Toddler

Content Highlights:

• Engagement with authentic Montessori manipulatives including puzzles, object-permanence boxes, and child-sized tools that promote hands-on learning and exploration.
• Refinement of fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination through purposeful activities, challenging toddlers to develop precise movements and control.
• Encouragement of concentration and focus while engaging with Montessori materials, fostering mindfulness and attention to detail.

Skill Highlights:

• Improvement of fine motor skills for precise and controlled movements, enhancing toddlers' ability to perform intricate tasks.
• Development of hand-eye coordination through hands-on manipulative activities, preparing toddlers for future academic and practical challenges.
• Cultivation of focus, concentration, and attention to detail, laying the groundwork for sustained focus and cognitive development.

Outcomes:

• Enhanced fine motor skills for activities such as writing and self-care tasks, equipping toddlers with practical abilities for everyday life.

• Increased confidence in ability and capacity. 

• A burgeoning sense of independence.

• Improved ability to handle and manipulate objects with precision and control, facilitating future learning and problem-solving skills.
• The ability to concentrate and focus, supporting overall cognitive development and academic readiness.

 Content Highlights:

• Immersive language-rich environment with storytelling, singing, conversations, and language games, creating a stimulating atmosphere that encourages active engagement with spoken language with increasing clarity of articulation.
• Exposure to vocabulary from various themes, objects, and everyday experiences, expanding toddlers' language repertoire and understanding of the world around them.
• Emphasis on building language comprehension and verbal expression through interactive activities, promoting effective communication skills.

Skill Highlights:

• Improved language comprehension and vocabulary acquisition, enhancing toddlers' ability to understand and interpret verbal information.
• Enhanced verbal expression and communication skills, empowering toddlers to express their thoughts, feelings, and ideas with clarity and confidence.
• Development of active listening and language processing abilities, fostering effective communication and meaningful interactions with others.

Outcomes:

• Increased ability to express thoughts and ideas effectively, laying the groundwork for future literacy and communication success.
• Expanded vocabulary and language comprehension, enabling toddlers to engage in more sophisticated conversations and understand complex language structures.
• Improved communication and language skills to interact with peers and adults, fostering positive social interactions and friendships.

Content Highlights:

• Introduction to essential life skills, such as pouring, dressing, cleaning up after spills, and other daily activities. These are carefully designed to offer real-life scenarios, allowing toddlers to engage in purposeful tasks that contribute to effectiveness in their daily lives.
• Development of fine motor skills through activities including using utensils, threading needles and sewing, painting with paintbrushes, using scissors, using tongs, and beyond. These activities provide opportunities for toddlers to refine their hand-eye coordination and dexterity.
• Encouragement of independence and self-care routines, empowering toddlers to take ownership of their self-care activities, fostering confidence and a sense of ability in starting to care for their own personal well-being.

Skill Highlights:

• Acquisition of practical life skills for everyday tasks and self-sufficiency, laying the foundation for greater independence and self-confidence.
• Development of hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills, enabling toddlers to carry out precise movements with everyday objects.
• Cultivation of independence, responsibility, and confidence in daily activities, nurturing a sense of accomplishment and self-reliance.

Outcomes:

• Increased self-reliance and ability to participate in daily routines, promoting a sense of autonomy and competence.
• Enhanced fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination for more complex tasks, preparing toddlers for future academic and practical challenges.
• Boosted self-confidence and a sense of accomplishment from completing practical life activities, fostering a positive attitude towards learning and growth.

Content Highlights:

• Immersive language-rich environment with storytelling, singing, conversations, and language games, creating a stimulating atmosphere that encourages active engagement with spoken language.
• Exposure to vocabulary from various themes, objects, and everyday experiences, expanding toddlers' language repertoire and understanding of the world around them.
• Emphasis on building language comprehension and verbal expression through interactive activities, promoting effective communication skills.

Skill Highlights:

• Improved language comprehension and vocabulary acquisition, enhancing toddlers' ability to understand and interpret verbal information.
• Enhanced verbal expression and communication skills, empowering toddlers to express their thoughts, feelings, and ideas with clarity and confidence.
• Further development of active listening and language processing skills, fostering effective communication and meaningful interactions with others.

Outcomes:

• Increased ability to express thoughts and ideas effectively, laying the groundwork for future literacy and communication success.

• Expanded vocabulary and language comprehension, enabling toddlers to engage in more sophisticated conversations and understand increasingly complex language structures.

• Improved communication and language skills to apply during meaningful interactions with peers and adults, fostering positive social interactions and beginning to understand friendships.

