Primary Program

The primary program at Hawk Meadow Montessori School is led by Corliss Campbell, Kathie McGee and Sabrina Lewis.

The primary program in a Montessori school is designed for three to six year-olds. Many of the three year-olds are experiencing school for the first time, and they receive guidance and care from both the teachers and their older peers. The second-year students help the first-year students acclimate to the environment and are working toward kindergarten, and the third-year students (kindergarteners) take great pride in their duties as role models and leaders of the classroom.

As in the toddler program, all of the materials and furniture are child-sized so that the children are able to do for themselves without asking for assistance, which in turn increases their self-esteem. In addition, the Montessori materials (called “work”) are self-correcting, so the child does not have to look to an adult or peer to know if she was successful. The teachers observe each child at work, and give review or alternate lessons if a child is having difficulty.

At the primary level, each material is designed to increase the child’s sense of order, coordination, concentration and independence. In primary, as in all levels of Montessori, the curriculum materials progress from simple to complex, and from concrete to abstract.