Maria Montessori, an Italian physician, spent her lifetime observing children and creating an educational program that provides opportunities for hands-on learning. She believed that all children learn best from experiencing new information first-hand.

In Montessori programs, young children learn to care for themselves, their environment and for others. Students learn to ask for help when they need it, and to give help where they can. Children are encouraged to work cooperatively and are taught to solve their own problems and resolve conflict. Students learn to identify and challenge bias, and to see themselves as a part of the rich fabric of society.

At Harmony Day School, we encourage children to explore and independently choose activities that interest them. As natural maturation takes place, students learn to manage their time and focus on projects that are of interest to them.

The Montessori early childhood classrooms are the foundation classes for all future learning. It is a curriculum that provides vast experiences that build upon one another over the course of 4 to 5 continuous school years. Materials are precisely made and are arranged on low shelves from left to right and top to bottom—an indirect preparation of the eyes for reading and writing.

Montessori Education is globally practiced and globally consistent—the materials in the classroom at Harmony Day School are the same materials you will find in classrooms all over the world.

Not only will you find materials to teach language, mathematics and penmanship, but also materials to provide early experiences in Botany, Zoology, Geography and Environmental Conservation. These experiences open the pathways in the brain for future learning in these academic and socially conscience areas.

Montessori education is uniquely tailored for each individual child. Lessons are planned based upon the child’s level of readiness, needs and specific interests.