North Shore Montessori School

Programs: Children's house - the children's house is the heart of the montessori program. It provides preparation for grade school at the preschool level. The program is designed for children aged 3 to 5 years and meets 2,3 or 5 days a week for either a half or full day. The children's house classroom environment allows for the balance of structure and flexibility that allows for the natural development of each child's physical, emotional, and cognitive skills. The day is designed to allow children the freedom to explore the prepared classroom environment and complete work in each of the main areas of learning: mathematics, practical life, language arts, sensorial, and culture. Concepts are introduced by the teachers in individual, small, group, and whole group lessons. Children are allowed uninterrupted blocks of time to explore new concepts through the hands on use of self-correcting materials which promote independence. Teachers are always observing to see when children are ready for new concepts and the curriculum is designed for each individual child.

stepping stones - the stepping stones program is for children 18 months to 36 months old. The toddler program appropriately accommodates the very young child's sensitive period for language by offering creative and intriguing concepts to expand his/her growing vocabulary. Joining conversations, listening to stories, classifying objects and learning songs and poems all nurture their budding language skills. To help smooth their initial social interactions, the toddlers learn to use words for feelings they experience in themselves and others. Many of the activities in the toddler program highlight the self-help skills that lead to independence. Since this is an age of very strong imitation, the teachers constantly model appropriate social skills, good manners, and consideration of others. The stepping stones classroom is set up to foster an environment of freedom and exploration.

k kindergarten - the full day kindergarten program at nsms provides a strong foundation for success in primary school education. This advanced education is based upon the montessori approach, which fosters authentic learning based on the child's individual needs and interests rather than the needs and interests of the entire group. A montessori education is extremely well-rounded: combining a progressively challenging curriculum incorporating math, science, technology, language, cultural studies and practical life skills to develop a deeper understanding of academic subjects while simultaneously focusing on physical, emotional and character development.

before care/after care/enrichment programs:north shore montessori is committed to meeting the needs of the families within our school community. As a result of those needs, programs such as before care and after care are offered each academic day. For our older students, we offer enrichment programs such as cooking, instrumental music, language, and sports programs. All of these programs combined enrich the learning experience for our families at nsms.