ORLA Montessori Classes:
Fall 2023 the following grades:
- Four Kindergarten (5 years old by August 31) - 2nd grades
- Three 3rd - 5th grades (potentially two)
Is Montessori Right For My Child?
How much does it cost to enroll?
ORLA Montessori is free and part of the wonderful alternative choices within the Olympia Public School system.
Where are you located?
Our school is off Boulevard Road at 2400 15th Ave SE Olympia, 98501.
Office hours are 8:00 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. Monday - Friday. Contact 360-596-7730
Attendance Line at 360-596-7773.
What is the Montessori Work Period?
The Montessori Method is built around a 3-hour work period during which, students work at their own pace. Under the guidance of the teacher, they may choose to pursue activities in math, language, science, history, geography, practical life or sensorial. At any time on any day, all of these activities may be occurring simultaneously. Students may work independently, with a partner, or with a small group of children.
The Montessori Materials
The classroom environment is prepared with learning materials specially designed and sequenced to spark curiosity and foster independent learning. Hands-on, self-correcting manipulatives in math and language allow students to work independently towards mastery of concepts presented. Engaging charts, timelines, books, and nomenclature cards fill the shelves of the cultural areas, inviting and guiding the students through studies of geography, history, and science. Additional materials may be found at the Supply Lists link required by each classroom.
Curriculum
The carefully structured Montessori classroom is organized into five distinct curricular areas:
- Sensorial: Students develop and train all five senses to explore, classify, discriminate, and order their world.
- Practical Life: Students develop motor skills, concentration, grace and courtesy through activities with a lifelong practical application such as pouring and measuring, gardening, using good manners, and other skills that lead to independence.
- Math: Hands-on manipulative materials allow students to work independently and develop concrete understandings of place value, number order, operations and facts, fractions and geometry.
- Language: In addition to guided lessons in reading and writing, manipulative materials in the language area give practice in phonics, grammar, spelling, and handwriting - giving a solid foundation for progressively advanced skills.
- Cultural: History, geography and science materials allow the student to discover and expand their knowledge of various forms of life on earth and their interdependence, our universe from the beginning of time to the present day, the physical laws of science, and the history of the development of civilizations and culture.