Cambridge Montessori is a private school in Cambridge, MA. It serves students from 21 months through 8th grade and provides an education that aims to balance academic and social development, based on the educational principles of Maria Montessori.
Overview
The school offers an education based on the concepts developed by Maria Montessori who advocated for education of the “whole child”. Her ideas created important elements of today’s Montessori environment, such as mixed age classrooms, some choice of activities by the student, uninterrupted large blocks of work time, discovery based curriculum and freedom of movement in the classroom.
School’s Mission Statement...
At Cambridge Montessori School, we partner with our diverse community, using authentic Montessori principles, to reveal each child’s innate love of learning and prepare our children to thrive in a complex world.
Goals
According to the school, their education tries to foster the following qualities in each student:
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Retain their natural love of learning.
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Have open minds; they think critically and independently.
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Resolve conflicts actively and collaboratively.
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Value diversity and lead compassionate lives.
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Are active stewards of global resources and protect the commons for future generations.
Academics
From Toddlers through Middle School, Cambridge Montessori strives to balance balance both academic and social development. As a Montessori school, their classrooms are unique environments that promote the children's independence and individuality and foster their natural love of learning.
The school’s curriculum is in unique in the sense that each level uses a similar basic curriculum but with an age-appropriate level of sophistication, kind of like a “spiral of knowledge”. Included in the basic curriculum are language, math, geography, history, social sciences, science, library technology, Spanish, studio arts, musical arts, drama and physical education.
Toddler Program - The toddler program serves children from 21 months to 3 years. The curriculum takes advantage of the toddler’s natural drive to act independently. Children learn by doing, using Montessori-style materials that are always accessible, attractive and safe.
Primary Program- In the primary program, children between the ages of 3 to 6 student begin to learn naturally through self-directed activities and learning by doing. A unique feature of the Montessori education is its hands-on approach to learning. Students work with specially designed materials, manipulating and investigating until they master the lesson inside.
Elementary Program - Elementary-aged children continue to learn through the use of concrete materials as they move gradually toward increasingly abstract thinking. Lessons and materials are multi-sensory and dramatic, with the goal to ignite the imagination and curiosity of the students.
Middle School - In the Middle School program, students are presented with an integrated curriculum, designed to help them make connections across disciplines. In the later years, students advance to more sophisticate and challenging projects where they present their work to the younger students. A capstone project closes each year. The curriculum includes the Montessori “core subjects” such as Language, math, sciences with the addition some new subjects such as art electives and film school.