Authentic Montessori Schooling
At Triangle Montessori Academy (TMA), we proudly offer authentic Montessori schooling grounded in the observations, methods and philosophy of Dr. Maria Montessori. For over 16 years, TMA has been a private Montessori school located in the heart of downtown Cary.
The Montessori curriculum is a multi-aged, three-year cycle, which means your student will spend up to 3 years in the same classroom. This allows the child to develop a deep connection with the teachers, their classmates, and the materials. They enjoy being leaders in the classroom during their 3rd year and the mastery of lessons prepares them for their next plane of development. We encourage parents to keep their children in the classroom for a full three-year cycle for the ultimate benefit of a Montessori experience.
Explore, discover, and learn
Our goal is to foster a peaceful and safe environment based on mutual respect, where children can explore, discover and learn. Our campus is tucked away behind the main road and features a large, natural outdoor play space, organic vegetable and flower gardens all surrounded by three buildings.
“There must be provision for the child to have contact with nature; to understand and appreciate the order, the harmony, and the beauty in nature.”
– Maria Montessori
Outdoor Education
TMA is unique in the fact that we have implemented a Gardening Curriculum, designed especially for us by an educator and expert in the field. The curriculum involves educating the students on everything from soil health, planting, plant care and harvesting. You will often find the teachers using the outdoor space for Botany lessons, novel study, Yoga, birthday celebrations, poetry circles, and sing-alongs.
Lifelong Learning
First Plane of Development
Dr. Montessori observed that children are naturally curious and when presented with the opportunity to explore their environment, they will absorb all that is surrounding them. Dr. Montessori referred to the first Plane of Development ( the first 6 years) as the Absorbent Mind – understanding that children were in a concrete learning phase, developing their large and gross motor skills refining their senses, preferring order to chaos and setting up all of their social, emotional and academic skills for the rest of their lives. She observed the children in this phase were fiercely independent and capable of doing a number of Practical Life tasks.
Second Plane of Development
“Help me think it by myself”. During the Second Plane ( lower/upper elementary) the students emerge from concrete learning to explore the abstract. They are very social with their peers and enjoy group lessons, competition and engaging in the world around them. They are forming opinions and understanding consequences. They are in a heightened awareness of moral justice. The academic lessons become more challenging and they begin to excel in language and math. They are honing their problem-solving skills and will build upon the communication skills learned in the Primary Program. They begin to explore leadership roles within the community.
Our Programs
Toddler Program
Ages: 18-36 months
Montessori Toddler programs offer so much more than a traditional childcare. The classroom design fosters your young child’s emerging independence and desire for exploration. In this program, toddlers are introduced to the beginning lessons of our Primary Program making the transition seamless.
Primary Program
Ages: 3-6 years
When the students enter the Primary Program they continue building upon the independence they began in the Toddler Program. Over the next 3 years, the students focus on Grace and Courtesy, and are are introduced to the 5 areas in the Montessori classroom: Practical Life, Sensorial, Mathematics, Cultural, and Language.
Lower & Upper Elementary
Lower Elementary: 6-9 years | Upper Elementary: 9-12 years
What sets Montessori apart in the Elementary years is the individually paced curriculum that challenges children academically. Students also participate in organizing the classroom expectations, creating their own code of conduct, being mentors and volunteering in the school and local community. Our goal is to reaffirm to the students, the skills and lessons they are learning in the classroom are purposeful and easily translate to life outside of the classroom.
Enrichment Programs
During the school day, children participate in Yoga and Spanish classes. In addition, all TMA students are part of our cultural cooking curriculum. In celebration of the country they are studying, toddlers will taste fruits or vegetables and older students will prepare a meal to enjoy in their classroom. We often grow and harvest our own ingredients as part of our cooking curriculum.
We also offer opportunities for after school enrichment programs such as: Kidokinetics, golf, tennis, art, soccer, and music. These are rotating programs and offered as available.