Wednesday, June 11, 2014
Happy Summer everyone!
Just a few notes;
I will be uploading some final pics within the next couple days. Please check out the Gallery!
I have created a summer tab on the website as well. So far I have placed a few things here. Please check it out.
I am happy to announce that we have hired Mrs. Julie Wingfield to take over my maternity leave beginning next year. Julie is a certified teacher with a great deal of experience working with younger aged children. She has been a long term guest teacher in TCAPS for a few years. She is also a speech and language teacher. Julie is finishing up a long-term Kindergarten placement at Central Grade School. We will be touching base over the summer so that she is prepared for the transition for next year.
It has been such a rewarding year working with your little ones. I have enjoyed every second of it! Thank you for all of the wonderful gifts, well wishes, hugs and signs of support! For those moving on, I wish you well. Have a safe and amazing summer!
___________________________________________________________________
Happy Summer everyone!
Just a few notes;
I will be uploading some final pics within the next couple days. Please check out the Gallery!
I have created a summer tab on the website as well. So far I have placed a few things here. Please check it out.
I am happy to announce that we have hired Mrs. Julie Wingfield to take over my maternity leave beginning next year. Julie is a certified teacher with a great deal of experience working with younger aged children. She has been a long term guest teacher in TCAPS for a few years. She is also a speech and language teacher. Julie is finishing up a long-term Kindergarten placement at Central Grade School. We will be touching base over the summer so that she is prepared for the transition for next year.
It has been such a rewarding year working with your little ones. I have enjoyed every second of it! Thank you for all of the wonderful gifts, well wishes, hugs and signs of support! For those moving on, I wish you well. Have a safe and amazing summer!
___________________________________________________________________
Friday June 6, 2014
This week we learned about the sense of taste! The students had a taste test with red and green apples. We found the red apples to be quiet sweet while the green apples were very sour. We took a classroom vote and more student liked the red apples over the green ones. We also tasted some other sweet and salty items.
Water Day will take place Monday, June 9th This is an annual, Primary, Fun in the Sun Day. Each of the primary classes will get an opportunity to spend an hour on the playground with some fun outdoor activities (water play, hoola hoops, water color painting, wall scrubbing, bubbles, squirt bottles, etc.). Please note the following items that your child will need to bring and/or wear to school on Monday June 9th.
· Bathing suit under clothes.
· A change of underwear
· Shoes that can get wet
· Towel labeled with your child’s name
· Sunscreen (apply liberally before school) We are not permitted to apply sunscreen at school.
We had a beautiful Stepping UP Ceremony Thursday afternoon. I am so proud of all of our students who are moving on next year and will miss each and every one of them!
Our final field trip will take place on Tuesday June 10th at Bower’s Harbor park. Please watch the weather closely and have your child dress in layers. Tennis shoes would also be a great choice for the day. Each child should pack their own lunch and bring a labeled water-bottle as well. Sunscreen should be applied liberally at home, before coming to school. I will be bringing a large watermelon for the class to snack on.
Water Day will take place Monday, June 9th This is an annual, Primary, Fun in the Sun Day. Each of the primary classes will get an opportunity to spend an hour on the playground with some fun outdoor activities (water play, hoola hoops, water color painting, wall scrubbing, bubbles, squirt bottles, etc.). Please note the following items that your child will need to bring and/or wear to school on Monday June 9th.
· Bathing suit under clothes.
· A change of underwear
· Shoes that can get wet
· Towel labeled with your child’s name
· Sunscreen (apply liberally before school) We are not permitted to apply sunscreen at school.
We had a beautiful Stepping UP Ceremony Thursday afternoon. I am so proud of all of our students who are moving on next year and will miss each and every one of them!
Our final field trip will take place on Tuesday June 10th at Bower’s Harbor park. Please watch the weather closely and have your child dress in layers. Tennis shoes would also be a great choice for the day. Each child should pack their own lunch and bring a labeled water-bottle as well. Sunscreen should be applied liberally at home, before coming to school. I will be bringing a large watermelon for the class to snack on.
Friday May 30, 2014
This week we learned about the senses of touch and hearing. The students were also able to spend a lot of time at our outdoor environment. Some new things this week have been sight word hopscotch, and rock scrubbing! Thank you for all of our rock donations. Each child has their own rock now!
Water Day will take place Monday, June 9th. This is an annual, Primary, Fun in the Sun Day. Each of the primary classes will get an opportunity to spend an hour on the playground with some fun outdoor activities (water play, hoola hoops, water color painting, wall scrubbing, bubbles, squirt bottles, etc.). Please note the following items that your child will need to bring and/or wear to school on Monday June 9th.
