Curriculum
Montessori Infant Community
Our Infant Community offers a gentle, nurturing introduction to life outside the home — carefully prepared for children from around 14 months until they are ready to move into the Children’s House at 2½ to 3 years.
At this remarkable stage, children are developing gross and fine motor skills, and language at a phenomenal rate. Our prepared environment supports this with a calm, stimulating and safe space where every activity has a purpose.
Our curriculum is built around five key areas:
Gross Motor Skills
Children at this age have a powerful drive to move, climb and explore. Our spacious hall and outdoor area give them room to do exactly that — safely and freely.
- Climbing, sliding, running, balancing and riding
- Walker-wagons and tricycles to build co-ordination
- Outdoor space for physical play and gardening
Language
Rich, meaningful language runs through everything we do. We build vocabulary through the real objects and experiences children encounter every day.
- Songs, poems and stories every session — seasonal favourites and all-time classics
- Named objects and picture cards to broaden understanding of the world
- Books to enjoy independently or share with an adult
Fine Motor Skills
From simple puzzles to threading beads onto laces, our activities help children refine their hand movements and develop hand-eye co-ordination at their own pace.
- Lift-out and more complex puzzles
- Threading and lacing activities
- A range of materials that grow with the child
Practical Life
In Montessori, Practical Life is far more than learning to do things — it is how children develop independence, confidence and a sense of belonging. Through meaningful, real-world activity, children discover that they can contribute, care and connect.
- Dressing frames with buttons, zips and other fastenings
- Caring for plants, mopping, pouring and polishing
- Real washing and scrubbing activities
- Grace and Courtesy — practising the social skills that help children know how to be with others: how to greet, how to ask, how to move through the world with kindness and awareness
- The foundation for the richer Practical Life work they will go on to enjoy in the Children’s House
Expressive Arts
Creativity, movement and self-expression are woven into every session.
- Painting easel and craft table
- Musical instruments to explore rhythm and sound
- Activities that also support fine and gross motor development
OUR CHILDREN'S HOUSES
Clapham Montessori & Clapham Park Montessori
Step into one of our Children’s Houses and you will find a constant, purposeful flow of activity. Children move freely, choose their own work from the shelves, and decide how long to spend with each material. There is no distinction between ‘play’ and ‘work’ — every child is engaged in the deeply important task of self-construction.
The Montessori prepared environment is designed to remove obstacles and follow the child’s natural development. Order, beauty and freedom work together so that concentration, independence and a sense of community can flourish naturally. Children tidy up after themselves and help one another; they express their feelings with words, show a growing tolerance for delay, and develop a deep respect for each other’s work and space — not because they are told to, but because the environment makes this the natural way of things.
Our curriculum is built around five areas:
Practical Life
Practical Life is the foundation of everything. Through real, purposeful tasks, children develop the concentration, co-ordination and self-confidence that underpin all other learning.
- Care of self and the environment
- Activities that develop control of movement and problem-solving skills
- Grace and Courtesy — learning how to be with others and how to contribute to the community
- The bedrock from which all other areas of the curriculum grow
Sensorial
The Sensorial materials help children make sense of the world by isolating and exploring its qualities — preparing the mathematical mind at the same time.
- Exploring shape, dimension, weight, colour, sound, smell and taste
- Refining the senses through carefully designed materials
- Building the concepts and vocabulary that support later mathematical thinking
Language
Language development begins with rich vocabulary and a growing awareness of the sounds within words — the essential foundations for both writing and reading.
- Vocabulary enrichment across all areas of the environment
- Phonological awareness and preparation for writing and reading
- Materials for developing writing skills, reading and grammatical understanding
- Indirect preparation for writing is woven throughout the whole curriculum
Mathematics
Our Montessori mathematics materials make abstract concepts tangible, allowing children to explore and truly understand number and operations.
- Addition, subtraction, multiplication and division through hands-on materials
- Properties of two and three-dimensional shapes
- An introduction to fractions
Culture
Culture brings the world into the classroom. Through beautiful, carefully designed materials, children are introduced to the breadth and wonder of the world around them.
- Geography through puzzle maps and classified materials
- Botany and Zoology through nature-based classification
- Music, including the Montessori bells
- History, Art and simple Science experiments
Physical Development
Movement is woven into the entire Montessori day. Children are active, purposeful and physical throughout every session.
- Gross and fine motor skills engaged across all areas of the environment
- Outdoor climbing, balancing, and use of balls and bean bags
- Exploring and caring for the outdoor environment
Extra-Curricular Classes
Both Clapham Montessori and Clapham Park Montessori offer optional weekly classes after the morning session. These have proved extremely popular over the years, and include:
- Music & Movement (CM & CPM)
- Tennis (CM)
- Italian (CM)
- French (CPM)
- Drama (CPM)
- Yoga (CPM)