Community
Children are actively involved in both our wider community and in the school community through a variety of activities. Community engagement expands the learning and interactions of children beyond their classroom.
Going Out
‘Going Out’ was a term used by Maria Montessori, which means that the children ‘go out’ into their community and expand their learning and interactions beyond the classroom. Going Out is an essential component of learning for children in the second plane of development as it allows the knowledge and understandings that children acquire within the classroom to be transferred into ‘real world’ contexts.
The children may go out into their community in support of their research projects, to collect data, to obtain information, to make purchases for the classroom, to attend events and visit museums/historical sites.
Social and emotional intelligence is significantly developed through going out as the children learn to self-regulate their behaviour, demonstrate grace and courtesy to those they pass by, show gratitude to those who have assisted them and ask questions of experts in the community to obtain further understandings.
Gardening
Care and responsibility for biodiversity is supported through the children’s maintenance of gardens within the school. These hands-on experiences also support work in the curriculum area of Botany, encourage the children’s skills in observation and encourage healthy eating.
Cooking
In Montessori classrooms, preparing and serving meals is a key component of learning, socialisation and service to others. The children use food they have grown in their garden and take supervised walks to the supermarket to collect their groceries.
Fundraisers
The children select a charity themselves based on a cause they are connected with. They then plan, organise and carry out fundraisers in order to raise money for this organisation.
