Upper Primary Programme caters for children aged 6 - 12 years old

Our aim at Montessori School Bali for children during the Primary years is for them to take their learning further than they think is possible.

Foundation of Imagination, Justice and Reasoning

Curiosity among children in the Upper Primary age group, from 9 to 12, continues to grow, as does the importance of social connections and a desire for greater independence. The Five Great Lessons continue to be presented each year, but in more depth and detail as the students have already covered the basics in Lower Primary. Computers are introduced and are used to support the research and the presentation of selected research topics.

What happens in our Primary classrooms

Our Primary Programme is for children aged approximately 6 to 12 years old. It runs Monday to Friday, 8:30 – 15:00.

We want our Primary students to become completely engrossed in what they are doing as they seek to go further and deeper into topics they become fascinated with. We call this big work, and our goal is for children to always be involved in big work. As an example, children might decide to make a topographical map of a particular country they are studying. The work that goes into this requires integrating knowledge from various areas of the curriculum plus having a good understanding of what they are doing so they can apply it to a new learning area. We encourage the crosspollination of ideas.
Lessons are usually presented to groups of four or five students who are then encouraged to work collaboratively with their peers. The mentoring structure of Montessori classrooms continues, contributing to a deeper understanding of subjects and a strengthened classroom community.

Social development is interwoven into all aspects of the curriculum. The academic programme is grounded in language, arts, mathematics, science and geography and enhanced by music, physical education, visual art, drama and the Indonesian language. This interdisciplinary academic programme enables studies in one area, such as Egyptian society, to cross over and inspire lessons in related subjects, such as geometry. Montessori-trained guides maintain their awareness of the strengths and challenges of each student through observation, and regularly meet one-on-one with children for conferences to ensure their continued progress.

Our Primary students are responsible for keeping their classroom in pristine condition. Each student has a particular job to contribute to this. These are usually done at the end of each day. Jobs include dusting shelves, cleaning the kitchen, sweeping and mopping floors, checking classroom supplies and watering plants, ensuring the laundry is cleaned and ironed etc. A student monitor oversees that the jobs have been done. The idea is that through being responsible for their space, students come to take pride and form an attachment to the room and their community.

Students begin to organise their own field trips during Lower Primary, expanding their learning resources to include their greater community. Permission is sought from parents for significant field trips, but at this age children also start to organise going outs, which are less ambitious trips that align with and inform the work the children are doing in the classroom.