TODDLER PROGRAM
18 months to 3 years of age
BENEFITS OF A MONTESSORI TODDLER PROGRAM
The Papillon Toddler Community is a prepared environment for children aged 18 months to 3 years old. It is designed to assist the child toward independence, social awareness, respect, motor skills, and language development. Maria Montessori asserted that human beings develop with the most incredible intensity during the first three years of life; therefore, toddler classrooms are prepared to provide nurturing, security, and challenge in an orderly environment. The maximum number of children in each toddler class is twelve, with one lead teacher and one associate teacher.
THE SPECIFIC GOALS OF THE TODDLER PROGRAM
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To assist the child in a positive separation from parents to facilitate individuation.
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To provide an orderly environment in which toddlers may explore and experience concepts and skills through manipulation.
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To provide a language-rich environment through precise nomenclature, books, nursery rhymes, and music.
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To give the child opportunities for practical life - care of the self and environment - so that the child understands that each person has an important function. This encourages a positive self-concept and confidence.
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To provide a social environment for the fostering of community and respect.
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Creating an aesthetic environment through artwork and objects from nature calls to the child's love of beauty.
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To encourage a supportive community for parents through education and participation.
WE ENCOURAGE INDEPENDENCE AT A GRADUAL PACE
We believe that even very young children can be responsible for themselves and their own environments. Diapering is a regular part of our daily routine. Toddlers help by removing their own diapers and wipes them out of their cubbies. When your child is ready, toilet training is programmed in the Toddler House curriculum. Children also learn to prepare their own snacks.
“A child in his earliest years, when he is only two or a little more, is capable of tremendous achievements simply through his unconscious power of absorption, though he is himself still immobile. After three, he can acquire a great number of concepts through his own efforts in exploring his surroundings. In this period, he lays hold of things through his own activity and assimilates them into his mind.”
DR. MARIA MONTESSORI
TODDLER HOUSE IS A SITE OF EXPLORATION
We believe toddlers learn by doing, so we ensure classrooms are fitted with learning materials within reach and toddler-sized furniture to create confidence and independence. These tools develop essential motor and cognitive skills such as sorting, stacking, counting, matching, sequencing, scooping, pouring, cleaning, and sweeping. Our toddlers spend time outdoors every day (weather permitting). Each classroom has a dedicated outdoor area where they engage with the environment with all of their senses.