Please remember to turn in your field trip permission slips for our final field trip by next week Wednesday June 4th. Also, the cost of this trip is $5.00. We have had many slips turned in without $5.00 to cover the cost of the bus and park fee. If you would like to volunteer to face paint, bring bubbles, bring a kite, play a game, or anything else you would like to organize with small groups of students please let me know.
Stepping Up Ceremony: Next Thursday, June 5th, we will be having a special ceremony to recognize the kindergarten students "Stepping Up" to first grade in the fall. Our ceremony will begin promptly at 2:00. Families of these children are encouraged to attend. Our ceremony will last approximately 45 minutes with songs, memories and a special certificate. After the ceremony, we will enjoy a yummy ice cream social. If your child is stepping up and you haven't signed up for a donation to our Ice Cream Social we are still in need of one large tub of ice cream (Not vanilla or chocolate) and Whipped Cream and Cherries. Please let me know if you can help with either one of these donations. Thank you!
Thank you to each family who came in and helped with Garden Day today, our grounds look great! It was a beautiful day and the children experienced planting, raking, digging, watering and spreading wood chips. I will upload the pics this weekend!!
Scooter and Skate Day on Thirlby Field will take place on Thursday June 5th. Scooters and Skates are also a great way to travel to school that day, either from your own house, a friend's house, or you can join others from Mr. Clark's house on the corner of Maple Street and 12th Street starting at 8 A.M. Helmets are required for the morning ride and to enter Thirlby field to ride your scooter and skates or to borrow a friend's. Walk to School Wednesday and Bike to School Friday will also be that week.
All lost and found will now be in front of the office until schools ends or a little before then. Please stop in with your child if you are still missing some personal belongings.
Last day of school is June 11th. Dismissal is at 11:37.
Our last Snack for the year will be - Space, Stark, VanderVlucht and White. Thank you!
Water Day will take place Monday, June 9th. This is an annual, Primary, Fun in the Sun Day. Each of the primary classes will get an opportunity to spend an hour on the playground with some fun outdoor activities (water play, hoola hoops, water color painting, wall scrubbing, bubbles, squirt bottles, etc.). Please note the following items that your child will need to bring and/or wear to school on Monday June 9th.
- Bathing suit under clothes.
- A change of underwear
- Shoes that can get wet
- Towel labeled with your child’s name
- Sunscreen (apply liberally before school) We are not permitted to apply sunscreen at school.
Please remember to turn in your field trip permission slips for our final field trip by next week Wednesday June 4th. Also, the cost of this trip is $5.00. We have had many slips turned in without $5.00 to cover the cost of the bus and park fee. If you would like to volunteer to face paint, bring bubbles, bring a kite, play a game, or anything else you would like to organize with small groups of students please let me know.
Stepping Up Ceremony: Next Thursday, June 5th, we will be having a special ceremony to recognize the kindergarten students "Stepping Up" to first grade in the fall. Our ceremony will begin promptly at 2:00. Families of these children are encouraged to attend. Our ceremony will last approximately 45 minutes with songs, memories and a special certificate. After the ceremony, we will enjoy a yummy ice cream social. If your child is stepping up and you haven't signed up for a donation to our Ice Cream Social we are still in need of one large tub of ice cream (Not vanilla or chocolate) and Whipped Cream and Cherries. Please let me know if you can help with either one of these donations. Thank you!
Thank you to each family who came in and helped with Garden Day today, our grounds look great! It was a beautiful day and the children experienced planting, raking, digging, watering and spreading wood chips. I will upload the pics this weekend!!
Scooter and Skate Day on Thirlby Field will take place on Thursday June 5th. Scooters and Skates are also a great way to travel to school that day, either from your own house, a friend's house, or you can join others from Mr. Clark's house on the corner of Maple Street and 12th Street starting at 8 A.M. Helmets are required for the morning ride and to enter Thirlby field to ride your scooter and skates or to borrow a friend's. Walk to School Wednesday and Bike to School Friday will also be that week.
All lost and found will now be in front of the office until schools ends or a little before then. Please stop in with your child if you are still missing some personal belongings.
Last day of school is June 11th. Dismissal is at 11:37.
Our last Snack for the year will be - Space, Stark, VanderVlucht and White. Thank you!
