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Our programmes,
in full detail.

Every stage from 12 months to 18 — what your child will do, learn and become at each step of the journey.

Programme Pathways

What each stage offers.

Five environments, one continuous journey. Each is built for the stage of development it serves — what Montessori called the planes — and each is now backed by research that can be read in a brain scanner. For every stage: what your child does, what is growing, and what the research adds.

0 – 6 years

The absorbent mind

The child builds the self through movement, the senses and language.

6 – 12 years

The reasoning mind

Imagination, questions of justice, and the wish to work in a group.

12 – 18 years

The social newborn

Real work, real responsibility, a place in a community.

From 12 months

Nido

A small, calm environment for the first year away from home. Babies and young toddlers move freely, explore with all their senses and form secure relationships with responsive caregivers before they join the Infant Community.

Growing

Movement and the senses — Montessori’s first materials of intelligence.

What the research adds

The ability to combine what the senses report develops from the earliest years, and children who combine them well show better memory and reasoning later on.

Denervaud, Gentaz, Matusz and Murray · Scientific Reports, 2020
Read more

Nido means “nest” in Italian. For many children it is the first day-care experience, and it is more than day-care: a safe place to begin exploring outside the home, to meet new people and try new things in a setting that is loving, respectful and attentive to each baby’s needs.

Trust. The trust between school and home is the foundation of the bond between the baby and the Guide. A low adult-to-child ratio means the adult is responsive and in tune with your baby. The foundations of a more peaceful society start at birth.

Freedom of movement. Babies are driven to move, and the Nido is a safe space to move or to rest as they need. Gross and fine motor skills are encouraged while each child’s natural rhythm is respected.

Communication. Eye contact, a smile, the first words: babies thrive on communication. Songs, storytelling and unhurried conversation between your baby and the Guide lay a strong foundation for language.

Help me to do it myself. Knowing exactly when to help is a skill that takes time to develop. Self-confidence and independence grow when a baby is given just enough support — and just enough freedom.

Ask about Nido admissions
18 months – 3 years

Infant Community

Building on the Nido, an environment for toddlers’ growing independence: child-sized furniture and practical activities that support language, coordination, fine motor development, social interaction and confidence.

Growing

Independence — the hand learning to serve the will. “Help me to do it myself.”

What the research adds

How children read the people around them is shaped by everyday social experience from early childhood on. In Lausanne, students from Montessori schools recognised emotions better and read social signals more completely.

Denervaud, Mumenthaler, Gentaz and Sander · Learning and Instruction, 2020 · preliminary evidence
Read more

A prepared environment for children from 18 months to 3 years. Busy toddlers have ample opportunity to build the social, emotional and academic foundations for what comes next.

Order and routine. An ordered environment makes an ordered mind. Repeating the same routine gives toddlers a feeling of security; tidying up and putting work away teaches them to appreciate order and to build an internal map of their surroundings.

Fine and gross motor skills. Every activity is designed to develop the motor skills that matter so much in the early years, in a safe environment that gives toddlers the freedom to repeat an activity until they master it.

Beginning to socialise. Respect is the basis of healthy relationships, and it starts early. Taking turns and sharing a snack are how toddlers learn to feel and show appreciation for acts of kindness.

Language. Group and individual lessons introduce new vocabulary and let toddlers practise and repeat words in the community’s three languages; songs and music with our music specialist make it playful.

Care of self and of the environment. Dressing and feeding themselves builds body autonomy and self-regulation. Learning to use the toilet is a skill, supported by the Guide and by the older toddlers who model it in this mixed-age setting. Caring for the environment teaches an appreciation of beauty, and a habit of thinking of others.

See Pomaret campus
3 – 6 years

Children's House

Children choose purposeful work in a prepared environment with clear limits. Practical life, self-correcting materials, grace and courtesy, and care of the environment build concentration, independence and a love of learning.

Growing

Concentration, order, independence — and a material that corrects the child, so the adult does not have to.

What the research adds

In 234 children aged four to fifteen, those from Montessori schools noticed their own errors younger and went on to self-correct better. Young children need time after a mistake to learn from it — exactly what a self-correcting material gives.

Denervaud, Knebel, Immordino-Yang and Hagmann · Mind, Brain and Education, 2020
Read more

A calm and focused micro-society for students aged 3 to 6. Hard work and independence let them explore with all five senses and build the foundations of academic success.

“I can do it.” I can take my activity out, complete it, and put it away again. A spill? No problem. I can mop. I can sound out a word, name that shape and count to 10, 100 and even 1000. Being able to do it myself means I grow in confidence and am less afraid to try new things.

Preparation of the hand. Practical life activities let students go on looking after themselves, and they have a second purpose: they prepare the hand for writing. Sewing a bracelet, cutting shapes and tracing letters build exactly the fine motor skills writing will need.

