Welcome to
Montessori
Bee Curious

The UK's only independently evaluated early years curriculum.

Our expertly crafted curriculum, backed by over 40 years of industry-leading experience, is designed to spark curiosity and give every child the best start in life.

Watch as your child thrives through our play-based approach, built on the latest research and global best practices.

Child crafting

Our expertly crafted curriculum, backed by over 40 years of industry-leading experience, is designed to spark curiosity and give every child the best start in life.

Watch as your child thrives through our play-based approach, built on the latest research and global best practices.

England Wales
White Curve

Introducing Montessori Bee Curious

Welcome to the home of playful learning

At Busy Bees, your child is at the heart of everything we do. Our new Montessori Bee Curious Curriculum brings together the trusted principles of the Montessori philosophy with our own unique Bee Curious Curriculum—creating a rich, modern learning experience designed to give your child the very best start in life.

Based on the pioneering work of Dr. Maria Montessori, our curriculum reflects the latest research in early childhood education. It aligns with the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) and builds on the strengths of our existing Bee Curious Curriculum, now enhanced with Montessori's child-led approach.

Ultimately, Montessori Bee Curious is a nurturing, engaging, and thoughtfully structured environment where every child's natural curiosity is encouraged, their independence supported, and their learning tailored to them, so they grow in confidence, capability, and joy.

How Montessori Principles Come to Life at Busy Bees

Montessori education is more than just a teaching method. It's a thoughtful, child-led approach that encourages curiosity, independence, and a lifelong love of learning.

In our Busy Bees Montessori nurseries, calm and carefully prepared spaces support every child to explore, create, and grow at their own pace.

The Unique Child

Every child is different. Montessori nurtures individuality, helping children build confidence, resilience, and a strong sense of self.

The Prepared Environment

Our Montessori classrooms are thoughtfully designed with accessible, purposeful materials that inspire choice, independence, and discovery.

The Work Cycle

Children enjoy uninterrupted time to focus, explore, and complete meaningful activities. This helps build concentration and a sense of achievement.

School Readiness

Montessori children gain key skills such as adaptability, problem-solving, and a love of learning. These help create a strong foundation for school and beyond.

Bee Curious has three key benefits that will ensure your child has an unrivalled head start in life

Expertly Developed

Experts - Meticulously crafted by industry-leading experts, led by Gill Jones MBE - Busy Bees Group Chief Quality Officer, and former Inspector and Deputy Director of Schools and Early Education for Ofsted.

Research

Built on Maria Montessori's original research while incorporating the latest child behavioural science research and findings from industry-leading experts, universities and government bodies.

Global best practice

Developed through collaboration with Busy Bees educators across the world to enrich the curriculum.

Experience

Using our 40 years of industry leading childcare experience, Bee Curious is a blueprint for playful learning.

Outcomes

Developed with a focus on increasingly important subjects such as maths, and those directly linked to better outcomes in life, such as vocabulary.

Sequenced progression

Developing a strong foundation of knowledge for a head start in school.

Playful learning

To develop a love of learning so that children are curious, confident and open-minded when they start school.

Quality educators

Upskilling all our educators to deliver this expertly-crafted curriculum to the highest standard, through playful teaching, across every centre.

Individual

Learning tailored to every individual child's pace, style and interests is central to the Montessori philosophy.

Guidance and support

Online guidance and stimulating activities available for all our educators. Top tips and activities to support your child's learning, available for our parents online and across our social media channels.

Explore the unique Areas of Discovery

The Montessori Bee Curious curriculum is meticulously crafted to support the growth of physical skills, language, cognitive abilities, and social interactions.

Each unique Area of Discovery is tailored to spark curiosity and foster comprehensive development in children.

Core Areas of Discovery

Practical Life

Practical Life is central to our Montessori Bee Curious approach. This area supports children's independence, coordination, concentration and confidence through real-life activities like pouring, sweeping, buttoning, and preparing food. These tasks help develop focus, fine motor skills, and a sense of responsibility, laying the foundation for all future learning.

Communication and Language

Communication and language development is woven into everything we do. Listening and attention, understanding, and speaking are nurtured through all activities. Each activity includes the key language used and any new vocabulary introduced.

Peace Education

Peace Education is at the heart of the Montessori Bee Curious curriculum, supporting children's personal, social, and emotional development as well as their communication skills.

Sensorial

Sensorial learning helps children make sense of the world through sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell. Carefully designed materials support skills like observation, comparison, and concentration while naturally introducing mathematical concepts and rich vocabulary.

Physical Development

Physical Development focuses on supporting children to build strength, coordination and fitness. Activities promote core strength, muscle control and fitness, offering a structured progression with daily physical involvement for children.

Enriching Areas of Discovery

The four remaining areas are specific areas of learning. Once children are in preschool, most will be ready to explore all seven areas of learning.

Literacy

Our Montessori Bee Curious literacy approach supports all EYFS learning goals while nurturing a love for stories, rhymes, and poems. Through engaging story times with repeated readings, rich vocabulary, and lively discussions, children build strong foundations for reading, writing, and comprehension.

Numeracy

Numeracy is introduced through our Sensorial curriculum, where children will grow in mathematical confidence as educators introduce them to a structured sequence of practical, knowledge-based tasks that gradually become more challenging. Children explore counting, number recognition, patterns, and place value.

Culture

Culture introduces children to geography, biology, history, science, art, and music, helping them explore the rich diversity of life and the natural world. Rooted in the idea of Cosmic Education, it emphasises the interconnectedness of all living and non-living things, fostering a sense of global citizenship, environmental responsibility, and care for the planet from an early age.

Expressive Arts

Selected examples of music, dance, art, and crafts are intentionally chosen to spark emotional, aural, and visual responses in children. By teaching key skills and practising techniques, children develop a deep appreciation for the arts.

Meet the Experts

All of our early years educators have been trained to support our children with the innovative Bee Curious curriculum, giving them the skills to deliver the highest standard of playful teaching across every Busy Bees centre.

Get to know us
Teaching vocabulary

The science that underpins Bee Curious

We believe that every child is a natural born explorer. Our progression model curriculum is designed to nurture children's innate curiosity.

Read more
The Science

Little Discoverers

Our 'Little Discoverers' progression model is designed to nurture children's innate curiosity.

Read more
Little Discoverers
School head start our promise to parents

Our promise to you

We prepare children for school by developing essential academic and social skills through engaging activities and interactive learning experiences.

Book a visit today and discover the benefits of our nurturing and stimulating environment for your child!