Montessori schooling is a brilliant investment in your child’s well-being and future. With a great approach to nurturing and educating children, Montessori schooling is a favorite amongst new parents.
At the age of 6, your child is most likely going to begin Montessori Elementary. Bright-eyed, eager and with their backpack on, your child may be a little anxious about the first day of school – and most probably, you’ll be anxious too.
Here are some great ways to make this transition for you and your child a seamless experience.
Be Informed
By now, you must be well aware of how Montessori schooling prides itself on the principles of trust and child-centeredness.
Montessori elementary is no different, although it’s great to attend parent education seminars about the school to get an idea of how to acclimate your child to their new surroundings. Having conversations with teachers and expressing concerns about your child’s transition will also open you up to a professional’s take on transition.
A Different Classroom
Montessori classrooms are prepared classrooms with architecture, furniture and color schemes to encourage children to learn and visually engage themselves. With a low student to teacher ratio, it offers a much more homely environment.
However, the classrooms at Montessori Elementary are larger and noisier than what they may have become used to in the Children’s House. Acclimating your child to this information will help them ease into their new surroundings without feeling strange about a new place.
The Academic Workload
The workload of Montessori Elementary schools is more advanced, of course. Reading, arithmetic, algebra and certain other subjects are bound to be introduced and could worry your child.
In the summer before school, make reading and arithmetic fun for your child with interactive games and rewarding them when they apply themselves well on a new topic.
Give Your Child Some Time
Naturally, all parents want to protect their children from impending dangers and discomforts. But allowing your child time to adjust to their new environment is also equally important as preparing them for the change.
Giving your child a chance to process a novel environment will help foster independence and personal opinion, both of which are vital for personal and cognitive growth.
Montessori schooling is a learning environment; allowing your child to develop their own pace and preferences about their new school and communicating about it with them will help in their transition. To schedule a tour and learn more about our curriculum, please call (708) 926-9720 or submit a contact form on our website.