At Erindale Schools, the curriculum is not merely a pathway to academic promotion. It is an intentional formation tool designed to develop the whole child—intellectually, socially, emotionally, and practically. The school’s guiding philosophy, “Building Stars and Raising a
Total Child,” informs every aspect of our curriculum design and classroom practice.

Erindale Schools does not describe itself as a British curriculum school. Instead, it operates a blended curriculum uniquely tailored to the early childhood and primary years. This blend draws from:

• The Nigerian National Early Childhood Education Curriculum and NERDC Basic Education Curriculum – as the approved national framework.
• Adapted Montessori Methods – as the core pedagogical approach, particularly in the early years.
• Internationally Benchmarked Learning Outcomes – used not as a formal syllabus, but as a tool to raise the standard of what is expected at each developmental stage.The result is a curriculum that is both locally relevant and globally competitive, delivered
  through methods that respect the developmental needs of young children.

Early Years: Montessori as the Foundation
In the Creche, Preschool, and Nursery sections, Erindale adopts a Montessori-inspired approach, carefully adapted to the Nigerian context and to group-based classroom settings. This is not a rigid, orthodox Montessori model, but a thoughtful integration of Montessori
principles into a structured early years programme.

Key features include:

• Prepared Environments: Classrooms are arranged to encourage exploration, order, and independence. Learning materials are accessible, child-sized, and designed to invite hands-on engagement.
• Practical Life Activities: Children engage in tasks such as pouring, scooping, buttoning,
  folding, and sweeping. These activities develop fine motor control, concentration, orderliness, and a sense of capability.
• Sensorial Materials: Specially designed apparatus helps children classify, compare, and make sense of the world through their senses—laying the groundwork for mathematical and scientific thinking.
• Mixed Age Interaction: While formal classes are age-grouped, opportunities are created for older and younger children to interact, fostering peer learning, patience, and social confidence.

• Child Directed Learning: Within a structured daily routine, children are given the freedom of working at their own pace and repeating tasks until mastery is achieved. The teacher’s role is that of guide and observer, not lecturer. This foundation produces children who, by the end of Nursery, are not only academically ready for primary school but also curious, self-disciplined, independent, and comfortable in a learning environment.

Literacy and Numeracy: Strong Foundations, High Expectations

Erindale Schools place exceptional emphasis on early literacy and numeracy, recognizing these as the gateways to all future learning. The school does not wait until Year 1 to introduce formal reading and mathematics. Structured, playful, and systematic instruction begins in Nursery.

Literacy:

• A phonics-first approach is used, drawing from synthetic phonics principles. Children are taught letter sounds before letter names, and blending is introduced as soon as a small set of sounds is mastered.
• Reading schemes and levelled books are available in classrooms, allowing children to progress at individual paces.
• Oral language development is prioritized through storytelling, rhymes, show-and-tell, and guided conversation.
• By the end of Early Years, most children are blending and segmenting simple words. By Nursery 2, independent reading is the expected norm.
  Numeracy:
• Mathematical understanding is built through concrete, hands-on experiences. Children count real objects, sort shapes, compare quantities, and explore patterns before moving to abstract symbols.
• Montessori apparatus such as number rods, spindle boxes, and golden bead materials are used to teach place value, the decimal system, and the four operations in a tangible, accessible way.
• Problemsolving is introduced from the earliest stages—not as a separate challenge, but as a natural part of mathematical thinking.

Primary Years: Depth, Not Just Coverage
In the Primary school, Erindale Schools follow the Nigerian NERDC Basic Education Curriculum as its formal framework. However, the school rejects a minimalist interpretation of this curriculum. Schemes of work are enriched and benchmarked against international standards to ensure that Erindale learners are not merely covering topics, but genuinely mastering concepts. Enrichment strategies include:

• Curriculum Benchmarking: Teachers are trained to consult global standards when designing lesson objectives. This ensures that what is taught is at least at par with what is expected of children of the same age in high-performing education systems.
• Emphasis on Application and Reasoning: Assessments go beyond recall. Learners are regularly presented with unfamiliar problems, open-ended tasks, and real-world scenarios that require them to apply knowledge, explain their thinking, and justify their answers.
• Integrated Learning: Subjects are not taught in isolation. A Year 5 topic on climate, for example, may be explored through Basic science (weather patterns), Geography (climate zones), Numeracy (data collection and graphing), Literacy (persuasive writing
  on environmental issues), and Art (poster design).
• Continuous Assessment Redesigned: The school’s internal assessment model places less weight on endofterm examinations and more on ongoing observations, projects, quizzes, and practical demonstrations. This reduces examination anxiety and gives a
  fuller picture of each child’s abilities.

The Montessori Thread Continues
Although formal Montessori apparatus is phased out as children move through Primary, the Montessori philosophy continues to shape classroom culture:

• Classrooms remain resource-rich and interactive. Children are not confined to desks in rows. Learning corners, reference books, and group work areas are standard.
• Student agency is cultivated. Learners are encouraged to set personal goals, track their own progress, and reflect on their strengths and areas for improvement.
• Mixedability groupings are used strategically, allowing children to learn from and teach one another.
• Practical education is taken seriously. Subjects such as Home Economics, Basic Technology, Agricultural Science, and Creative Arts are not treated as minor or optional. Children learn to cook simple meals, sew, carry out basic repairs, tend plants, and work with their hands. A child who excels in Numeracy but cannot perform a simple practical task is, in Erindale Schools’ philosophy, only partially educated.

Character, Values, and the Total Child

Erindale Schools’ curriculum is also a vehicle for character formation. The school is intentionally Christian, and biblical instruction is part of the school day. However, the emphasis is on values lived, not just taught: Integrity, honesty, and responsibility are woven into classroom expectations and daily interactions.

• Leadership and communication skills are developed through class presentations, assembly hosting, and opportunities to lead small groups.
• Service and empathy are cultivated through projects, community engagement, and peer support systems.
• Creativity and self-expression are nurtured through music, drama, art, and storytelling. The school’s reporting system reflects this holistic vision. Report cards include detailed feedback on the affective and psychomotor domains—punctuality, neatness, teamwork,
  creativity, responsibility, and emotional regulation. Parents receive a portrait of the whole child, not merely a transcript of examination scores.

Why This Model Matters in Ikorodu
Ikorodu is home to a growing population of families who desire more than the traditional “chalkandtalk” model for their children. Erindale Schools’ curriculum fills a specific niche:

• It offers an alternative to low-cost private schools that deliver the Nigerian curriculum minimally, with large class sizes and limited teaching resources.
• It also offers an alternative to elite international schools that are geographically distant, fee-prohibitive, or culturally detached from the local community.By grounding itself in the Nigerian curriculum, delivering it through Montessori-inspired methods, and enriching it with international benchmarks, Erindale provides Ikorodu families with a genuinely local option that does not compromise on quality.

Conclusion
Erindale Schools’ curriculum is not a patchwork of borrowed programmes. It is a deliberately designed, internally coherent model built around a clear conviction: that the purpose of early and primary education is not merely to prepare children for the next class, but to form them as capable, confident, and caring human beings. The adapted Montessori approach provides the developmental sensitivity.

The Nigerian curriculum provides the regulatory anchor. International benchmarking provides the aspirational push. Together, they serve the school’s founding vision—Building Stars and Raising a Total Child—one classroom at a time.