Grace and courtesy. Respect is the basis of healthy relationships. By modelling respectful behaviour directly — how to carry a chair, how to say thank you — we help students build the social skills for healthy relationships and learn to feel and show appreciation for acts of kindness.

Academic foundations. Learning to read starts with phonics — and we learn them with three senses: hearing, sight and touch, in the form of sandpaper letters. The numbers 1 to 10 are more than marks on paper: they are long rods, pink towers and brown stairs. Only then come the continent maps with their animals, and the art, music and sport that enrich the world.

Independent choice and concentration. Choosing well is something even adults find hard. By starting young, students learn to think about what interests them and what they need to practise. When the choice is right, concentration comes easily: our Children’s House students can work for long stretches when they are interested and challenged.

Executive functioning. Impulse control, planning, working memory and cognitive flexibility are skills for life. They begin in early childhood, and developing them well is the best start to school there is.

6 – 12 years

Primary

Primary children enter a socially awakened stage and explore the wider world through Cosmic Education. Work is often presented in small groups, and children take ownership of their learning, their time, their goals and their responsibilities.

Growing

The reasoning mind — imagination, a sense of justice, and the drive to work with others.

What the research adds

Solving maths in a scanner, 8- to 12-year-olds from Montessori schools attempted every question and, after an error, engaged the regions that work a problem through rather than the ones that retrieve a remembered answer. They also scored higher on creative thinking, with a quieter “alarm” network at rest.

npj Science of Learning, 2020 · Developmental Science, 2023
Read more

The Primary environment is about bringing the universe to the child. Students are encouraged to find their place in the wider world and in society.

Cosmic Education. Designed by Maria Montessori to bring the universe to the child, Cosmic Education opens with the Five Great Lessons, which show how everything is connected and let students follow their interests while building the core skills of the curriculum.

An education for each child. A multi-age classroom adapts more easily to each student, who can work with those who are older, younger or the same age. Regular meetings with the Guide make sure students reflect on their work and know what comes next.

Social awakening. Around six, children enter a period of social awakening: they become more able to work with others, and with that comes a profound sense of justice and the need to keep reflecting on respect as the way to a more peaceful society.

Executive functioning. Impulse control, planning, working memory and cognitive flexibility begin in early childhood, but in the Primary years students become aware of them. Reflecting on their own successes, on where and how to improve, and practising gratitude towards others: this is how they learn the value of hard work and of kindness.

See Esperança campus
12 – 18 years · currently 12–14, adding a year at a time

Secondary / Adolescent Programme

A Montessori adolescent community with British curriculum pathways, combining academic challenge with real work, independence, community life and IGCSE preparation.

Real work

Cooking in a professional kitchen of their own — menus, shopping, budget — gardening, environmental care and community responsibilities.

Academic life

Socratic seminars, focused work cycles and self-directed study.

Enterprise

Micro-economy projects such as food, craft, farming or repair work.

Pathway

IGCSE preparation supported by multidisciplinary projects and external partnerships.

Growing

Valorisation — feeling capable by one’s own efforts — and a first taste of economic independence through production and exchange.

Maria Montessori

“The chief symptom of adolescence is a state of expectation, a tendency towards creative work and a need for the strengthening of self-confidence.”

Maria Montessori, From Childhood to Adolescence

What the research adds

The adolescents who learn best from their errors are the ones least thrown by them, and that turn arrives younger in students from Montessori schools. Treating right and wrong as information rather than verdicts is the habit an enterprise needs.

Mind, Brain and Education, 2020 · Developmental Science, 2020
Read more

The Adolescent Community serves students aged approximately 12 to 14 (Years 8 and 9). Montessori recognised adolescence as a distinct period of development, marked by a growing need for social belonging, purposeful work, moral exploration and independence. The community is conceived as a developing project, responsive to its students and designed to grow with them.

Two strands. Work on the self — identity, responsibility, moral development — and work for the community: meaningful, collaborative projects that contribute to the common good.

How it is taught. Inquiry-based learning, interdisciplinary projects and real-world application. Students are encouraged to think critically, collaborate and take increasing responsibility for their learning; the curriculum stays aligned with the English National Curriculum and prepares them for GCSE study.

Beyond the campus. Learning experiences at the farm in Alella, termly sport rotations at an external sports facility, and participation in the Montessori Model United Nations, which builds global awareness and civic engagement.

Ask about Secondary admissions
Beyond the classroom

Our electric van: learning on the road

Our 7-seat electric Volkswagen ID. Buzz takes small groups of adolescents out of the classroom and into the real world.

A few students researching a theme go to meet an expert or visit a farm, or head to the market to buy the food they will cook for the school. It also carries their stall on Sant Jordi and their tents on camping trips, and welcomes visiting students and specialists at the airport.

