Our Classroom
When you walk into our classroom, the first thing you notice is how gently purposeful everything feels. One child counts beads along a hundred chain, carefully marking each group of ten; nearby, others piece together a puzzle map of South America. A child rocks softly in a chair, absorbed in a book, while in another corner, a teacher sits with a small group, introducing something new. The room is calm and filled with the particular joy of a child absorbed in work that matters to them.
Practical Life
Practical Life exercises are everyday activities that form a link between home and school. They include exercises such as dusting, sweeping, washing windows, buttoning, zipping, lacing, and weaving. These activities assist children in their development of independence, controlled and coordinated movement, order, task completion, confidence, and self-discipline.
Sensorial
Stop and think about our busy world and imagine all the impressions your child is absorbing. Wherever they go, they see colors and shapes, feel textures, hear sounds, and notice scents.
Sensorial materials each isolate one quality (texture, size, shape, color, sound, etc.) so the child’s full attention is focused on that quality. They are designed to not only assist the child’s ongoing process of classifying their environment but also help with order and sequence.
Math
Humans have a “mathematical mind” related to their tendencies to explore and imagine. Yet all too often, we adults do not enjoy or excel at mathematics.
At Marlowe, we seek to lay the foundation for the understanding and enjoyment of math. Practical Life and Sensorial exercises provide experience with order and sequencing, and specialized manipulative math equipment helps the child see and understand the basics of numbers.
At Marlowe, we seek to lay the foundation for the understanding and enjoyment of math. Practical Life and Sensorial exercises provide experience with order and sequencing, and specialized manipulative math equipment helps the child see and understand the basics of numbers.
Language Arts
Young children have a natural sensitivity to language. They absorb the words and sounds of their home environment and expand their vocabulary quickly and effortlessly.
To support this development, language work begins on the very first day a child enters the classroom and continues every day throughout their time with us. As vocabulary grows, children are better able to organize their thinking and make sense of the world around them, building a strong foundation for future learning.
Language development happens daily and is woven through everything we do—stories, poetry, songs, and conversation all play an important role.
Through systematic phonics instruction, children are given the tools they need for early reading. As with every area of our curriculum, reading instruction is individualized and begins when each child shows interest and readiness.
Our goal is not only to teach the mechanics of reading (decoding words), but to develop true reading comprehension—the ability to understand and engage with an author’s ideas.
Most of our preschoolers enter kindergarten reading fluently. Once the children start reading to learn, the doors to learning are truly opened.
To support this development, language work begins on the very first day a child enters the classroom and continues every day throughout their time with us. As vocabulary grows, children are better able to organize their thinking and make sense of the world around them, building a strong foundation for future learning.
Language development happens daily and is woven through everything we do—stories, poetry, songs, and conversation all play an important role.
Through systematic phonics instruction, children are given the tools they need for early reading. As with every area of our curriculum, reading instruction is individualized and begins when each child shows interest and readiness.
Our goal is not only to teach the mechanics of reading (decoding words), but to develop true reading comprehension—the ability to understand and engage with an author’s ideas.
Most of our preschoolers enter kindergarten reading fluently. Once the children start reading to learn, the doors to learning are truly opened.
A Well-Rounded Education
Music and Arts
At The Marlowe School, the world of the young child is enriched through the special magic of music and art. Music, poetry, art, and movement are woven naturally into each day, helping children develop creativity, confidence, language, and joyful self-expression.
Science, Geography and Cultural Studies
Through the use of timelines, wooden maps, and nature study, our children are given a passport into the realm of science, history and geography. These activities assist the child in developing an appreciation for the arts and in encouraging curiosity and a budding interest for later study during the elementary years.