West Miami Montessori, School, Academy, Childcare, Education, VPK

Our Programs

Infant/Toddler Program - 0 to 18 months

The most important years of a child's emotional and educational development begin at birth and extend until the age of six. Physical development and mental development are greatly linked during this time. As a result, infants respond well to external stimulation which lays the foundation for absorption, concentration and learning. At West Miami Montessori Learning Academy we are deeply committed to these developmental principles. In our Infant program, our children enjoy freedom of movement, discovery, and interaction, as they develop basic gross motor skills. In our classroom environment, infants explore different forms of art activities, experience music and movement, begin lessons that encourage sensory and motor development, and enjoy daily outdoor activity time.

As a staff, we are dedicated to maintaining the highest quality education while loving, nurturing, and keeping our children safe. We are deeply commited to:

Fostering the development of trust between our infants and caregivers
Assisting in the natural development of each child's unique personality
Responding appropriately to the infant's needs to be loved, respected, and accepted
Holding and feeding our infants as often as needed to ensure their comfort
Maintaining a flexible and predictable routine so that our infants feel secure in their environment, and
Establishing partnerships with our families to ensure our infants needs as well as all our families needs are addressed

Toddler Program - 18 to 36 months

Our Toddler program is designed for children to explore, discover and master academic and developmental skills with guidance from their teachers. Toddlers begin to see themselves as independent individuals and love learning new skills when given the opportunity to choose lessons freely within expected limits.

Our Montessori materials introduce toddlers to Practical Life skills, Sensorial lessons, Language, early Mathematical skills and Logic. Practical Life activities such as getting dressed, setting the table, or sweeping the floor encourage the development of a sense of pride and excitement at their age. Early Mathematical skills such as sequencing, sorting and recognizing patterns lay the foundation for more complex Math and Science skills in the future. Toddlers experiment with different materials in creating art, they are engaged in Music & Movement daily, they complete lessons that encourage sensory and motor development, and enjoy daily outdoor activities.

Our highly skilled teachers demonstrate respect, love, warmth, and patience that allow the children to blossom. They closely observe and respond to each child's needs, they carefully design their classrooms to ensure optimal learning opportunities, they establish materials and areas that are engaging, safe, and developmentally appropriate.

Through our curriculum and philosophy, we are able to guide our students toward developing great self confidence and self discipline. Dr. Maria Montessori firmly believed in a child directed form of learning in order to prepare them for limitless success in the future. At West Miami Montessori Learning Academy we are genuinely committed to maintaining that philosophy.

Preschool Program - Ages 3 to 6

The three to six year program is a unique preschool experience because students complete both the pre kindergarten and kindergarten years while in this program. It is also unique because of the mixed age grouping which is a basic principle of the Montessori Method which means that children 3-6 years of age are in the same classroom together. Students work at their own ability level. At the same time, the younger student has the opportunity to challenge her/himself in relating to older students and the older student can reinforce her/his own learning by guiding a younger student through a work.

Children construct knowledge by interacting with the materials in their environment. The prepared environment includes practical life, sensorial, math and language areas.

This cycle of learning provides an enriched environment for the age-appropriate development in all areas of the classroom. The classroom is divided into areas:

Practical life/daily living
Sensorial
Language development
Math
Geography
Science
Art

New children spend most of their time in the practical life and sensorial areas of the room. The child completes an entire work cycle with one material before moving on to the next.

Enrichment Programs

Aside from our Montessori programs, we offer the following weekly programs for our children.

Soccer
Ballet
Art
Yoga
Gardening