Goals for the primary level
Some helpful websites
Sound Start Publishing Home Page
Montessori Essays
USBORNE BOOKS - PRIMARY LEVEL
The Grammar Stage of the Trivium does not begin until the student
reaches readiness around the age of nine (9). Until then the focus
of his education needs to be on the skills necessary to tackle the
learning during the grammar stage. The tools of learning aquired
between the ages of 9 and 18 are those we will use over and over
again in our lives. They are HOW we learn any subject matter.
Before we can begin learning to use these tools, we must first have
a rudimentary knowledge of our mother tongue and be able to work with
our number system. Therefore, the goals for the 5 to 9 year old student
are learning to decipher the written word (read) through a thorough
understanding of the mechanics of phonics, gaining fluency and becoming
an "automatic" reader, learning to spell basic English words and form
sentences, and an understanding of the four basic arithmetic functions
(adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing). Memorizing the facts
should be emphasized after a basic understanding of the principles involved
has been aquired. Drill with these facts can continue into the grammar stage.