The studies behind these cards

Denervaud et al., npj Science of Learning 2020 · Mind, Brain and Education 2020 · Developmental Science 2020 · Scientific Reports 2020 · Learning and Instruction 2020 · Duval et al., Developmental Science 2023 · del Agua et al., Advanced Science 2026. All compare students from Montessori and conventional schools, by one research team in Lausanne, with family background controlled. They show association, not proof — which is also what the authors say.

The school day

A day at BMS, stage by stage.

Arrival is between 8:45 and 9:00 in every environment except the Adolescent Community, whose day runs from 9:30 to 17:00.

Nido
8:45 – 9:00Arrival
9:00 – 10:30Work cycle
10:30 – 11:30Outdoor activities
11:30 – 12:30Lunch
12:30 – 14:30Nap
14:30 – 15:15Snack
15:15 – 16:00Garden and afternoon activities
16:00 – 16:10Dismissal
Infant Community
8:45 – 9:00Arrival
9:00 – 10:30Work cycle
10:30 – 11:45Outdoor activities
11:45 – 12:45Lunch
12:45 – 14:45Nap
14:45 – 16:00Snack and final activity
16:00 – 16:10Dismissal
Children's House
8:45 – 9:00Arrival
9:00 – 12:00Work cycle
12:00 – 12:45Lunch
12:45 – 13:45Playtime
13:45 – 15:30Optional nap, second work cycle or an activity, including swimming
15:30 – 16:15Snack and playtime
16:15Dismissal
Primary
8:45 – 9:00Arrival
9:00 – 12:00Work cycle
12:00 – 13:40Lunch and playtime
13:40 – 14:00Daily reading
14:00 – 16:00Afternoon work cycle, or Spanish, Catalan and PE; Lower Primary swims every week for one term a year (included in the fee)
16:15Dismissal
Adolescent Community
9:30Arrival
9:30 – 13:00Work cycle
13:00 – 14:00Lunch and playtime
14:00 – 17:00Afternoon work cycle
17:00Dismissal
29 June – 24 July 2026

Summer Camp 2026

The 2026 camp theme is Go for Gold!, inspired by the Olympic Games. Children aged 3–12 take part in four weeks of sports, play and collaborative challenges that promote teamwork, creativity, inclusion and fun.

Weeks: 29 Jun–3 Jul · 6–10 Jul · 13–17 Jul · 20–24 Jul
Schedule: half day 9:00–15:00 or full day 9:00–17:00
Weekly fees: €236.55 half day · €319.80 full day · catering €48.75 · excursions €32.50
Ages: 3–12 years old

Theme story

Children enter the world of Luminaris. Younger children become explorers following clues to find the Olympic Torch, while older children help restore the values that keep Luminaris in balance: peace, inclusion, sustainability, communication, creativity and cooperation.

Educational programme

The camp uses the Olympic Games as a playful, creative and participatory way to promote solidarity, effort, respect, cooperation, active participation, fun, experiential learning, belonging and connection with the environment. Activities take place in Catalan, Spanish and English.

Curriculum & Enrichment

Montessori depth,
recognised standards.

Our curriculum is developmental rather than age-driven — and fully integrated with the frameworks families need for continuity and recognition anywhere in the world.

How we teach

The Montessori curriculum

Each environment follows the full Montessori scope and sequence for its plane of development — from sensorial and practical life in the Children's House to Cosmic Education in Primary and land, enterprise and community work in the Adolescent Community.

Recognised everywhere

Integrated frameworks

The Montessori curriculum is mapped to the Early Years Foundation Stage and the English National Curriculum, and delivers Catalan and Spanish language and literature as required for full homologation — so learning records are recognised by British, Spanish and Catalan authorities alike.

How we measure progress

Assessment that supports growth

Progress is evidenced through observation, portfolios, projects and reflective dialogue — with selective, age-appropriate formal assessment as students move towards externally recognised qualifications.

How families follow progress in My Montessori Journal →

Who teaches

Specialist enrichment

Dedicated specialists in Catalan, Spanish, Art, Music and PE work across Early Years, Primary and Secondary — alongside a rich programme of extracurricular activities and the summer camp.

Beyond the classroom

Community projects

Learning connects to the real world through long-running community partnerships — including Fundació Ánima, VHIO and the Race Against Hunger — and through student-led initiatives such as Montessori Model United Nations.

For each child

An individualised curriculum

Every child works from an individual learning plan built on observation: lessons are presented when each child is ready, work is chosen with growing independence, and progress is reviewed continuously with families — so the curriculum follows the child, never the other way round.

Curriculum in detail

What they study, stage by stage.

