Toddler
16 Months – 3 Years
School Year Schedules
- Half Day – 8:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
- School Day – 8:30 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
- Full Day – 8 a.m. – 5 p.m.
- School Year schedules are offered 3, 4 or 5 days a week
Year-Round Schedules
- All Year Montessori – 7 a.m. – 6 p.m. – 5 days per week
The Toddler Community includes children sixteen months to three years. It offers a doorway to learning in a specially prepared classroom that nurtures the spirit and supports growth and independence. In this setting, children can learn from one another as well as help each other under the careful oversight and nurture of the Montessori toddler teachers. Our teachers respect the child’s natural desire to learn, explore and interact by giving each child lessons one-on-one based on her interests or in small groups, which allows children to build their understanding of social interactions.
Children in the Toddler Community spend their time developing themselves by:
- Building their language skills through language work and daily conversations
- Growing in independence in the areas of self-care, physical activity, toileting etc.
- Becoming more confident in a social environment with other children.
Toddler Class
In the toddler classroom the teacher has special Montessori training that prepares her to work with children under 3 years old. She is the one who selects and arranges the materials to be appropriate and appealing to such young children. The Montessori teacher maintains on-going communication with the parents regarding their child’s progress in the Toddler Community and addressing any needs that arise throughout the year.
When a toddler starts this program she may or may not have any experience being with other children her own age. Usually the child has experience being with adults only. The first thing she will start learning is how to be with other children of similar age. The young toddler will immediately start learning how to take off his coat, hat, shoes, and slowly over time how to put them on as well. He will learn how to put on an apron for water activities, use a napkin at the snack or lunch table, sit at a chair for meals, drink from an open glass, eat using utensils, set up the table and clean up after meals. Toilet learning starts within a few weeks of starting this program and most toddlers become toilet-trained before they leave the toddler room.
From the very start the toddler learns the names of his teachers and classmates and often recognizes the parents of his classmates and in this way he starts feeling comfortable. Toddlers start talking and interacting with each other and start the process of learning how to be in their small class community. Slowly their vocabulary grows and they start learning many new words and phrases. The teacher introduces activities with the names of foods, clothing, animals, etc. They also learn to use words such as large, small, far, near, heavy, light, up, down. This is an age when language development is rapid not only with increased vocabulary, but speaking in simple sentences.
The toddler learns to take care of the classroom materials by handling them with care and putting activities back on the shelves when she is finished. She develops the patience to wait if another child is working with materials she wants to use. Toddlers learn to be empathetic and kind towards the other children and learn appropriate language for functioning in a group such as “excuse me,” “please,” and “thank you.”