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Welcome to the Upper Elementary
Class
"To aid life, leaving it free,
however, to unfold itself, that is the basic task of
the educator."
Dr.Maria Montessori
 The
Upper Elementary Classroom is a three-year program consisting
of a combined class of fourth, fifth, and sixth grade
students. For most students this class is a continuation
of the work they have been doing in the lower elementary
classroom. One of the many benefits of working in a
small school setting is that the communication between
the teachers as well as the everyday contact with the
students gives both the teacher and the students a sense
of family and consequently a great starting point in
the class.
The class is a small group of students that come together
as a community of learners to work within a fully prepared
Montessori environment. Many days are spent receiving
lessons, working with the materials and researching
with the resources provided in the classroom. Students
are encouraged to follow their own interests and drives
and at the same time they are encouraged to go out of
their comfort zone and challenge themselves. This balance
often provides opportunities for achievement that the
children feel genuinely happy about.
There is a strong focus on forming quality working
relationships in the class. As it is natural for students
of this age to find security within a group setting,
Dr. Montessori accounted for this natural tendency by
keeping the group a crucial part of the design of the
upper elementary curriculum. Students work both in groups
and independently. This work develops qualities like
honesty, responsibility, friendship, a joy of work,
and compassion.
Also, as the children get older, they are ready for
the development of quality social relationships within
the community. Opportunities are therefore provided
for students to go out and extend their work outside
the classroom. This allows the child to find her or
his place in the community. It gives them a sense of
how they fit in to the big picture.
The classroom itself is designed with the materials
and resources in particular areas. Math, geometry, language,
science, history, geography, music, practical life and
art are some of them. To the new student, there are
many familiar materials that they will recognize. Some
they have been using all along and will now be used
in new ways. For example, the same materials used for
learning quantity and number in the primary class and
for beginning multiplication in the lower elementary
class, will now be used to introduce the concept of
squaring in the upper elementary class. There are also
many new materials and concepts to explore.
Overall, the goal for the students who enter this classroom
is that they will continue their Montessori education
in a way that ensures opportunities to achieve, be challenged,
learn and find happiness in their work.
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