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Our program follows the Montessori principles, focusing on supporting children’s holistic development in an inclusive environment.

Language is a key medium for inclusive and social-emotional development in our Montessori setting program. We use respectful and clear language to model empathy, cooperation, and self-expression in daily interactions with children. Throughout a variety of activities, we encourage the children to use words to express their needs and solve problems in a more constructive and respectful way. We model inclusive languages like, “May I have a turn after you finish?” “Is it Okay to work together?” “It’s Okay to make mistakes, but let’s come up with some ideas to fix it.” This is to empower children to develop their social skills in communication and emotional intelligence. Following Montessori pedagogy, we provide purposeful language programs to support children at different developmental stages, including those with language delays. Based on each child’s developmental pace, we work together to enrich their language arts by providing sound games, step boards, CVC baskets, and movable alphabets, which are the tools for children to explore.

Accessibility is grounded in every aspect of our environment. The layout of child-sized furniture, open spaces for movement, and practical and sensorial materials at the child’s level inspire children. Children choose their work and move on with it with freedom. They may pick up the Table Washing work, allocate tools and collaborate for 20 minutes to clean the table; another two children will be doing the Geometry Solids, busy finding the objects inside the school to match the shapes on the floor mat. The accessible environment converses a language, allowing children to develop confidence in physical, cognitive, social and emotional development.  Following the children’s developmental stage, the educators offer consistent, supportive and responsive materials to structure our care plans.

In terms of approaches, we recognize every child as a unique individual. We adapt our practices to support children’s cultural, emotional and intellectual development.  We also partner with the families and invite valuable input through regular communication. Over the years, we have built strong relationships with the families. Parents are encouraged to communicate with the teachers at the door as they drop off or pick up their children, phone call or email the school. We also work closely with Vancouver Coastal Health and other specialists to support families with extra needs.  

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Based on the Montessori principles, our childcare prepares a variety of Montessori materials to adapt and meet each child’s developmental needs, ensuring all children are included and supported in the program.

We utilize the materials in our daily caring program, including Practical Life, Sensorial Area, Language Arts, Math, Geography and Blocks.

Practical life activities support children in developing independence and coordination through hands-on experiences, especially for the younger children. A child may work with colour mixing. She pencils grip the dropper, carefully lets go of the drops in each tube, creates and focuses on the changing colour. Two other children may happily spray the water onto the glass; they assign each other the task, work together to clean the door. Children develop concentration, fine and gross motor skills, and social skills naturally while practicing their work.  

Sensorial materials are available to all age groups. Sensorial setting helps children refine their senses and prepare for future academic learning. According to children’s developmental paces, we will first introduce Cylinder blocks, Pink Tower and Brown Stairs to children, then move on to Colour Tablets and Sound Cylinders, Binomial and Trinomial Cube. We record children’s developmental pace and introduce them to the work accordingly.  Our Language Arts area is designed with sound games for younger children to build phonemic awareness, while older children engage in more advanced activities such as Movable Alphabets, stepboards, sound blending and early reading. As children feel more confident in sound blending, we encourage them to write stories about their drawings. In the Math area, pre-K children explore foundational mathematical concepts. From number introduction to Teens and Tens, then the Decimal System, the children move from concrete materials to abstract symbols. Our geography cabinets provide children at different developmental levels with opportunities to explore and understand the world around them. Children work with the puzzle maps and explore the animals' habitats.

We follow a consistent daily schedule that fosters a sense of security and routine. However, we remain flexible and responsive to the children’s interests and seasonal opportunities. For example, during spring, we might go on nature walks to observe cherry blossoms or enjoy outdoor lunches on sunny days. Special events such as our June Teddy Bear Picnic further enrich the children’s experience and build a sense of community.

We encourage children to take initiative and move independently between activities to support smooth transitions. At the same time, we are mindful that some children may need extra time or support during transitions. For these children, we offer gentle reminders and invitations ahead of time to help them prepare, ensuring they feel comfortable and included throughout their day.

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Our Montessori program is a mixed-age program that promotes natural peer learning through social interaction. One goal I would adopt in the program is encouraging peer support and mixed-age mentoring. During the daily activities, we will encourage the older or more experienced children to help and assist the younger peers. As a young boy asks for help to work on the puzzles, we may invite an older child to come help. By modelling and guiding the interaction with respect, we highlight each child’s strengths and foster confidence and a sense of belonging.

Another goal adopted in the program is to adapt the environment to meet diverse needs. In daily programming, we will ensure materials are inclusive and non-stereotypical, introduce books and music that represent a variety of cultures, and celebrate multicultural events throughout the year to foster a sense of belonging and respect.

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Goal one will include all the children in the program. Teachers will take the lead in guiding and modelling the older children. They will show the children how to interact and respectfully offer support. During the daily work period, teachers will observe the opportunities where older or experienced children can provide help or assist younger or less experienced ones, such as walking with the jug without spilling the water, or completing the puzzles. Teachers model language to encourage respectful peer assistance, like, “Would you like to help pick up all the small pieces of paper from the floor?” Teachers also create small group activities, such as Walking in the Line. Older children with better balance demonstrate to younger children how to tiptoe walk in the line. The interaction encourages natural mentoring.

Goal Two will involve teachers, children and families. As teachers, we will be responsible for the school materials and resources for the program. We prepare the environment, such as books, puzzles, and music, that reflect various cultures and backgrounds. We will partner with families to ensure the appropriate cultural representation. We will consult families in celebration of different cultural events and traditions throughout the year. Children will have the opportunity to fully access meaningful activities.  

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To successfully implement these inclusion goals, we may need to consider and make some adjustments to enhance the progress of the children’s development. Firstly, the daily schedule needs to be more flexible, according to the children’s needs. Allowing more time for transitions, including drop-off, activity transitions, lunch or snack time, especially for those children who need extra support. Some children can easily handle the transitions, while some may take 20 minutes to prepare for outside playtime. Offering advanced reminders with no rush helps to ease their stress, allowing them to move on accordingly. Secondly, allocate time to provide one-on-one support. Some children may need more support than others. As a team, teachers should consider the whole group of children and provide supportive approaches. Additionally, I believe a team meeting should be set up regularly to reflect on practices and assess progress toward the inclusion goals, such as children’s behaviours, progress, emotions, etc. It is also a good approach to share understanding and build a supportive environment. Thirdly, the bond between the family and school must be strengthened. Mutual understanding will be beneficial for supporting the children’s development. Monthly newsletters to review school programs, phone calls, or communications during children’s drop-off or pick-up time will bridge the understanding between the families and the school, as it truly helps the school to better support the children.

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In a couple of years of practice, we have been using a combination of observation, documentation, and feedback to evaluate whether we have reached our goals. In the transition aspect, we document and review children’s achievements at the end of each month. We will discuss and reflect on our approaches and make adjustments accordingly. We communicate with families and seek feedback to compare children’s progress. September is the most stressful period, as time passes, children begin transitioning more independently and become more confident in self-direction. Children are more aware of the expectation and show fewer signs of distress during the transition.

School materials and displays are adjusted according to the cultures and geographic learning. Each month, we will design curriculum plans that include culturally diverse content, starting with the theme of All about ourselves, our families, to the continent study, from North America, the Indigenous people, to South America and other continents. We bring up the diverse cultures, people, food and animals in the different parts of the world. Children’s enthusiasm for participating in cultural stories, music, and traditional celebrations is a sign of healthy learning progress. We have received positive feedback from families about children’s descriptions of their learning, which indicates we are moving toward our goal.

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