Montessori primary curriculum areas
The primary level, for children of about three to six, is built on five areas: Practical Life, Sensorial, Language, Mathematics, and Cultural Studies. Below are the lessons in each area for AMI and AMS.
Updated
AMI curriculum
Practical Life
Activities that develop concentration, coordination, independence, and order
- Pouring. Transferring liquids and dry materials with control
- Spooning. Transferring materials using a spoon
- Buttoning and Zipping. Fastening and unfastening clothing closures
- Table Washing. Scrubbing and drying a table surface
- Food Preparation. Cutting, spreading, and preparing simple snacks
- Care of Self. Nose blowing, hand washing, dressing independently
- Grace and Courtesy. Greeting others, saying please and thank you, taking turns
Sensorial
Refinement of the senses through specialized materials
- Visual Discrimination. Distinguishing differences in size, color, and shape using materials like the Pink Tower and Broad Stair
- Auditory Discrimination. Identifying and grading sounds using Sound Cylinders
- Tactile Discrimination. Distinguishing textures and temperatures through touch
- Olfactory and Gustatory. Identifying smells and tastes
- Geometric Solids. Identifying and naming three-dimensional shapes
- Color Tablets. Grading and matching colors across the spectrum
Language
Development of reading, writing, and oral expression
- Sound Games. Identifying beginning, middle, and ending sounds in words
- Sandpaper Letters. Tracing letter shapes while saying the phonetic sound
- Movable Alphabet. Building words and sentences with letter tiles
- Reading Phonetic Words. Decoding and reading simple phonetic words
- Sight Words. Recognizing high-frequency non-phonetic words
- Sentence Building. Composing and reading complete sentences
- Handwriting. Forming letters with correct grip and stroke order
Mathematics
Concrete to abstract understanding of number and operations
- Number Rods. Understanding quantity from 1 to 10
- Spindle Boxes. Associating numeral symbols with quantities
- Cards and Counters. Matching numerals to quantities and recognizing odd/even
- Teen and Ten Board. Understanding numbers 11-99
- Addition Strip Board. Performing addition with concrete materials
- Stamp Game. Performing multi-digit operations with abstract materials
- Golden Beads. Understanding place value through the decimal system
Cultural Studies
Geography, science, history, art, and music
- Land and Water Forms. Identifying geographical features like island, lake, peninsula
- Continents. Naming and locating the seven continents on a globe or map
- Animals of the World. Classifying animals by continent and type
- Parts of Plants. Identifying root, stem, leaf, flower, and fruit
- Calendar and Time. Understanding days, months, seasons, and telling time
- Science Experiments. Observing and recording simple scientific phenomena
Source: AMI curriculum.
AMS curriculum
Practical Life
Activities that develop concentration, coordination, independence, and order
- Pouring. Transferring liquids and dry materials with control
- Spooning. Transferring materials using a spoon
- Buttoning and Zipping. Fastening and unfastening clothing closures
- Table Washing. Scrubbing and drying a table surface
- Food Preparation. Cutting, spreading, and preparing simple snacks
- Care of Self. Nose blowing, hand washing, dressing independently
- Grace and Courtesy. Greeting others, saying please and thank you, taking turns
Sensorial
Refinement of the senses through specialized materials
- Visual Discrimination. Distinguishing differences in size, color, and shape using materials like the Pink Tower and Broad Stair
- Auditory Discrimination. Identifying and grading sounds using Sound Cylinders
- Tactile Discrimination. Distinguishing textures and temperatures through touch
- Olfactory and Gustatory. Identifying smells and tastes
- Geometric Solids. Identifying and naming three-dimensional shapes
- Color Tablets. Grading and matching colors across the spectrum
Language
Development of reading, writing, and oral expression
- Sound Games. Identifying beginning, middle, and ending sounds in words
- Sandpaper Letters. Tracing letter shapes while saying the phonetic sound
- Movable Alphabet. Building words and sentences with letter tiles
- Reading Phonetic Words. Decoding and reading simple phonetic words
- Sight Words. Recognizing high-frequency non-phonetic words
- Sentence Building. Composing and reading complete sentences
- Handwriting. Forming letters with correct grip and stroke order
Mathematics
Concrete to abstract understanding of number and operations
- Number Rods. Understanding quantity from 1 to 10
- Spindle Boxes. Associating numeral symbols with quantities
- Cards and Counters. Matching numerals to quantities and recognizing odd/even
- Teen and Ten Board. Understanding numbers 11-99
- Addition Strip Board. Performing addition with concrete materials
- Stamp Game. Performing multi-digit operations with abstract materials
- Golden Beads. Understanding place value through the decimal system
Cultural Studies
Geography, science, history, art, and music
- Land and Water Forms. Identifying geographical features like island, lake, peninsula
- Continents. Naming and locating the seven continents on a globe or map
- Animals of the World. Classifying animals by continent and type
- Parts of Plants. Identifying root, stem, leaf, flower, and fruit
- Calendar and Time. Understanding days, months, seasons, and telling time
- Science Experiments. Observing and recording simple scientific phenomena
Source: AMS curriculum.
Make an observation sheet
AMS curriculum · Primary · Practical Life
P = PresentedPr = PracticingM = Mastered
Child's name
Pouring
Spooning
Buttoning and Zipping
Table Washing
Food Preparation
Care of Self
Grace and Courtesy
1
2
3
4
5
6
The PDF downloads to your device.