__________________________________
Friday May 23, 2014
This week we have been learning about the sense of smell. The students have been matching bottles of fragrances according to smell, creating scented art projects and experiencing scented play dough. There are also various new works in the classroom related to our five senses.
Ms. Psaira has been able to begin our outdoor environment this week!!!! We will continue this until the end of the year. The students have been table scrubbing, easel scrubbing , raking, sweeping and listening to stories on a blanket.
We are asking that each student bring in a rock for a special art project. Please ask your child if they have one at school already. We went on a rock hunt and have had some classroom donations, so some children are no longer in need of a rock. The rock needs to have at least one smooth surface. I am asking that this rock be at least the size of your child’s hand from wrist to fingers. I have also asked students to bring in an extra one if they happen to find more than one. This way they can donate a rock to a classmate. I will let you know when we have collected enough rocks for the group. Thank you.
Kids in the Kitchen visited our classroom on Friday. This is a health and wellness initiative that teaches children to make healthy food choices. The students helped prepare a healthy classroom snack called Confetti Carrot Salad! A recipe for this snack has been sent home in folders for Friday!
Our final field trip will take place on Tuesday June 10th. We will go to Bower’s Harbor Park for the day! The information page and permission slip have been sent home. A hard copy has also been placed on our website under Documents. Students attending this field trip will stay all day at the park and arrive back at school at 2:30.
Thirlby Thursday - We will play baseball and tee ball on Thursday, May 29th. Mitts are useful, but not required to play since we will use a soft tennis ball for safety.
Scooter and Skate Day on Thirlby Field was rained out last week, and has been rescheduled for Thursday June 5th. Scooters and Skates are also a great way to travel to school that day, either from your own house, a friend's house, or you can join others from Mr. Clark's house on the corner of Maple Street and 12th Street starting at 8 A.M. Helmets are required for the morning ride and to enter Thirlby field to ride your scooter and skates or to borrow a friend's. Walk to School Wednesday and Bike to School Friday will also be that week.
Garden Day will take place next week Friday. Our classroom time will be from 12:00 to 1:00. Plese make sure if your child stays all day that they are dressed to be working in our gardens. You are encourage and welcome to come and volunteer for the day. We are hoping to be able to eat our lunch outside on this day as well. Please let me know in advance if you plan on eating a school lunch on this day.
Our final classroom book order has been placed. I will not be taking any more orders this year!
All lost and found will now be in front of the office until schools ends or a little before then. Please stop in with your child if you are still missing some personal belongings.
Next Weeks Snack - Larrea, Robinson, Schroeder and Burden. Thank you!
Ms. Psaira has been able to begin our outdoor environment this week!!!! We will continue this until the end of the year. The students have been table scrubbing, easel scrubbing , raking, sweeping and listening to stories on a blanket.
We are asking that each student bring in a rock for a special art project. Please ask your child if they have one at school already. We went on a rock hunt and have had some classroom donations, so some children are no longer in need of a rock. The rock needs to have at least one smooth surface. I am asking that this rock be at least the size of your child’s hand from wrist to fingers. I have also asked students to bring in an extra one if they happen to find more than one. This way they can donate a rock to a classmate. I will let you know when we have collected enough rocks for the group. Thank you.
Kids in the Kitchen visited our classroom on Friday. This is a health and wellness initiative that teaches children to make healthy food choices. The students helped prepare a healthy classroom snack called Confetti Carrot Salad! A recipe for this snack has been sent home in folders for Friday!
Our final field trip will take place on Tuesday June 10th. We will go to Bower’s Harbor Park for the day! The information page and permission slip have been sent home. A hard copy has also been placed on our website under Documents. Students attending this field trip will stay all day at the park and arrive back at school at 2:30.
Thirlby Thursday - We will play baseball and tee ball on Thursday, May 29th. Mitts are useful, but not required to play since we will use a soft tennis ball for safety.
Scooter and Skate Day on Thirlby Field was rained out last week, and has been rescheduled for Thursday June 5th. Scooters and Skates are also a great way to travel to school that day, either from your own house, a friend's house, or you can join others from Mr. Clark's house on the corner of Maple Street and 12th Street starting at 8 A.M. Helmets are required for the morning ride and to enter Thirlby field to ride your scooter and skates or to borrow a friend's. Walk to School Wednesday and Bike to School Friday will also be that week.
Garden Day will take place next week Friday. Our classroom time will be from 12:00 to 1:00. Plese make sure if your child stays all day that they are dressed to be working in our gardens. You are encourage and welcome to come and volunteer for the day. We are hoping to be able to eat our lunch outside on this day as well. Please let me know in advance if you plan on eating a school lunch on this day.
