Nursery class (18-36 months olds) follows the Montessori method.

Practical life activities are simple, can be accomplished by each child, and offer repetition, which helps the child establish patterns of order and sequencing. The more often the child repeats an activity, the better they become at it, and with increased success, comes an increase in confidence and self-esteem. These activities are also designed to increase both large and fine motor coordination. They also prepare the snack table.

The activities aid the child’s sensory discrimination, as well as refine large and small motor skills as they work with the materials. The child’s vocabulary is also enriched through, through such as activities as colour tablets and cylinder blocks.

Language materials encourage the development of language as the first steps on the road to writing and finally reading. Early Language materials and oral exercises support the toddler’s need to be immersed in language. Activities through books, puzzles, naming objects like fruits, vegetables and animals, and beginning sound games, help with listening skills, and visual memory.

Children are guided to explore spatial relationships such as big and little, long and short, and thin and thick. Example activities include matching number symbols to quantities and recognizing quantity.

Through rhymes, chants, poems, songs and movements and freedom of choice, toddlers have access to a variety of activities that offer them opportunities to jump, climb, balance, crawl or skip. These exercises allow them more chances to develop their gross motor skills.

Learning to be independent.

The Practical Life area provides a link between home and school. In this area, the child learns (dependent on age) to perform the same activities they have seen at home such as washing hands, cleaning, mopping, polishing, pouring, zipping, buckling, tying, folding, fastening nuts and bolts of varying sizes, etc. They also prepare the lunchroom and clear away their dirty plates, etc.

Practical Life activities are purposeful and calming. They appear simple and repetitive, but in fact are helpful for the child to develop a high level of concentration, cognitive order, pride in a job well done, self-discipline, independence, respect for the community and protection of the environment, and fine motor skills.

These qualities are essential to a child’s progress in the classroom and future academic learning as well as to building self-esteem, responsibility in the community and being a global citizen.

Exploring through the Senses.

The child, especially from 2.5 – 5 years of age, develops senses of sight, sound, taste, touch, etc. through manipulation and experience with their surroundings. Sensorial development in a Montessori class aims at providing the child with a nourishing and rich environment with materials to help refine, develop and perfect the function of their senses.

Children develop concepts of qualities, similarities and differences, classification and serialization with such as length, width, temperature, colour, shape and sound. The sensorial materials also enhance development of other skills, for example Language, Mathematics and Music.

From Spoken to Written Expression.

The introduction to the phonetic alphabet, simple word reading, sentence building, spelling and composition, are among the language activities children do in the classroom. Other skills, such as pencil control, handwriting and the fundamentals of grammar are also emphasized in the classroom.

At MIS, English is used as the main language. We also have French, Vietnamese and Chinese Mandarin as given options for a second language.

From Concrete Materials to Abstract Concepts.

The Montessori Mathematics materials allow children to begin their mathematical journey from the concrete to the abstract through manipulation, experimentation and invention. Children gain Math's skills (number, symbol, sequence, arithmetic operations, etc.) by first using materials and then through memorization of Math's facts. Rods, spindles, cards, beads, and cubes are some of the tools used to symbolize Mathematical concepts.

Exploring the Universe and Learning about Lives.

Culture studies aims to inspire children’s interest in all cultural subjects – Geography, Botany, Zoology, History and Science.

Children have curiosity about the world around them. In a Montessori class the teacher first introduces the children to land, water and air. Children are then encouraged to discover the Earth and the forces shaping it, geography, time concepts, and the natural sciences. Different lives are also talked about when discussing various parts of the globe. The multi-cultural school community serves as a point of respect for others and inquisitive desire to learn about the world around them.

As children enter Elementary they are going through a remarkable transformation in their developmental process. The Elementary child now has a tremendous power of imagination and a newfound ability for abstract thought that works in conjunction with a reasoning mind. The child revels in colossal stories of great consequence or of immense courage and bravery, and has a tremendous respect for the characters found within these stories. Moreover, they are constantly refining their moral beliefs and look to the stories of others to help with this process. Elementary children are extremely social and love working together with their peers on big projects.

These changes are reflected in the Elementary programme Dr. Montessori developed and named ‘Cosmic Education’. At the foundation are the five Great Lessons which are fact-based stories specifically created with the developmental changes in mind that the elementary child is going through. They are designed to capture the children’s imagination and to inspire them. With the telling of these stories, we are giving them a broad overview of how the earth was created and life came to it, along with the stories of Math's and Languages. In the process, these stories are laying the foundation for all the academic work they will do over the next six years.

In Elementary, we cover the following areas; Math's, Geometry, Geography, Biology, Language, and History, along with Music and Art. Just as in the 3-6 class, when the children start exploring a new concept, they first work with concrete materials before moving on to the abstract expression of the same concept. Through working with materials, children not only see the answer, but they experience the process of finding the answer made visual, and through repetition, internalize the process.

