The Best Montessori Art Curriculum for Children Ages 3 to 6

By Spramani Elaun, International Art Teacher Trainer, Nature of Art®

Why Montessori classrooms need an art curriculum

Montessori guides have albums for Practical Life, Sensorial, Language, Mathematics and Cultural work. There is no album for visual art.

So the art shelf often fills up with seasonal crafts and whatever was on Pinterest that week. The children enjoy them, but one-off projects are not the same thing as art literacy. Once the activity is over, the learning often stops there. And art supplies do not teach by themselves. Materials don’t demonstrate, guide or encourage. You do.

Whether you are a Montessori guide or a parent bringing Montessori home, the question is the same: what should young children actually learn in art, and what comes next?

What makes a Montessori art curriculum the best for ages 3 to 6?

Use these seven points to evaluate any early childhood art program for your classroom or home.

1Process comes before product

Children from birth to age 6 thrive with process-based art. They learn by touching, mixing, stacking and trying again. A good curriculum protects that time to explore instead of rushing toward a finished craft.

Even I do this when I am alone in my art studio. What looks like mess can sometimes be experimentation unfolding, and deep understanding. The next time your child’s painting turns into one big puddle of color, look again. Something is being learned.

2It builds the hand skills children need for writing

Every scribble helps build the skills children need for drawing, writing and learning. Holding a brush, tearing paper, rolling clay and tracing a shape all strengthen the small muscles of the hand. Tracing is not cheating. Tracing is building. I explain how hands and brain work together during art in my book The Way Children Make Art.

3Short, clear steps a young child can follow

Good teaching teaches steps. Young children can generally manage only one to three steps at a time. The best curriculum shows you how to present a new material simply and clearly, so the child feels capable instead of lost.

4Real art language from the very start

Young children can learn the words artists use: line, shape, color and texture. When I first started teaching in my art studio, I often said things like, “Wow, that’s amazing!” Over 30 years of working with children, I realized that comments like these are not truly educational, and can encourage children to work only for praise.

Instead, describe what you see: “You made a long, curvy line.” “You used two colors.” That is Art Talk, and it gives your child words to talk about their own work.

5It fits the prepared environment

Montessori classrooms and homes are built around independence. An art curriculum for this age should work on an open art shelf, with real materials sized for small hands, and give children the chance to choose, use and care for their materials themselves.

6A gentle, steady rhythm

Young children don’t need art every day to grow. For this age, a simple and healthy rhythm is twice each week. Consistency matters more than quantity.

7It grows with the child

A true curriculum is sequential. Every lesson increases in complexity, so the skills a 3-year-old builds today are the tools a 6-year-old uses with confidence. Look for a program that continues into the elementary years, so art learning doesn’t stop when children leave the primary classroom.

Craft of the week vs. a Montessori art curriculum

For Montessori parents teaching art at home

You don’t need to be artistic. You don’t need to do it perfectly. And you don’t need to figure this out alone. Feeling artistic is not the requirement. Having a path to follow is. A simple art tray, a few quality materials and a clear plan will take you further than a cupboard full of craft kits.

Questions to ask before you choose an early childhood art curriculum

• Is it process-based for ages 3 to 6, with room to explore?
• Does it build hand skills that support writing?
• Are the steps short enough for a young child to follow?
• Will my child learn real art words?
• Can it live on an open shelf in a prepared environment?
• Does it continue into the elementary years?

Why I create Montessori art curriculum

Thousands of Montessori guides have learned from me, and I hear the same worry from almost every one of them: “I don’t know where to start with art, or what comes next.”

That is why I write done-for-you curriculum. You buy it once and teach from it every year. Every Nature of Art® curriculum is built on my Science Art Method™, a framework for how hand, mind and brain work together when children make art. It is designed to work in Montessori classrooms, traditional schools and homes, and it is aligned with national and international core arts standards.

The Nature of Art® curriculum collection

Nature of Art® curricula give young children a clear path in visual art. Each one is sequential, and every lesson increases in complexity. Three good places to start:

About the author

Spramani Elaun

Spramani Elaun is a former commercial graphic designer and illustrator who has spent 30 years in art education: 10 years running her homeschool art studio, 10 years teaching art in Montessori schools, and 10 years training Montessori educators around the world. She has taught over 200,000 children, and thousands of Montessori guides have learned from her.

She is the founder of Nature of Art®, creator of the Science Art Method™, and author of books including Early Childhood Art Guide (Montessori), Introducing Visual Arts to the Montessori Classroom and The Way Children Make Art. Questions? Email info@spramani.com.