Body – Becoming
Strength Flexibility Balance
Our Enrichment program for the Body offers:
• Science classes teaching anatomy and physiology
• Nutrition
• Cooking classes
• Gardening
• Surf & Turf excursions
• Soccer
• Dance
• Vision, speech and movement screening
Wellness & wellbeing include both mind and body. Children love facts and categorising. They notice and ask questions about similarities and differences. Knowing how the body works is fascinating to them. It is amazing to see how much children can understand about nutrition and exercise when they have knowledge of how their bodies work. We teach anatomy and physiology, biology, botany, zoology, geography and geology as part of the Montessori curriculum.
The Munch and Move program is used throughout the centres to emphasise the importance of good food and exercise and its fundamental role in health. Using this program educators regularly discuss nutrition and good food choices with the children. Children experience growing, cooking and eating food from our gardens and regularly engage in cooking classes and gardening activities as part of the Montessori curriculum. Our learning environments are set up to encourage movement and exploration.
Our centres have an ‘open door’ policy for children who move between the indoor and outdoor classrooms at will, playing or working in the gardens and cubby house as freely as in the maths or language areas. ‘Surf & Turf’ excursions for children to experience nature at the beach and in the ‘bush’ are offered weekly. Children show great joy while moving and experiencing the world around them sensorially. Moving and making responsible choices forms the basis for their learning and enhances their psychological and physiological health.
Our Montessori Enrichment program includes the opportunity to play soccer and join dance and music classes. These classes are fun and the children enjoy them. Movement activities increase balance, flexibility and strength, build strong bones and muscles, promote team skills and build confidence. Exercise also improves sleep and relaxation and promotes a sense of fulfilment.
We partner with science, dance and yoga teachers and soccer coaches to provide gross motor skill experiences. Nurses provide vision screening, a children’s first aid course and vaccination information and our local dental service provides dental hygiene awareness days. Speech Pathologists and Occupational Health professionals are invited to provide screening each year for families at our centre. These professionals are also welcome in our centre should your child need extra help and you wish them to attend.
