LEMP is proud to have the first Early Childhood lending Library in Ghana. Our Library introduces students to a rich selection of 3000 books that cover topics that children need and love at this age. Fairytales, Folklore and books in many languages line this magical space. Our school is committed to maintaining and developing a collection of books that supports the curriculum and reflects the diversity of our community.
The environment was hand painted by Ghanaian artists to create an enchanted atmosphere specifically designed to inspire our children’s imaginations – A place where children can Explore, Discover and Learn!
Story Time
Parents and children are invited to enjoy story time together every Wednesday, this time is full of song and excitement. Our children learn appropriate library behavior while sitting in a large group listening to stories read aloud by teachers and other special guests.
Technology
At Little Explorers we use technology as a supplement to the curriculum of our older children from the Orange Level – 4 years and above and not as a substitute for books and materials. As a Montessori pre-school in the 21st century it is our responsibility to prepare our children for what they will encounter in the real world and whether we like it or not, the real world functions on technology.
Our older children are welcome to only 15 minutes per week of guided technology use, aimed specifically at mouse control and academic revision.
This room also contains Audio Books and Listening post to be used at Library Time.
Our P.E program has been designed by the staff at LEMP through their fun experiences with the students. Our specialized early childhood equipment is perfect for process based learning .Playing non-competitive games that reflect the skill set and muscle development needed for later sports,allows a spirit of exploration and self -confidence.Through the program, the children learn much about how their bodies can move and the correct protocol to follow in order to enjoy experiences safely. Playing together instead of against each other,allows strong social bonds to further develop and good sportsmanship to become a habit.
Our Physical Education program sees physical activity as a part of all curriculum areas and makes those links at each session.
Emphasis is placed on healthy lifestyle through activity and joy.
Our Dance room has been equipped with specialized early childhood equipment and a comprehensive program aimed at learning through play.We have created an environment for our little ones to come express and discover themselves in a loving, nurturing and fun atmosphere. Our dance classes are designed to introduce children to movement, music and rhythm, as well as body discipline awareness and the appropriate developmental skills for the growing child. While we follow a progressive syllabus, emphasis is placed on fun, creativity, imagination and the development of positive self-esteem.
In addition to dancing, a child will learn the concepts of taking turns, following another dancer or leading the way, waiting patiently, working together and sharing. While the use of props, musical instruments, songs & imagination are the basis to our classes that introduce the fundamentals of creative movement, our little dancers will not only learn their technique, rhythm and motor skills, but the sheer love of expressing themselves through dance.
“If we try to think back to the dim and distant past… what is it that helps us reconstruct those times, and to picture the lives of those who lived in them? It is their art… It is thanks to the hand, the companion of the mind, that civilization has arisen.”
—Maria Montessori, The Absorbent Mind
Art is one of the many ways children express themselves. Art is a way for children to communicate their feelings. It is through art that children also develop their fine motor skills. In our specialized Early Childhood Art room, we provide open-ended art activities that help children explore different art techniques and materials to use their creativity to the fullest.
When it comes to art, it is the process not the product that is important to the child. As adults, our goal is to produce a product. The child interacts with the world differently. The child works to develop self. The focus is on the process not the product. It is the process that gives him satisfaction and inner joy.
The specialized Art room compliments and extends the attitude that surrounds the free art tables available throughout the day in each classroom, by allowing a huge array of options all at once,to be combined as creativity dictates. This gives children a solid foundation for future growth. Through art, they are exploring, creating, expressing, and developing self.
Here are just a few activities area in the Art room:
Here we incorporate art and literature, preparing children for both writing and expressive drawing by providing materials they can freely choose throughout the entire Art room.
We can incorporate art into our continent studies. Who are the artists? How utensils are made and decorated (straw baskets, clay pots)? What museums are located there?
Our Auditorium has been designed through our children’s love for the stage and role play. Each performance is a joy to watch as our little ones carry out their parts with pride. Many of our creations reflect the topics and exploration done during the school year, so the children are keen to share their learning. The atmosphere is real and child sized so that our little actors can grow a love for the theater and culture as young as possible without stress or anxiety.
Young children feel like genuine contributors to the family and to their own care when they can make something good to eat.
Our school emphasizes the need for healthy food options in the Early Years as this is a time for habit forming behaviors .In this kitchen, the children are keen to try what they have made,so we try to broaden their pallet with a variety of flavors.
Whether it is slicing bananas or hard-boiled eggs, chopping vegetables, or cracking walnuts, children love to prepare and eat food. Of course, serving food to their friends is an important aspect and one in which the children delight.
When children cook in a real kitchen, they feel empowered. They are participating in many developmental activities. Cooking calls into play the greatest number of skills used simultaneously, more than any other activity in the classroom.
Here, the children are given their own individual utensils and vessels and guided through the steps to create simple meal options to eat on cooking day. Perhaps they will bring a little home to share!
What is a scientist?… We give the name scientist to the type of man who has felt experiment to be a means guiding him to search out the deep truth of life, to lift a veil from its fascinating secrets, and who, in this pursuit, has felt arising within him a love for the mysteries of nature, so passionate as to annihilate the thought of himself. ~ Maria Montessori, The Montessori Method
Children are natural observers. They are fascinated by the phenomenon found in the natural world.
Science is all around us. Young children interact with the natural world everywhere they go. Investigating what flowers smell like, how a leaf feels, or what happens when you pull the cat’s tail is how they learn how things work and how they are to interact with it. Maria Montessori recognized the young child’s need to observe and absorb information about the world around them. She believed that experience with real objects should always proceed before learning the names or looking at pictures of things.
Encountering something new in natures sparks the child’s curiosity and leads to a spontaneous lesson as the child asks “What is this? What is it called? How does it feel/smell/taste/sound?” These sensorial-based questions are concrete evidence of the child’s stage of development. In this sensitive period, children should be encouraged to explore their environment with their senses.
In our specialized Science, History and Geography room, we make the true wonder of safe exploration and discovery take a whole new level of intensity. Our children are provided with many of the tools you would find in Elementary classrooms organized for their independent use and adapted for their safety.
