Recently we’ve been sharing elements of the Montessori learning journey, and how we assess learning as our students’ progress. This week, we take a closer look at what your children learn in their Montessori classroom, specifically in the primary school years. “They have already absorbed the immediate environment and the restricted society they and their families have dealings with. You must try to give the child what he now longs…
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Like most schools across Australia, FMS will issue school reports at the end of this term. This surprises many people, who hold the common misconception that Montessori students aren’t assessed. This couldn’t be further from the truth! While Montessori students are not assessed in the traditional test and exam format, they are assessed continually, daily and personally throughout their Montessori journey. Traditional assessment: What do tests, quizzes, and grades really measure? …
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Leadership, collaboration and teamwork are staple features in the Montessori education journey. Children as young as 2 years of age are given leadership opportunities within their community – like these children from our toddler program, who are leading an afternoon singing activity with Emma, their guide. In our Montessori toddler program, young children develop early notions of community, collaboration and teamwork in everyday activities. For example, children tasked with setting tables…
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"Preventing conflicts is the work of politics, establishing peace is the work of education." Dr Maria Montessori As we celebrate the International Day of Peace this Saturday, we remind families of our mission at FMS: We are a school educating for Peace. Having lived through WWII, Maria Montessori was passionate about how to help the world towards peace. Peace is woven throughout every aspect of the Montessori curriculum. Sometimes the…
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This week we celebrate the birthday of our guiding founder, the visionary Dr Maria Montessori, and take time to acknowledge our school’s own founders; the progressive families who established Forestville Montessori School (FMS) on Sydney’s Northern Beaches way back in 1981. Their vision for place where their own children could enjoy the gifts of a Montessori education continues today at FMS; one of the longest-established Montessori Schools on the east…
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Proficient reading skills set our children up for success in so many ways. Cultivating a love of joyful reading provides them with a lifetime of inspiration, entertainment, and knowledge. Do teachers teach kids to read? Of course. But what parents do at home plays an enormous role in a child’s reading too. Here are our tips help make reading a positive experience that your child will carry joyfully throughout their…
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We were thrilled this week to host Kristina Freeman, co-founder of the award-winning Mental Health & Wellbeing program, Grow Your Mind. Children at Forestville Montessori School have been participating in Grow Your Mind as part of their learning around selfcare and wellbeing since late last year. This week, FMS parents had a personal introduction to the program, learning how it is implemented here at FMS and what they can do…
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Last weekend, FMS families joined our quarterly Working Bee. Adults, children and teachers all pitched in to work in our gardens, helping to keep our school environment beautiful and healthy. This type of community work is not unusual at FMS. From toddlers through to primary school, Montessori students engage in purposeful work. This may involve contributing to the cleanliness of the classroom, the beauty of the environment, the comfort of…
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This week at Forestville Montessori School, we invited the wonderful Kei from Montessori Dance to share insights about teaching dance in a Montessori environment. Movement at Montessori A key element that differentiates Montessori schools from the mainstream is our child-centred approach, emphasising the development of the whole child. Maria Montessori, the founder of the Montessori approach, believed that education should cater to all aspects of a child’s development—intellectual, physical, social,…
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As we develop a new vision and mission for our school, we continually refer to the guiding principles of Montessori philosophy. What are the values we impart to our students and how can we, as educators, leaders and parents, cultivate these in our own lives? Two words regularly used in the Montessori classroom are grace and courtesy. To inspire grace and courtesy in our children, we need to model these…
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