Our final classroom book order has been placed. I will not be taking any more orders this year!
All lost and found will now be in front of the office until schools ends or a little before then. Please stop in with your child if you are still missing some personal belongings.
Next Weeks Snack - Larrea, Robinson, Schroeder and Burden. Thank you!
May 16, 2014
This week we introduced the five senses. We focused on the sense of sight this week. We read books about sight including “I Spy,” books. The students have an "I Spy" work on the shelf. We went on a Nature Scavenger Hunt using our sight to find various things in nature! Our Sensorial Shelves have many works that lend themselves to the sense of sight, including, but not limited to, the Pink Tower, the Brown Stairs and the Red Rods. We used our sense of sight this week to find the differences between pyramids and prisms with our geometric solids.
We have been unable to attend Library last week Friday and this week Friday due to testing and Kindergarten round up. We will instead attend Library this coming Monday morning at 10:15.
Our classroom is once again in need of some small juice glasses. We had a donation earlier in the year and unfortunately those have all be broken one way or another. The students have been drinking out of small mugs this week. If you happen to be out at garage sales please remember this need.
We released our “Painted Lady Butterflies,” this week! Check the website for photos!
Tuesday morning we attended three Model T presentations by the Gilmore Museum. The first presentation discussed Thomas Edison and many of his inventions. We also learned about life before inventions like electricity. The second presentation was a short video clip about the Model T. Students were able to see what life was like during this era including the roadways and landscaping. For the last presentation the students were able to compare and contrast the Model T with a Ford vehicle of today. Wednesday afternoon the students were able to take a car ride in one of the cars. This was a very exciting two days. Students have been extending this learning with an invention work in class, dealing with things from the past and present!
Thirlby Thursday was canceled this week due to the weather. Please see below for next week Thursday’s agenda. Remember this is for all day students only.
· May 22nd will be Thirlby Thursday Science Edition where we will do outdoor science activities. Build a rocket out of a 2 liter plastic bottle at home to launch if you wish. Parents with an interest in science or an idea for an activity are encouraged to contact Bill Clark at 929-1709.
Our final Scholastic book order for this year will be sent in May 23rd so that we will have these materials before the end of the year!
All lost and found will now be in front of the office until school ends or a little before then. Please stop in with your child if you are still missing some personal belongings.
Check out the Upcoming Events tab for some important dates!
Move-a-thon - it's the last weekend to collect pledges. We will have a wrap up next week Friday!
Next Weeks Snack – Medler, Morgan, Murphy and Doty. Thank you!
We have been unable to attend Library last week Friday and this week Friday due to testing and Kindergarten round up. We will instead attend Library this coming Monday morning at 10:15.
Our classroom is once again in need of some small juice glasses. We had a donation earlier in the year and unfortunately those have all be broken one way or another. The students have been drinking out of small mugs this week. If you happen to be out at garage sales please remember this need.
We released our “Painted Lady Butterflies,” this week! Check the website for photos!
Tuesday morning we attended three Model T presentations by the Gilmore Museum. The first presentation discussed Thomas Edison and many of his inventions. We also learned about life before inventions like electricity. The second presentation was a short video clip about the Model T. Students were able to see what life was like during this era including the roadways and landscaping. For the last presentation the students were able to compare and contrast the Model T with a Ford vehicle of today. Wednesday afternoon the students were able to take a car ride in one of the cars. This was a very exciting two days. Students have been extending this learning with an invention work in class, dealing with things from the past and present!
Thirlby Thursday was canceled this week due to the weather. Please see below for next week Thursday’s agenda. Remember this is for all day students only.
· May 22nd will be Thirlby Thursday Science Edition where we will do outdoor science activities. Build a rocket out of a 2 liter plastic bottle at home to launch if you wish. Parents with an interest in science or an idea for an activity are encouraged to contact Bill Clark at 929-1709.
Our final Scholastic book order for this year will be sent in May 23rd so that we will have these materials before the end of the year!
All lost and found will now be in front of the office until school ends or a little before then. Please stop in with your child if you are still missing some personal belongings.
Check out the Upcoming Events tab for some important dates!
Move-a-thon - it's the last weekend to collect pledges. We will have a wrap up next week Friday!
Next Weeks Snack – Medler, Morgan, Murphy and Doty. Thank you!
Friday May 9, 2014
The students have been very excited about the fact that our caterpillars have now emerged as butterflies. We plan on letting them go next week, weather permitting! The next few weeks we will be learning about senses and participating in some outdoor environment activities.
