About Windsor Montessori House of Children
Windsor Montessori House of Children, was established in November 2015, with the support of the Crown Estate, in the stunningly renovated Crown Estate building opposite the Windsor Farm shop, to support working parents to combine childcare and Montessori education, for their children from 6 months to 6 years. It was renovated by the Crown Estate to provide a safe purpose built nursery/school, with a beautiful large garden for outdoor play. The children take a pride in looking after the plants they plant and learning about them.
WMHOC is opened for 51 weeks, and closed for 1 week at Christmas. Our opening hours are from 8.00am to 6.00pm
The ground floor of the building is a prepared environment for children from 3 years to 5 years.
The upstairs is a prepared environment for babies and toddlers and young children from 6 months to 2 1/2 years. years, with a separate cosy sleep area. separate from the classroom.
The above mentioned prepared environments support the child's different stages of learning and development, by introducing an uninterrupted series of learning passages. A continuum. Therefore our three classrooms are divided into multi-age classrooms.
NIDO (the nest) 6 months to 18 months
We take a pride and care in providing a quality program of care for infants based on Montessori principles An important aspect of the programe is to provide:
Emotional wellbeing. Our experienced, mature key person working with the babies will provide a warm, caring, loving, nurturing atmosphere and working in partnership with parents, to foster the natural growth of each individual child.
Communication and language. Importance will be given to fostering communication, and in modeling good verbal skills.
Movement. Attention to detail is given in preparation of our environment in recognizing the significant need for movement which is the highest human needs during infancy. Care is taken to provide a natural and a spacious room for the child to move and explore the surroundings and perfect his /her movements within a safe and secure environment. The infants physical development will be fostered in enhancing his/her intellectual development.
THE CHILDREN'S COMMUNITY ROOM 18 months to 2 1/2 years
This programe will offer children the opportunity to live in their 'own little society'. The room will be sensitively prepared as a 'home like' environment to support the child's sensitive period of life, which will appeal to the child's curiosity. The custom sized furniture and the materials placed on low shelves will support the child's independence.
The children can engage in practical activities of every day life. Such as preparing for snack, washing, cutting, pouring, polishing, dusting, threading.
Messy play, painting and sticking are included in their daily programe. Children learn to work independently and in groups sustaining their concentration. This programe helps the child to enter into our pre-school classroom downstairs.
THE PRESCHOOL PROGRAMME 2 1/2 years to 5 years
Our Montessori pre-school prepared environment downstairs is a relaxed and a stimulating classroom. The mixed age group allow the younger children to learn from the activities of the older children, and provide the older children the opportunity to teach and nurture the younger children. This also helps them to reinforce their own knowledge. Children choose their activities from self correcting materials displayed on open shelves, that allow them to learn through their senses.
Children learn at their own pace in a non-competitive fashion, covering all seven areas of learning in the EYFS.
The classroom is prepared to provide children with an early foundation that includes a positive attitude toward school, with a positive attitude towards learning, through inner security, sense of order, self esteem, initiative and persistence.
The ability to make decisions, self discipline and a sense of responsibility. A positive foundation that prepares our children for future learning.