Noble Purpose
Mā te ahurei o te tamaiti e ārahi i ā tātou mahi
Let the uniqueness of the child guide our work
Guiding Principles
Mā te ahurei o te tamaiti e ārahi i ā tātou mahi
Let the uniqueness of the child guide our work
Guiding Principles
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Koa - Joy
Children experience joy through purposeful, hands-on learning experiences that enable exploration and spark curiosity and creativity. Kaitiakitanga - Guardianship Children see themselves as active global citizens who are responsible for their actions, engage in sustainable practices and show aroha for Papatūānuku. |
Mana - Respect
Children celebrate diversity, demonstrate humility and manaakitanga and contribute to a cohesive learning community. Tipu - Holistic Children develop a sense of belonging, feel a connectedness to their identity and follow their natural trajectory of learning through building concentration and independence. |
Philosophy Statement
Montessori Blenheim acknowledges the importance of whanaungatanga - fostering reciprocal, respectful, and responsive relationships between the Montessori and the home environment. We believe whānau are at the forefront of what is important in gaining insight into children and providing consistent approaches to nurturing their wellbeing and development. Whānau contributing to decisions around the learning that is valued is essential, similarly, so is inviting children to be a part of decisions that directly affect their learning experiences. Our child-led learning environment considers a child's wellbeing, their feelings and connectedness with nature and their environment, allowing them to explore, discover and develop ā tōnā wā - at their own pace, in their own time.
Developing children's independence is fundamental to the functioning of our learning community. For children to develop their sense of self, they must first develop their independence. Maria Montessori refers to this as 'valorisation' of the personality; for a child to feel validated as an individual, they must be acknowledged for the vital role they play in our learning community.
Children are 'empowered to learn with and alongside others’. They develop a deep-rooted respect and aroha for others and demonstrate these characteristics through their spontaneous actions. Children seek ways to behave in certain social situations and through 'Grace and Courtesies' they feel accepted, have value in the community and learn to work harmoniously together. Children develop social skills by understanding the reciprocal nature of cooperating, collaborating and communicating with peers. They become mindful of returning their work so that it is ready for the next child, show kindness to those who may need help or awhi for children younger than themselves and respect those around them who are engaged in their learning.
The 'Prepared Environment' is an environment for children, carefully considered and prepared by their kaiārahi, it is equipped with the foundational tools that allow a child to freely explore and act on the interests of their inner being. It is a place where they develop a sense of belonging, kaitiakitanga (guardianship) and a connectedness to their social, cultural, and spiritual identity. It is the children’s house - where their potential being is provided for, assisting their natural development. As children engage with activities and settle into a work cycle, their concentration extends and deepens. Children feel joyful and content, allowing the development of positive character traits.
Our Montessori prepared environment becomes the children's tūrangawaewae - their place to stand - a place where their holistic development is nurtured, physically, mentally and spiritually and indeed a blueprint for their yet to be mapped future place to stand.
Ko te iho o te tamaiti ko te ara ki anamata - “Within the child lies the fate of the future”.
Montessori Blenheim acknowledges the importance of whanaungatanga - fostering reciprocal, respectful, and responsive relationships between the Montessori and the home environment. We believe whānau are at the forefront of what is important in gaining insight into children and providing consistent approaches to nurturing their wellbeing and development. Whānau contributing to decisions around the learning that is valued is essential, similarly, so is inviting children to be a part of decisions that directly affect their learning experiences. Our child-led learning environment considers a child's wellbeing, their feelings and connectedness with nature and their environment, allowing them to explore, discover and develop ā tōnā wā - at their own pace, in their own time.
Developing children's independence is fundamental to the functioning of our learning community. For children to develop their sense of self, they must first develop their independence. Maria Montessori refers to this as 'valorisation' of the personality; for a child to feel validated as an individual, they must be acknowledged for the vital role they play in our learning community.
Children are 'empowered to learn with and alongside others’. They develop a deep-rooted respect and aroha for others and demonstrate these characteristics through their spontaneous actions. Children seek ways to behave in certain social situations and through 'Grace and Courtesies' they feel accepted, have value in the community and learn to work harmoniously together. Children develop social skills by understanding the reciprocal nature of cooperating, collaborating and communicating with peers. They become mindful of returning their work so that it is ready for the next child, show kindness to those who may need help or awhi for children younger than themselves and respect those around them who are engaged in their learning.
The 'Prepared Environment' is an environment for children, carefully considered and prepared by their kaiārahi, it is equipped with the foundational tools that allow a child to freely explore and act on the interests of their inner being. It is a place where they develop a sense of belonging, kaitiakitanga (guardianship) and a connectedness to their social, cultural, and spiritual identity. It is the children’s house - where their potential being is provided for, assisting their natural development. As children engage with activities and settle into a work cycle, their concentration extends and deepens. Children feel joyful and content, allowing the development of positive character traits.
Our Montessori prepared environment becomes the children's tūrangawaewae - their place to stand - a place where their holistic development is nurtured, physically, mentally and spiritually and indeed a blueprint for their yet to be mapped future place to stand.
Ko te iho o te tamaiti ko te ara ki anamata - “Within the child lies the fate of the future”.
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Children love Montessori. Tamariki have the freedom to explore and learn through self discovery in the classroom. The calm, engaging and nurturing environment promotes self initiated learning, respect, confidence and social development. Children become life long learners through experiencing joy in their natural development. |
What is the Montessori difference?
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The Montessori classroom is unlike other early childhood centres, the environment is calm and focused as each child is engaged in an activity that interests them. Your child learns at their own rate in a classroom with a 'hum' of working activity. The classroom remains orderly throughout the day as the 30 children return each activity to its shelf before choosing another. Children are taught how to invite friends to join in with their chosen activity, but also that it is ok to say "no thanks, I want to do this on my own". Their workspace is respected - the children learn how to move carefully around each others activities and to not interrupt a child who is concentrating. The activities themselves are each purposeful and beautifully presented to appeal to the child. The whole environment is designed to be aesthetically pleasing - from the leafy villa entrance, the orderly and spacious classroom to the lush back garden. Children work with materials for as long as they wish, repeating activities until they have mastered it. As children move on to learning the next skill once they have mastered the present one, there are never any gaps in their education, or need for remedial education. |
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Montessori children leave for school as capable learners, independent and confident in their own abilities. In addition to honed fine motor skills they have solid foundations of numeracy and literacy, often reading, writing, identifying numerals to at least 20, doing basic addition, subtraction and understanding the decimal system. In addition to their knowledge, Montessori children are able to focus their attention and enjoy learning. One of Maria Montessori's goals was for children to develop concentration. This is one of the fundamental skills for learning, and one that is largely missed in traditional school systems. A Montessori day is structured so that a child's focus is never interrupted by having to move on to the next lesson, before they have finished their current one. Montessori children are independent, self-assured in their learning and in their relationships and interactions with others and the world. Your child will master the important life skill of being a self-directed learner. Montessori's aim is to nurture and develop inner motivation to find intrinsic satisfaction in learning. |
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Our History |
Montessori House of Children, Blenheim, was opened in September 1994 as the 44th Montessori School in New Zealand. Today there are more than 100 Montessori schools in New Zealand, and thousands worldwide. Our school opened with two teachers and twelve children, growing over 30 years to include the wonderful indoor and outdoor environments we provide today.
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