I would like to wish you a very Happy Mother’s Day, Moms! You have been such a wonderful dedicated group this year and if shows in the respect and empathy I get to enjoy in your children each day.. I have learned very quickly that being a mom is the most rewarding, challenging, heart tugging job we will ever do! I have also learned that we have such a treasure in each other, to learn from, grow from and simply share our success and struggles with. Please know that I am always here for you if you have any specific need, or just want to share one of your many rewarding moments!
Yeah our class had the largest amount of donations for the March of Dimes!!!! We collected about 1/3 of the total donations for our school! Our class alone raised $223.14, so exciting! This means that we have been awarded a Pizza Party! I will let you know the date, as soon as I have this scheduled!
Thank you to each family who graciously donated a snack to our classroom during leftovers week. We made it through the week with some things to spare! We even got to make spinach, banana, strawberry smoothies one day, yummy!
I heard Thirlby Thursday this week was tons of fun. Please see below for the remainder of the month. Remember this is for all day students only.
· May 15th will be "wheeled toys day" so bring your skateboards, roller skates and scooters to ride around the track. No bikes this day, but please bring helmets and any other safety gear that you normally use.
· May 22nd will be Thirlby Thursday Science Edition where we will do outdoor science activities. Build a rocket out of a 2 liter plastic bottle at home to launch if you wish. Parents with an interest in science or an idea for an activity are encouraged to contact Bill Clark at 929-1709.
Our final Scholastic book order for this year will be sent in May 23rd so that we will have these materials before the end of the year!
Next Weeks Snack – Weadock, Guerin, Hickman and Mahlich. Thank you!
I would like to wish you a very Happy Mother’s Day, Moms! You have been such a wonderful dedicated group this year and if shows in the respect and empathy I get to enjoy in your children each day.. I have learned very quickly that being a mom is the most rewarding, challenging, heart tugging job we will ever do! I have also learned that we have such a treasure in each other, to learn from, grow from and simply share our success and struggles with. Please know that I am always here for you if you have any specific need, or just want to share one of your many rewarding moments!
Yeah our class had the largest amount of donations for the March of Dimes!!!! We collected about 1/3 of the total donations for our school! Our class alone raised $223.14, so exciting! This means that we have been awarded a Pizza Party! I will let you know the date, as soon as I have this scheduled!
Thank you to each family who graciously donated a snack to our classroom during leftovers week. We made it through the week with some things to spare! We even got to make spinach, banana, strawberry smoothies one day, yummy!
I heard Thirlby Thursday this week was tons of fun. Please see below for the remainder of the month. Remember this is for all day students only.
· May 15th will be "wheeled toys day" so bring your skateboards, roller skates and scooters to ride around the track. No bikes this day, but please bring helmets and any other safety gear that you normally use.
· May 22nd will be Thirlby Thursday Science Edition where we will do outdoor science activities. Build a rocket out of a 2 liter plastic bottle at home to launch if you wish. Parents with an interest in science or an idea for an activity are encouraged to contact Bill Clark at 929-1709.
Our final Scholastic book order for this year will be sent in May 23rd so that we will have these materials before the end of the year!
Next Weeks Snack – Weadock, Guerin, Hickman and Mahlich. Thank you!
Friday May 2, 2014
This week we have been discussing the life cycle of a butterfly. We have Painted Lady caterpillars in our classroom. The students took turns naming them! Almost all of them have formed their chrysalises and will soon become beautiful butterflies.
I appoligze for being out on Friday, I had a child care cancellation at the last minute. Ms. Cheryl Johnson took over. She has been in our classroom before. She will also be with our class next week Thursday as I will be traveling to Ann Arbor for some follow-up appointments for my son.
Ya, thanks to Ms. Liz we have photos uploaded on our website this week!!!! She has been trying to take more regular photos and it is my hope that from now until the end of the year I will have more to post!
Our weekly Thirlby Thursday during afternoon recess will have some special changes to it during the month of May due to national bicycling month. Our afternoon recess time is from 1:40 to 2:10.
• To celebrate Wednesday, May 7th is National Bike to School Day.
• On the following day, Thursday May 8th, the students are invited to bring their bikes from home or to borrow a friend's to ride on Thirlby Field and around the track to practice bicycling safely in groups. Your own helmet is required and parents are encouraged to attend.
• May 15th will be "wheeled toys day" so bring your skateboards, roller skates and scooters to ride around the track. No bikes this day, but please bring helmets and any other safety gear that you normally use.
