DayCare & Montessori
BHA-Houston Montessori -Where we partner with our diverse learning community using Montessori principles in an Islamic way, to reveal each child’s innate love of learning to prepare our children for excellence in Deen and Duniya.
Language:
The Montessori language curriculum begins with the sensorial experience of Alphabet sound and symbol association. We focus on listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Our hands-on materials like movable alphabets and vocabulary cards, enhance learning by building vocabulary, phonemic awareness, grammar, and comprehension skills. Writing journals is part of the daily routine. KG students are able to distinguish facts from opinions and write narratives and informational texts. The Montessori curriculum allows for constant differentiation and individualized learning for every student.
Math:
Montessori believed that children have a mathematical mind. We at BHA, follow that thought. Acquisition of Montessori principles beginning from concrete to the abstract. The concepts include counting( number rods, spindle boxes ), Numeration and Decimals (golden beads, Nine’s tray, bank game), Bead cabinet using colored chains to count by 2’s all the way to 1000. They also learn concepts of addition, subtraction, fractions, time, measurement, graphs, and money.
Sensorial:
The sensorial area consists of materials that enhance and refine a child’s senses. The child learns to recognize similarities and differences of sound, color, shape, length, weight, and texture of objects. The material includes cylinder blocks, pink tower, color tablets, sound cylinders, and the binomial cube to name a few. This area also introduces students to early geometry concepts through the geometric cabinet and geometric solids.
Culture/Art/Geography:
Montessori Students learn about the seven continents and their geographical locations on a map. They work with puzzle maps of these continents and later, experience the cultures through centered lessons and various in-class events and activities. Students learn about land and water forms including islands, lakes, gulfs, peninsulas, isthmuses, straits, archipelagos, and systems of lakes. Art lessons are incorporated into the daily routine.
Practical Life:
Practical life activities are part of an authentic Montessori Curriculum and our young learners are initially drawn to this area as the items are familiar to them. Activities including, spooning, basting, polishing, dressing frames, open/close, hand washing, etc, are encouraged to enhance gross motor and fine motor skills in our Early Childhood classes. These activities are designed to improve not just motor skills, but also build concentration, coordination, and independence in each student.
Science:
Our science curriculum includes studying the animal and plant kingdoms, magnetism, energy, simple machines, life cycles, and earth sciences such as planets, weather, seasons, and parts of the earth.