Content Highlights:

• A variety of rich outdoor experiences to foster a connection with nature and promote a sense of wonder and curiosity about the natural world.
• Outdoor areas include a bayside path, toddler garden space, toddler playground area, and large field spaces.
• Nature walks and outdoor playtime to enhance gross motor development, providing opportunities for physical activity and exploration.
• Integrated opportunities to observe and respect the environment, plants, and animals to promote ecological awareness, instilling a sense of connection to the natural world and responsibility for the conservation of our natural resources.

Skill Highlights:

• Development of gross motor skills through outdoor play and exploration, supporting toddlers' physical development and coordination.
• Encouragement of observation and curiosity about the natural world, stimulating toddlers' innate drive for exploration and discovery.
• Development of a sense of responsibility and care for the environment, instilling a lifelong commitment to environmental stewardship.

Outcomes:

• Improved gross motor skills and physical agility from outdoor activities, contributing to overall physical health and well-being.
• Heightened appreciation and understanding of the natural world, fostering a sense of connection, wonder, and curiosity about the environment.
• Development of a sense of responsibility and care for the environment, instilling a lifelong commitment to environmental stewardship.

Content Highlights:

• Opportunities for creative musical and visual art expression through the exploration of various art mediums, such as drawing and painting, allowing toddlers to explore their artistic abilities.

• Introduction to musical instruments for vocabulary enrichment and ear training, including building awareness of and joy in the exploration of rhythm and melodies. These activities foster a love for music and its expressive qualities.

• A culture that supports individual creativity and artistic exploration in a supportive setting, valuing each toddler's unique creative expression.

Skill Highlights:

• Development of artistic and creative expression through visual arts and music, encouraging toddlers to express themselves freely and imaginatively.
• Exploration of rhythm, sound, and musical concepts, fostering a sense of rhythm and an appreciation for the beauty of music.
• Fostering of individuality and self-expression through art and music, supporting the development of a strong sense of identity.

Outcomes:

• Enhanced creativity and artistic abilities in various forms of expression, providing toddlers with a creative outlet for self-discovery and emotional expression.
• Exploration and understanding of different musical elements and concepts, laying the foundation for future musical interests and learning.
• Boosted confidence and self-esteem through creative accomplishments, nurturing a positive self-image and belief in one's abilities.

Content Highlights:

• Gentle guidance and support in acquiring toileting independence, recognizing the sensitive nature of this developmental milestone and providing a supportive environment with judgment-free, kind, and matter-of-fact information. This approach leads to each child being aware of their toileting needs and increasingly capable of participating in and then meeting their own needs at a reasonable and age-appropriate pace.

• Creation of a nurturing and comfortable environment for this important milestone, ensuring that toddlers feel secure and respected during the toileting awareness process.

• Encouragement of self-awareness and independence in personal hygiene routines, empowering toddlers to take an active role in their self-care.

Skill Highlights:

• Development of toileting independence and self-care skills, fostering a sense of achievement and confidence in managing personal hygiene.
• Cultivation of self-awareness and understanding of bodily cues, helping toddlers recognize and respond to their body's needs.
• Nurturing a positive attitude towards personal hygiene routines and establishing lifelong habits that contribute to overall well-being.

Outcomes:

• Achievement of toileting independence, promoting self-confidence and autonomy as toddlers take charge of their personal needs.
• Improved self-awareness and ability to recognize personal needs, enhancing toddlers' sense of bodily awareness and self-regulation.
• Development of responsible habits and positive attitudes towards personal hygiene, laying the foundation for a healthy and hygienic lifestyle.

Children naturally move toward independence.  Calling their determination the “terrible twos” sells children short. At MMS, we offer toddlers choices within limits, and we trust their drives, instincts, and natural curiosity. Through this approach, and under the skillful and attentive guidance of our highly trained educators, toddlers’ independence and confidence build and blossom.

Humans are born to learn. At MMS, we organize our work around this truth, preparing the model environment for learning – safe, inspiring, and developmentally ideal. Our expert faculty cultivates each toddler’s inner drive to explore and learn through hands-on materials and experiences. As a result, they deepen and solidify their joy, curiosity, and intellect.

The development of emotional intelligence begins at birth. Empathy, compassion, and conflict resolution are all skills and qualities that make our lives better and more effective. Through the caring community and the thoughtful guidance of our faculty, toddlers develop self-awareness and the ability to articulate their feelings. They develop a greater capacity for self-regulation, as well as empathy and interpersonal skills with their peers, skills that serve them for life.

Too many early childhood programs are overstimulating, chaotic, and loud. Instead, at MMS, the aesthetics, design, and natural materials cultivate calm, harmonious, and inspired classrooms. Your toddler will spend much of their day deeply focused on indoor and outdoor activities that stimulate their senses and healthfully develop their cognitive and physical capacities.