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Learning Center

description

The Montessori Learning Center is a child care center licensed by the WV DHHR. We are also a Microschool recognized by the State of WV as an Educational Service Provider and provide services eligible for Hope Scholarship recipients.
Our Primary Program provides a structured Montessori-based learning environment for children ages 3 to 6, including those who would be entering kindergarten.
Our Lower Elementary and Upper Elementary Programs provide a Montessori-based curriculum that provides independent learning and educational activities for participants aged 6 - 12. MLLC also operates a Kids’ Community Garden.
We support both home-schooled families and those looking for an individualized instructional program (IIP) through the Hope Scholarship program.

The goal of our Montessori Learning Center is to provide a stimulating, nurturing environment where students can gain the knowledge, practice the skills, and develop the intellectual tools that are important and necessary for success in today’s world.

Philosophy

The Learning Center follows the philosophy and methods of Dr. Maria Montessori and believes in her ideas of independence, respect, and “following the lead of the child.”

 
 
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The Learning Center strives to provide "...an environment in which the child, set free from undue adult intervention, can live its life according to the laws of its development.”

 

— Dr. Maria Montessori

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Age-based programs

Bead Chains

Primary Program - Ages 3-6

Our primary program recognizes this stage of life as the beginning of control and coordination of mind and body. Learning revolves around tangible experiences. Children use concrete materials to learn math, movable alphabets to explore language, and cubes, cylinders and other objects to categorize, find special relationships, and more.

Curriculum includes:

  • Science and nature

  • Music and movement

  • Sensorial activities

  • Practical life skills

  • Language arts

  • Mathematics

  • Cultural awareness

  • Geography

  • Physical Fitness

 

Lower Elementary Program – Ages 6-9

In the elementary years, the child continues to organize their thinking through work with the Montessori learning materials and an interdisciplinary curriculum as they pass from the concrete to the abstract. Children begin the application of their knowledge to real-world experiences. We challenge each and every child at their own level. In our Lower Elementary program, participants are given the time, resources and materials they need to master material if it proves difficult for them. More advanced children are presented with appropriate challenges to excite their minds. All students are inspired to learn about their world. 
The Lower Elementary Program can supplement the educational activities of home-schooled students or support families seeking an individualized instructional program through the Hope Scholarship.
*Your child should be 6 years old by July 1 to enter Lower Elementary in September.

Curriculum includes:

  • Language arts

  • Mathematics

  • Geometry

  • Zoology

  • Botany

  • Matter and Astronomy

  • History

  • Cultural Awareness

  • Music

A Great Lesson!

 

Upper Elementary Program – Ages 9-12

The Upper Elementary curriculum is designed to be responsive to the social, emotional, and academic needs of students ages 9-12 years old. Developmentally, children this age become stronger abstract thinkers and the curriculum continues to accommodate their developmental changes. As their competency and capacity for independence grows, Upper Elementary students take on more responsibility for their studies. Learning life skills such as time management and project planning are woven into the routine of their days. The students arrange the details of field trips, make decisions about research and study topics, and maintain the atmosphere of the classroom, all under the watchful eye of the guides.  The Upper Elementary Program is designed to supplement the educational activities of home-schooled students or support families seeking an individualized instructional program through the Hope Scholarship.

Curriculum includes:

  • Language arts

  • Mathematics

  • Physical and Life Sciences

  • Cultural Studies

  • Practical Life

  • Music

Oxygen and Fire Experiment

 

Learning Center FAQ

Is the Montessori Learning Center a school?

No. We are not a private or charter school. 
We are a WV DHHR-licensed childcare center and a Hope Scholarship recognized microschool that provides educational services for children ages 3-12.

The Montessori Learning Center is an educational program, operating M-TH from 8:30-3, that follows the philosophy and methods of Dr. Maria Montessori that center on independence, respect, and “following the lead of the child”.  

Our programs are offered by Mountain Laurel Learning Cooperative, Inc. - a non-profit organization.
We are eligible to accept Mountain Heart and Hope Scholarship program funds.