Preschool & Kindergarten Program

The Preschool and Kindergarten Montessori Program at Oakridge is designed to foster a lifelong love of learning through hands-on exploration, meaningful work, and discovery.

For children ages 3 to 6 years old.

Program options include:

School Year

180 days

September-Mid June

Year Round

240 days

Full Year

Summer

50 days

Mid June-August

Preschool & Kindergarten Program

Curriculum

Guided by Montessori-trained lead teachers who participate in annual Montessori professional development, our program remains rooted in authentic Montessori philosophy and best practices. We believe in following the child, carefully observing each student's interests, readiness, and developmental needs to provide individualized lessons that inspire curiosity and a joy for learning. 

Children are encouraged to embrace challenging work, developing perseverance, confidence, and pride in their accomplishments as they progress through Practical Life, Sensorial, Language, Mathematics, Science, Geography, Cultural Studies, and the Arts. You can explore in more depth the curriculum covered in this program below.

As a mixed-age community, our classroom emphasizes collaboration, kindness, and respect. Older students naturally become leaders and mentors, while younger children learn through observation and shared experiences, creating a strong sense of belonging and community. Through grace and courtesy lessons, cooperative learning, and meaningful classroom responsibilities, children discover the value of working together while also growing in independence. 

Our goal is to nurture confident, compassionate, and capable learners who love learning, enjoy meaningful work, and are prepared to make positive contributions to their community both inside and outside the classroom.

Practical Life

Practical Life activities help toddlers develop independence, skills, and confidence in completing every day tasks.

Children may engage in:

  • Food Preparation

  • Caring for plants

  • Feeding classroom animals

  • Grace and courtesy lessons

  • Fine motor development

  • Cleaning and classroom care

  • Responsibility and self-help skills

Sensorial

Sensorial materials help children refine their senses while developing observation, concentration, classification, and critical thinking skills.

Children explore:

  • Size and dimension

  • Color

  • Sound

  • Texture

  • Weight

  • Shape and form

  • Visual discrimination

Language

Children build strong foundations for reading, writing, communication, and literacy through a sequential Montessori language curriculum.

Areas of exploration include:

  • Phonemic awareness

  • Letter sounds

  • Vocabulary development

  • Reading and comprehension

  • Creative expression

  • Handwriting and written language

Mathematics

Through concrete Montessori materials, children develop a deep understanding of mathematical concepts before moving toward abstraction.

Areas of exploration include:

  • Number sense

  • Counting and quantity

  • Place value

  • Addition and subtraction

  • Skip counting

  • Geometry foundations

  • Problem solving

  • Simple Multiplication

Science

Through carefully selected Montessori materials and guided outside exploration, children develop the ability to recognize, categorize, and communicate about different parts of the natural world.

Areas of exploration include:

  • Specific scientific vocabulary

  • Concepts of mammals

  • Classification of different types of animals (vertebrates, invertebrates, reptiles, fish, amphibians, birds, mammals)

  • Parts of the animals

  • Parts of the Plants

  • Living versus not living

  • What organisms live where (land, water, air)

Geography

Through access to hands-on maps, globes, and Montessori materials children gain a solid foundational knowledge of geographical placement.

Areas of exploration include:

  • Identification of land versus water

  • Continents and their names

  • Ocean names and identification

  • The countries of each continent

  • Political Geography: People that live in different places

  • Where different plants and animals that are found

Cultural Studies

Children begin exploring the world around them through hands-on experiences that inspire wonder and curiosity.

Areas of study include:

  • Famous landmarks

  • Zoology in different areas

  • Botany in different areas

  • Cultural celebrations

  • Children explore carefully curated culture kits featuring: music, objects, one children's toy, a book in the language, and spices from different areas around the globe

  • Are and music from different cultures

Arts

Art materials are available for the children throughout the day, allowing them to develop techinical skills as well as to freely explore their own unique creative expression.

Areas of exploration include:

  • Art History: Famous artists and their works are introduced

  • Open invitation to create art

  • Access to paper, crayons, paint, scissors, glue, beads, etc.

  • Learning technical skills: proper hand placement for holding pens/brushes/scissors/etc., practice coloring inside of lines, and introduction to color theory

  • Guided art projects

Music

Through Montessori music materials and instruction from guides, children are introduced to foundational and core music concepts from which they can later learn how to read music and play instruments.

Areas of exploration include:

  • Guided rhythm studies

  • Introduction to matching pitch

  • Introduction to what is music how we can create music

  • Using Montessori bells to learn matching tone and pitch

Enrichment & Outdoor Learning

Learning extends beyond the classroom through experiences that encourage movement, creativity, exploration, and connection to nature.

Children participate in:

  • Gardening

  • Outdoor exploration

  • Gross motor skill development

  • Art experiences

  • Music and movement

  • Seasonal swimming

  • Nature studies

  • Animals observations

Excellence

Excellence

Curious, Confident Children

Values

Community

It Takes a Village

Values

Whole Child

Mind, Heart, & Character

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