Frequently Asked Questions

Q- Are your manuals an entire year’s curriculum?

A- Yes. You can see the overview of the year by clicking Overview of the Year or Bird's Eye View of the Year. The curriculum can be used yearly or, especially if using a 9 month program, spread out over a two or three year period. There is enough material in the guides for at least three years.

Q- How do I get started?

A- It is best to begin with the Fall guide. The Montessori materials are introduced sequentially beginning with September in the Fall guide.

Q- Can I begin the curriculum in the middle of the year?

A- The guides integrate the Montessori materials with a theme that is based on Maria Montessori's own writings. You can begin with the current month, pulling out the theme, suggested books, holiday, and theme-related activities. The sequence for introducing the Montessori materials, however,  begins in the Fall guide. So what most people do if beginning in the middle of the year is combine the Fall guide with the current month. This this may be in the Winter, Spring, or Summer guide .

For example, if starting the curriculum in the Winter you can combine the Winter and the Fall guides. You would use the holiday and theme-related activities in the Winter guide and introduce the Montessori materials as presented in the Fall guide.

Q- Do I need to buy the Supplement?

A- The curriculum was developed in my Montessori classroom for Montessori teachers. I learned that homeschool parents were using it when they began asking for instructions for the Montessori lessons/materials. The Supplement to the Guides was developed as a result of these requests. The supplement gives instructions for the Montessori materials as introduced in the guides as well as how to make much of the materials. Montessori teachers find the supplement a useful and convenient reference.

Q- What materials will I need? I've been to numerous Montessori equipment sites and school sites and I've seen tons of equipment that is very expensive! Do I need all of that to home school my daughter using the Montessori method?

A- The materials that are the most essential to have and recommended to be purchased first when on a limited budget are indicated with an asterisk (*) on the daily pages in the guides. Much of the materials can be hand made. Instructions for making many of them are in the Supplement. Instructions are also given in Teaching Montessori in the Home The Preschool Years by Elizabeth Hainstock. Also by the same author is Teaching Montessori in the Home The School Years with more advanced materials.

Q- How do you adapt the guides for ages 6 to 9?

A- The guides were originally developed in my primary (ages 3 to 6) classrooms for use in the primary classroom. Later, teachers told me they were using them in their ages 6 to 9 classrooms. Because my training and experience is only in the primary classroom, I asked one of the teachers what she did to adapt it. She told me the teachers love the overall theme and that it takes only minor adaptation for the 6 to 9 classroom. They use the overall curriculum and go further into the studies and into related areas of study. They use similar books for age 9 to 12 in addition to the 4 to 8 books suggested.

The six to nine age group does a lot of independent research and journaling in particular areas of interest to the child. The child is allowed to explore the themes in more detail and branch out into other areas of interest. Maria Montessori’s cosmic education and peace curriculum is simply introduced in the classroom guides for ages 3 to 6, and then fully developed in the 6 to 9 classroom. For the primary classroom I recommend I Wonder What’s Out There: A Vision of the Universe for Primary Classes by Joanne DeFilipp with Aline D. Wolf. For ages 6 to 9 see Children of the Universe: Cosmic Education for the Elementary Classroom by Michael and D’Neil Duffy.

Two more books recommended books are The Advanced Montessori Method by the Clio Montessori series and available from the NAMTA website- www.montessori-namta.org and Teaching Montessori in the Home: The School Years by Elizabeth Hainstock. The latter book is out of print but can be purchased from used book sellers such as amazon.com.

Feel free to email any questions you may have.