At its core, Montessori is about Education for Life, and we are responsive to evolving best practices in our increasingly dynamic world. Nido’s learning environment looks and feels different from traditional Montessori settings, and that is intentional. At Nido, we take pride in empowering our students through our inquiry-based, hands-on curriculum informed by foundational Montessori beliefs.

  • Children undergo sensitive periods of development, and classrooms and educators must be aligned to support their developmental needs
  • Children under the age of six have an absorbent mind that indiscriminately takes in information from their environment, making them fertile for learning
  • The Nido team and environment are intentionally prepared to support students in creating a sense of order, classification, and organization for all of this input
  • Children develop their understanding of abstract concepts through concrete experiences
  • Children are introduced to concepts from simple to complex, familiar to unfamiliar, known to unknown
  • Children build on their understanding through experience, repetition, and sustained attention
  • Children learn through sensorial experiences, and our materials and learning environments are intentionally designed to attract children’s senses and invite engagement
  • Mixed age groups support differentiated instruction and provide children with learning opportunities that are developmentally appropriate
  • Mixed age groups allow children to learn from one another and provide space for students to become teachers and leaders
  • Children crave opportunities to cultivate their independence, concentration, and fine motor skills, and our environment is designed to support and scaffold this
  • The focus is always on the process of learning, rather than a final product
  • Learning is connected to authentic purposes and situated in authentic contexts
  • Learning should be a joyful, engaging experience