LOWER ELEMENTARY

The Lower Elementary experience meets the developmental needs of the 6 to 9-year-old student. At this level, the arts, sciences, geography, math, history, and language integrate in a way that evokes the imagination and abstraction of the elementary child. Montessori called the imagination “the great power of this age.” It is through a second plane child’s imagination and reasoning mind, that their questions begin to be answered.

All studies in the lower elementary classrooms flow from themes developed in what Montessori called the Great Stories. These stories are highly impressionistic and offer the child a panoramic view of the universe and a sense of humanity across time. They are the jumping-off point for all areas of study. They are:

• The Coming of the Universe - Introducing Geography and Chemistry

• The Coming of Life - Introducing Biology

• The Coming of Human Beings - Introducing Human History

• The Story of Communication in Signs - Introducing Language

• The Story of Numbers - Introducing Mathematics 

The questions and curiosities that arise from these stories serve as a blueprint for further study in all areas. The use of hands-on materials, coupled with developing reading, writing, and research skills, allows the elementary child to ask and attempt to answer questions no less profound than, “How did the world begin?” ”Where did we come from?” and “Why…?”

The presentation of knowledge is given as part of a large-scale narrative that presents the theories of the origins of the earth, life, human communities, and modern history, always in the context of the wholeness of life. This “cosmic education” aims to answer the child’s need to know “the reason for things.” Montessori noted the second plane child’s focus upon how and why things were as they were.  

Elementary life also begins the process of “going out” to make use of community resources beyond the four walls of the classroom. These trips out into the community differ from the traditional “field trip.” Whereas a field trip is adult-initiated and directed, Going Out is based on the needs of the children and the classroom community, such as grocery shopping for ingredients for a cooking project, shopping for pet food, or gathering books at the local library to dig deeper into a research topic.

The elementary curriculum includes lessons in math, geometry, language, geography, history, and biology (physical and life sciences). As with all things, we start at the beginning. In Geography is where the First Great Story is rooted, The Coming of the Universe. It is from here that we move forward with all other studies.