The subjects behind each environment, as the guides plan them. At the centre of the first three environments sit the same three aims: independence, belonging, self-esteem.

Nido and Infant Community

Psycho-sensory-motor. Hand–eye coordination, refinement of hand movement, refinement of equilibrium.

Practical life. Care of the environment, care of oneself, food preparation.

Language. Development of language, enrichment of vocabulary.

Art and music. Self-expression, development of the sense of music and rhythm.

Children's House

Sensorial. Refinement of the five senses, proprioceptive development.

Language. Speaking and listening, reading, writing, social skills.

Mathematics. Counting, basic operations, the decimal system, fractions.

Practical life. Skills for life, hand–eye coordination, fine and gross motor skills.

Cultural. Music, art, geography, diversity and inclusion.

Lower Primary (6–9)

English. Reading — decoding and comprehension; literature; sentence structure and paragraphs; different types of writing (narrative, stories, letters, reports); spelling, punctuation and grammar; word study — affixes, compound words, synonyms, antonyms, homophones, dictionary use and etymology.

Spanish and Catalan. Speaking and listening; decoding and comprehension; basic reading and writing; social and cultural studies; Catalonia past and present.

Mathematics. Place value; operations with whole numbers; time and money; word problems; maths facts; basic fractions; introduction to statistics; geometry — plane figures, solids, lines, triangles, types of angle.

Science. States of matter; plants and animals; classes of vertebrates and invertebrates; the solar system; water systems; air; our bodies; measurement and experimentation, including cooking.

History and geography. The Five Great Lessons; early man; geological features; the Earth, countries and continents.

Art and music. Playing a basic tuned instrument; basic rhythm; singing; music appreciation and culture; crafts and handwork; artistic appreciation; working with different media.

Physical education. Fundamental sports skills; coordination and gross motor skills; swimming; rules and respect in sport.

Personal, social and emotional. Relationships, sexual and health education; going-outs and overnight trips; peace education; goal setting.

Upper Primary (9–12)

English. Literature and enhanced vocabulary; voices; editing different types of writing (narrative, stories, letters, reports); spelling, punctuation and grammar — sentence analysis, phrases and clauses; summarising and note-taking; persuasive writing; computer use for language.

Spanish and Catalan. Speaking and listening; decoding and comprehension; self-expression; social and cultural studies; Catalonia past and present.

Mathematics. Operations with whole and decimal numbers; advanced word problems; divisibility, including primes; ratios and percentages; fractions and decimals; statistics and graphs; exponents; negative numbers; computational thinking; geometry — circles, perimeter and area, introduction to volume.

Science. Electricity; forces; sound and light; human biology and reproduction.

History and geography. Early civilisations; geological features; economic geography; latitude, longitude and time zones; key moments in recent history.

Art and music. Playing a basic tuned instrument; rhythm exercises; singing; music appreciation and culture; crafts and handwork; artistic appreciation; working with different media.

Physical education. Fundamental sports skills; coordination and gross motor skills; swimming; rules and respect in sport; history of sport; team sports.

Personal, social and emotional. Relationships, sexual and health education; going-outs and overnight trips; time planning; peace education; goal setting and evaluation.

Adolescent Community

Organised around Montessori’s four categories for this age — self-expression, psychic disciplines, morality and values, preparation for adult life — and aligned with the English National Curriculum.

Mathematics. Small-group presentations and guided lessons; individual exploration of mathematical concepts; weekly seminars for discussion and reflection; creative problem-solving, including student-generated problems; collaborative discussion of solutions; mixed-ability learning with personalised support.

Language arts, music and theatre. Integrated study of language, literature, music and theatre; English language and literature in their historical and cultural contexts, from early myths to contemporary writers; analytical thinking, communication and creative expression; music appreciation, instrumental study (including music technology), voice and ensemble work; theatre as a tool for expression and language development across English and modern foreign languages; preparation for GCSE-level study.

Modern foreign languages. Spanish and Catalan in accordance with local requirements; practical, real-life language use; language applied within the local community; additional support for students new to the country.

Natural and life sciences. Integrated biology and geography; an ecological understanding of the world; hands-on scientific work on campus and off-site; learning experiences at the farm in Alella; computing within scientific contexts.

History of humanity. The full span of human history, including prehistory; history as a unifying framework across disciplines; critical and historical thinking; long-term human development and civilisation; preparation for GCSE history.

Development of civilisation. Physics and chemistry through their historical applications; how science has shaped human societies; technological progress and innovation; programming, electronics and applied technologies.

Art and design. Visual arts through historical study and creative production; perceptual skills and technical competence; personal expression and artistic voice; preparation for GCSE Art and Design.

Physical education. Team and individual sports; termly sport rotations at an external sports facility; physical health and wellbeing; teamwork, resilience and self-confidence; physical self-expression.