Enrichment Programs
Woodland Montessori School has on its staff an Enrichment Coordinator dedicated to providing enrichment for the children in a way that is line with the Montessori Philosophy. This year we are happy to provide the following programs:
Outdoor Classroom
Our enrichment coordinator uses her degree in environmental education to provide an array of experiences for children to actively explore nature and the outdoors. Our Outdoor Classroom has multiple garden spaces that are designed, planted, tended, and harvested by our students. It has all the typical gross-motor activities for climbing, swinging, and riding as well as materials for exploring bugs, plants, and leaves. Also, we use natural materials as play equipment whenever possible. In addition to our gross-motor opportunities, we value “down time” in nature. The children have a peace and meditation space, a “little library”, adirondack chairs, and other quiet opportunities to enjoy while outdoors. Our outdoor classroom honors the “whole child” and aligns well with the practices of our indoor Montessori classrooms.
Music
In addition to enjoying a variety of songs, dances and other music related experiences during group-time, Woodland is proud to offer our children a weekly music class. The children are invited to join in for different rhythm exercises, rhymes, seasonal songs, and more. The Preschool children enjoy a year-end “All School Sing” to share some class favorites with our Woodland community.
Yoga
Woodland works with little om BIG OM for our yoga program in the Toddler House classrooms. The children have fun learn basic yoga and stretching poses, while practicing mindfulness, making silence, and intentional movement – all practices aligned with the Montessori philosophy. Yoga, with its teachings of inner peace, mindfulness, and intention; is an important part of Woodland’s programming.
Spanish
The Spanish language is emphasized in a variety of ways at Woodland. Our Toddler House classrooms have teachers who are fluent in Spanish. These teachers enjoy weaving Spanish into lessons, group-times, and everyday language into our daily routines. Our Preschool classrooms enjoy working with a Spanish teacher who is familiar with the Montessori classroom and teaches through “Spanish immersion”. Our Preschool children not only enjoy their traditional Montessori lessons taught in Spanish, but also songs, group activities, cooking lessons, and more.
Cooking Program
Our cooking program prioritizes recipes with local and organic ingredients, and we cook out of our gardens whenever possible. Our recipes provide opportunities to learn about ingredients, sensory explorations of food, and of course allow for active child involvement in the cooking process. Our little chefs wash hands, put on an apron, and join the cooking teacher in the classroom. They may help measure flour for quiche crust, chop peppers and tomatoes for garden salsa, or smell vanilla for the banana bread to be baked on a winter day. Montessori wrote extensively about how cooking in the classroom is an important extension of the many lessons available within child’s classroom – we are proud of how we incorporate food prep into the child’s preschool experience.
