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| Philosophy |
About Our School |
Our Classrooms |
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What to expect during your classroom observation
To help you get the most out of your visit to our classroom, here are some guidelines which will help to make your observation
period informative for you, while maintaining our students' learning environment.
When you enter the classroom, you will be guided to a chair for your observation period. You may notice that the classroom is a
child sized environment. Adults seem to tower over the small tables and chairs, and indeed over the children themselves. We
therefore ask that you remain seated throughout the duration of your observation.
Our teachers' first priority is to the children, and we are aiming to give you a true perspective of our classroom in action, Therefore, they are unable to talk to you during your visit.
If a child comes up to you, feel free to respond briefly to their comments but explain that your “work" for the morning is
to watch them, and remind them that they have "work"' to do too!
You may have lots of questions. Please jot them down on a sheet of paper. A separate
time can be organized for you to speak with a teacher by phone so that your queries can be answered.
What to Watch for: The Classroom
• Note the neat, clean layout of the classroom. This helps children concentrate & learn without unnecessary distracting clutter.
• Note the quality and range of the materials the children are using. Many of these were designed by Maria Montessori to teach specific concepts.
• See how as many items as possible are child sized, This encourages autonomy in the child & gives them greater success at any task.
• See how there are different areas within the classroom for different types of activities. This "open" classroom style was a Montessori innovation (and is now seen in many preschools and schools) as it encourages children to choose their area of interest.
• Watch how carefully &systematically chairs and fragile objects are handled.
• Note how the noise levels rise & fall with classroom activity.
What to Watch for: Learning
• Notice how some children work alone and others in small groups.
• Notice how the children move freely, taking responsibility for setting up and completing their work.
• See the different ways children learn some intensely occupied, others watching for short periods, not directly engaged.
• See their self gratification in the learning process.
• Watch how they choose work that is appropriate to their developmental level.
• Compare the way the teacher guides the child to the traditional didactic (“do this") the way you were probably taught.
What to Watch for: Language
• Note the language the teachers use with the children, and when they are silent.
• Note the interactions between the children, how they handle interruptions and talk with each other.
What to Watch for: Sociability and Respect
• See how the younger children observe and the older children assist the academic activities.
• Watch for the teachers' and children's demonstrations of respect for each other.
• See that many, areas have groups of children working on similar projects or perhaps sharing an activity.
• What to watch for: Autonomy Observe the children's independence, even the, youngest, in caring for their personal environment.
What to Watch for: Areas of Learning
• Can you see the different areas of interest in the classroom?
• PRACTICAL LIFE Encouraging the children to look after themselves, their classroom and home environment independently.
• SENSORIAL Developing the sense of sight, hearing, tastes, touch and smells.
• LANGUAGE Introducing a series of learning tools, such as sandpaper textured letters as an introduction to reading and writing.
• MATHEMATICS Experiencing numbers by counting with tactile materials participating in game like activities that introduce addition, subtraction, multiplication and division, make the learning process fun.
• CULTURAL Introducing the children to the world we live in.
We look forward to seeing you and welcoming you to our school. Please click on the contact us page so you can make an
appointment to visit our school.
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