Sensorimotor Skills

Dr. Montessori saw the senses as the “doorway to the mind.” She considered sensory and manipulation not only an aid to the development of maturing sense organs (eyes, ears, nose, tongue and skin) but a starting point for the intellectual growth. She believed that by helping children to order, compare and classify sensory stimulation, their intellectual development would be greatly assisted. In this way, children will be better prepared for future learning in math, language, science, and making sense of life’s experiences and information in general.

At the Montessori Language Academy, children can experience variety of sensory stimulation daily. For example, when children take turns to bring their favorite snack to the class, each child first smells the food before it is offered to them. Sound and light experiments, which are tied to the science, allow children to experience natural phenomena via the senses before they receive a scientific explanation. Children are also encouraged to feel the texture of plants before they start to study botany. These sensory experiences work well in foreign language immersion programs, due to the fact that it creates a common medium through which different languages can be interpreted.