Montessori Scope and Sequence: Cosmic Studies
Cosmic Studies lessons and units of exploration are designed to give students a sense of the story of the universe, how life developed, and the story of our history. These lessons and experiences are introduced in the hope that they will inspire in students a sense of wonder and awaken interest, appreciation, and understanding. This is what Dr. Montessori had in mind when she wrote: “The secret of good teaching is to regard the child’s intelligence as a fertile field in which seeds may be sown, to grow under the heat of flaming imagination. Our aim is not only to make the child understand, and still less to force him to memorize, but so to touch his imagination as to enthuse him to his innermost core. We do not want complacent pupils, but eager ones. We seek to sow life in the child rather than theories, to help him in his growth, mental and emotional as well as physical, and for that we must offer grand and lofty ideas to the human mind.” With these goals in mind, the sequence of lessons and materials is important. The Cosmic Studies category is divided into sub-categories that contain lessons sequenced in the order in which they would be introduced for most children in many Montessori classrooms.
The Cosmic Studies Scope and Sequence is displayed in the following “online magazine” format. Lessons/Materials are listed on the spreadsheet, sequenced the same as they are in the Montessori Compass online record keeping software. Each lesson/material may contain multiple elements, which are tagged to the appropriate cycle year(s). In some cases, parent-friendly descriptions will be listed, designed to help parents gain greater insight into the Montessori classroom.