. We have focussed adult-led activities helping the children to learn how to share, recognise their own emotions and emotions in others. The children are shown how to solve disagreements and discuss how they can solve a problem with turn taking or sharing, what the right thing to do is and how our actions make ourselves and others feel. They learn to recognise what facial expressions are telling us about how someone is feeling.


Additionally, the children are aware of their own learning and we have discussions on what they are good at, what they have achieved and what they will learn next. We celebrate the children's achievements by photographing them and each child has their own Early Years Profile to put them in. Children can take photos of their work and bring photographs from home to add to their profile. 


Communication and Language

To develop fluency of speech the children sing songs and nursery rhymes. We have a large variety of fiction and non-fiction books to support all areas of the curriculum and extend children's vocabulary. There are daily story times and weekly visits to the local library and lots of activities to support and improve general sound discrimination in preparation for learning phonics. Children share their weekend news with their peers, learning to speak using different tenses and to a group. Children are encouraged to ask questions and to take account of what others say. 


Physical Development

Every day the children have time outside in King George's Park and can use the wide selection of large construction materials available in the park. They have the opportunity to run around and play chasing games and play with balls and other gym resources which help to develop gross motor skills. Inside the classroom there are a number of Montessori materials and fun resources to develop fine motor skills in preparation for writing. There are planned physical activities to get the children moving and drawing on a large and small scale. Additionally the children are taught to be independent with their own physical care, for example, toileting independently and putting on coats.


Literacy

Literacy relies on learning and becoming competent in a wide range of skills. Children are given the opportunity, encouragement and support to gain confidence in speaking and listening as well as mark making. When the children have reached a good level of sound discrimination and can hear initial sounds in words, we begin to start teaching phonics. Letters are taught phonetically using Montessori Sandpaper Letters and The Large Moveable Alphabet. Children learn to blend and segment words and write letters correctly. All the skills needed for successful reading are introduced and all are given equal importance.


Mathematics

Mathematics is abstract concepts represented by symbols which can link to everyday situations such as time and speed. Understanding is developed through many different everyday routines as well as carefully planned activities. Children learn to sort, grade, match and make patterns. They start by learning to rote count and to count quantities, starting with counting fixed quantities and moving on to count a set of objects from a larger group to a cardinal number. Mathematical language is taught with activities to ensure a solid understanding of the subject. The children will enjoy many practical activities allowing them to explore, enjoy, demonstrate their knowledge and practise their learning. Children will also learn to name two dimensional and three dimensional shapes.


Understanding the World

We aim to stimulate the children's curiosity of the world around them and for them to gain an awareness and respect of the world. Topics cover many different subjects and help the children to make observations, comparisons and categorisations of the living world. We encourage the children to question and learn about their environment, people and places. The children learn about festivals celebrated around the world.


Expressive Arts and Design

Expression and creativity are very much a part of successful learning and link to all areas of the curriculum. It extends children's imaginations as they role-play, move to music and explore a wide range of art, craft and construction materials. It gives them the freedom to develop their own ideas.


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