The essential element about learning your own or a foreign language is hearing it spoken around you and listening to it. This goes for everyone, adults and children.
Starting from our Primavera (toddler’s program) and children’s house classes upwards our children are exposed to the language spoken by native English teachers. They listen to “everyday” English (greetings, simple everyday instructions and comforting words), “fun” English (songs, fairy tales) and “learning” moments (work suitable for their interests and attention span).

Children use their voices, hands and skills to carry out activities in English. The aim is not to “teach English” but rather to expose them to English as a means of communication to help them to develop a positive relationship with English and to build a solid base for future work in the language that will be continued in the Primary School. Maria Montessori when referring to this type of preparation defined it “indirect preparation.”

In this regard in her book L’autoeducazione, Maria Montessori stated: Children’s house and primary school are not distinct – but they are the same thing, the continuation of the same fact.»

In the 2012/2013 school year the Focus on English programme was introduced throughout the school. We have native speaker and bilingual teachers who teach all classes.
In our Montessori school children acquire language from the environment: they absorb the words they hear both from the teachers and their peers through activities and interaction. We promote collaborative and meaningful learning to foster communication using an intercultural and interdisciplinary approach.

Every day in the two classes in the Children’s House there are 2 native speaker teachers while from the 1st year of Primary School, in addition to 3 curricular hours focusing on English there are also 4 hours of CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning) to facilitate the use of English in every cognitive field and in particular by exploring Montessori Cosmic Education.

In the 4th and 5th years children have the opportunity to take Cambridge University Certifications.
To further enhance the possibilities on offer the school also provides some extra-curricular courses in English.

For several years, all classes have been involved in a virtual twinning programme with schools throughout the world by exchanging postcards, e-mails, video calls and/or IT projects. We value this type of partnership because it offers our students the possibility to:

▶ increase their knowledge and understanding of their own and other peoples cultural heritage;

▶ deepen their knowledge and communication skills in English;

▶ develop their multimedia communication skills with digital images and text.

La Fondazione Scuola Montessori di Bergamo has been recognised as an authorised preparation centre for Cambridge language qualifications. Learning English is an essential element for the integral formation of a child’s personality as it brings them closer to cultures other than their own, promoting acceptance and understanding.

The 4th and 5th grades can take the Cambridge University Qualifications (Starters -for 4th grades– and Movers – for 5th grades). These qualifications are important because they provide pupils with motivation to study a foreign language and the opportunity to have their language skills recognised and used internationally.

Our school was officially nominated as one of the Best Italian Preparation Centres.
We are happy and proud of these excellent results.