*From the Greek kosmos meaning ‘order’ or ‘world’.

This process of moving from the concrete to abstract is most apparent in Maths and Geometry where both areas have specifically designed materials. For example, in Maths the children work with materials to see how we multiply and divide, or find factors or the square root. In Geometry, they work with materials that show shape and form, equivalence, similarity, and congruency, as well as area and volume.

In Geography and Biology, the children work with materials also, but in both areas the primary focus is on experiments. In Geography, the children will conduct experiments that deal with physical science. The Biology curriculum is split into two areas, Botany and Zoology. In Botany, they will learn the functions of the different parts of the plant such as the leaf, roots, stems, flower, fruit, and seeds.

At each step along the way they are given real materials to study and examine, and will conduct many different experiments that highlight the certain function of a specific part of the plant. Zoology is split into the study of vertebrates and invertebrates. For vertebrates, the children will explore and research the differences between the five classes.

As Language and History are more abstract areas of study, we rely more on the Elementary aged child’s power of imagination and present them with more stories, impressionistic charts, and timelines. In Language, the children will hear both the stories of spoken and written language, which sets the foundation for all the work that they will do. Once these stories have been told we begin to work with word families and study parts of speech and which Montessori referred to as sentence analysis.

Children are exposed to History right away when they enter Elementary. Through the Great Lessons, they hear about the evolutionary process of animals on Earth. They are told stories about how humans came to be and how through working together, have accomplished the achievements that have brought us to where we are today.

Art and artistic creativity are integral parts of our curriculum. Children are encouraged to express themselves through painting and drawing in the classroom. This is supplemented by regular art classes where they are introduced to a variety of media, skills, and art forms from different cultures.

Our Music programme aims at increasing the children’s understanding and enjoyment of music, both local and international; developing their non-verbal communication; and at the same time nourishing their curiosity, imagination, intellect, etc.

The Physical Education (P.E.) programme is designed to enhance skills such as gross and fine motor control balance and coordination, while at the same time aiding social development through group activities and games emphasizing cooperation.

Music, Drama, Art and P.E. are also offered as after-school activities.

Children are expected to be part of the community, where they act as role-models for other students and give something back to the School community, as well as the wide community. This includes such activities as cleaning the lunchroom on a daily basis and helping younger students, as well as visiting and helping orphanages.

The class is taught in Vietnamese. The curriculum follows that of MOET, but is inspired by a Montessori style approach in the classroom layout and teaching practise.

After-school programmes started in the early 1900s mainly just as supervision of students after the final school bell. Today, after-school programmes do much more. There is a focus on helping students with school work but can be beneficial to students in other ways. An after-school programme, today, will not limit its focus on academics but with a holistic sense of helping the student population.

MonPLAY® is a well-ressourced, child-friendly play room for children from infancy to 4 years old.

"MonPLAY Club" includes MonPlay and MonArt, various activities that are led a Head Teacher or an Art Teacher qualified and experienced with Montessori Method of Education. These programmes focus on a different kind of activity each day.

Example of activities during a week;
Montessori activities, role-play with costumes, free play & sensory play, arts & crafts, music & movement, storytelling.

Parents and caregivers are more than welcome during these activities where children will socialize, bond in a relaxing atmosphere.

Vietnam's first Resources for Infant Educarers® (RIE®) inspired classroom.

The Parent-Child Class is open to children from 0 years old to 18 months old. An opportunity for parents to grow with their child in a RIE®-inspired environment, led by a teacher/facilitator with a foundation in the RIE® method. The programme holds a firm belief in respect of the child and respect of the child’s decisions. With a safe, but cognitively challenging and emotionally nurturing environment, children are given the freedom to explore and develop.
Parents attend the class to sit and observe their children who will have an un-interrupted play time with other children. The teacher will offer her full observation and interaction with the child when it is considered necessary.

Resources for Infant Educarers®, or RIE®, was created following Magda Gerber’s observations of children. An child expert with decades of experience, Gerber firmly believed in respect of the child and respect of the child’s decisions. With a physically safe, but cognitively challenging and emotionally nurturing environment, infants are given the freedom to explore and develop. This inherent freedom allows the child to grow at their own pace without unnecessary constraint from adults.

The basic principles of RIE® - trust, environment, uninterrupted play, freedom to explore, involvement of the child in all care activities, sensitive observation and consistency – provides for a child’s self-confidence, curiosity and secure relationships.

Infants might join the RIE® inspired Infant & Toddler Class without sessions of the Parent-Child Class. Meetings and discussions between the teacher and family happen before an infant is admitted. Home visits from the teacher are offered to make sure a smooth transition to the class environment and a happy adjustment period.