Folsom Lake Montessori Academy located in Folsom, California,  is a preschool/daycare for children between the ages of 2 months to 6 years. They aim to ensure mental and physical development of a child in a safe and comfortable environment. Their early childcare programs focus on a child individually, understanding the fact that children have their own development ability. Their objective is to develop confident and independent individuals who find joy in learning and develop good learning capability.

They have different programs for different age group:

>>Infant Day Care Program (8 weeks to 24 months old)

Their Infant Day Care Program is known for the individual attention and care given to a child. They make sure that the child feels safe, loved, and comfortable in the environment and enjoys the learning process. The parents need not worry for their child; FLMA provides well-trained teachers and beautiful environment. The teachers are very diligent and loving, always around when a child needs them. The program ensures that the child is comprehending things and enjoying them.

GOALS

* Maintaining an open, friendly, and cooperative relationship with each child and his/her family.

* Promoting feelings of security and trust in infants and toddlers, so they feel safe and comfortable in the environment.

* Playing, talking, singing, and reading to infants frequently to ensure they keep engrossed in some activities and develop a learning process.

* Responding consistently to infants’ needs for food and comfort and make sure they are well fed.

* Implementing individualised feeding plans for children; respects individual preferences and eating styles; sits with infants and shares family-style meal; models manners and good nutrition.

ACTIVITIES

* Song / Rhyme

* Language Development.

* Exercise and Stimulation

* Indoor Play

* Outdoor Play

* Fun Activities

>>Toddler Program (2 to 3 years old)

Dr Maria Montessori was one of the first educators who recognised that the first few years of a child’s life are critical to the development of personality and intellect. The curiosity levels of a toddler are very high. As a result, a toddler is always seeking out information; they learn quickly and easily and are especially interested in demonstrating independence. The program allows them the freedom to learn as much as they can, as quickly as possible. It ensures that the child learns to care for himself/himself and makes sure that necessary learning has happened before going to the next level.

The teachers give a child individual attention to ensure they have developed the following skills:

* Sensory and Perception

* Self-help

* Language

* Physical and motor skills

* Social and Emotional Growth

>> Private Kindergarten Program (4 to 5 years old)

Here the focus is on the proper overall development of the child. The school has a private pre-K/Kindergarten program to ensure the child is, in fact, ready for Kindergarten. The teachers make sure that a child is understanding and comprehending things, guaranteeing rapid development.

>>Transitional Kindergarten and Kindergarten Program

Transitional Kindergarten Curriculum:

GOALS

* In a prepared and comfortable environment the children work in five different Montessori areas including, practical life, sensorial, language, math and cultural.

* The sensorial area allows the students to be aware of the environment and refines the child senses. The pre- K students practice classification of sizes, shapes, compositions, texture, volume, temperature, weight and taste.

* As the pre-k children are in a sensitive period of language, the FLMA program closely pay attention to their conversations and encourage them to express their needs, feelings, and thoughts.

* In the academic area of language arts, the students master A-Z sounds and make words by putting them together. As the school starts with moveable alphabets, children break them down and spell it out.

The program helps a child to gain an understanding of academics, and it opens them up to disciplines of education like maths, English, biology, geography etc. They help them in forming a strong base.

Kindergarten Curriculum

The children make layers of knowledge based on what they have gained from Montessori preschool. This where the students develop skills by teaching the younger ones. This program is very interesting for it allows the children to take up the role of teachers and present themselves as role models for younger children. They practice practically which ensures explicit understanding. The math lesson continues as before for them. As the kindergarteners are still in a sensitive period of language, the language lessons are more extensive.

CONCLUSION

One of the best things about the programs is that they focus on the individual and not the group. The teachers ensure that the child has developed the necessary skills and spends enough time to make sure they do not have any problem.