• May 22nd will be Thirlby Thursday Science Edition where we will do outdoor science activities. Build a rocket out of a 2 liter plastic bottle at home to launch if you wish. Parents with an interest in science or an idea for an activity are encouraged to contact Bill Clark at 929-1709.
Thank you Kristi Weadock for your donation of this year’s Mother’s Day Craft! Owen’s mom visited our classroom a couple times this week working with the student on making a gift for our very special Mothers! She not only donated her time, but also the materials needed to make this gift! It will be a very special surprise for you next week!
Next weeks snack is leftovers, however we seem to be very low on supplies since Spring Break. I am asking for any donations to get us through the week, popcorn, pretzels, blocks of cheese, bread, peanut butter, jelly, crackers, etc. anything will be greatly appreciated. Ms. Liz is also bringing in her blender all week for smoothies. If you would like to donate, yogurt, or any sort of fruit or vegetable we could get pretty creative with smoothies variations!
This month’s book order has been sent. Our final Scholastic book order for this year will be sent in May 23rd so that we will have these materials before the end of the year!
Have a great weekend!
I appoligze for being out on Friday, I had a child care cancellation at the last minute. Ms. Cheryl Johnson took over. She has been in our classroom before. She will also be with our class next week Thursday as I will be traveling to Ann Arbor for some follow-up appointments for my son.
Ya, thanks to Ms. Liz we have photos uploaded on our website this week!!!! She has been trying to take more regular photos and it is my hope that from now until the end of the year I will have more to post!
Our weekly Thirlby Thursday during afternoon recess will have some special changes to it during the month of May due to national bicycling month. Our afternoon recess time is from 1:40 to 2:10.
• To celebrate Wednesday, May 7th is National Bike to School Day.
• On the following day, Thursday May 8th, the students are invited to bring their bikes from home or to borrow a friend's to ride on Thirlby Field and around the track to practice bicycling safely in groups. Your own helmet is required and parents are encouraged to attend.
• May 15th will be "wheeled toys day" so bring your skateboards, roller skates and scooters to ride around the track. No bikes this day, but please bring helmets and any other safety gear that you normally use.
• May 22nd will be Thirlby Thursday Science Edition where we will do outdoor science activities. Build a rocket out of a 2 liter plastic bottle at home to launch if you wish. Parents with an interest in science or an idea for an activity are encouraged to contact Bill Clark at 929-1709.
Thank you Kristi Weadock for your donation of this year’s Mother’s Day Craft! Owen’s mom visited our classroom a couple times this week working with the student on making a gift for our very special Mothers! She not only donated her time, but also the materials needed to make this gift! It will be a very special surprise for you next week!
Next weeks snack is leftovers, however we seem to be very low on supplies since Spring Break. I am asking for any donations to get us through the week, popcorn, pretzels, blocks of cheese, bread, peanut butter, jelly, crackers, etc. anything will be greatly appreciated. Ms. Liz is also bringing in her blender all week for smoothies. If you would like to donate, yogurt, or any sort of fruit or vegetable we could get pretty creative with smoothies variations!
This month’s book order has been sent. Our final Scholastic book order for this year will be sent in May 23rd so that we will have these materials before the end of the year!
Have a great weekend!
Friday April 25, 2014
The students have been celebrating Earth Day all week. In Art they are making a Spring Mural and painting an Earth project to decorate our hallways! In Geography students are making continent maps. In Science we have been learning about birds and their body parts. In Math the students are working on Earth Day grids. In Sensorial the students are learning about the difference between an ovoid and an ellipsoid. Our kindergartners continue to work on their plant journals and small moments for Writers Workshop. I’m still waiting patiently on the weather so that we may get into our gardens and do some service projects such as cleaning our outside environment.
The beginning of next week is your last chance to donate to the March of Dimes program. The classroom who collects the most money will receive a pizza party! So far we have collected quiet a bit of money. We could easily be in the running for classroom winner!
The Scholastic Book Fair is going on in our Library from Thursday April 25th to Friday May 2nd .
Our final snack menu for the year has gone home with your child in their folders. It has also been posted on our website!
Annual Stepping Up Ceremony ~ Our Kindergarten students will celebrate their Stepping Up to First Grade on Thursday June 5th at 2:00 in our classroom. Parents, siblings and other family members are encouraged to attend! More information will be provided to you if your child will be participating in this event! Just remember to Save The Date!
Move-a-Thon is next Friday!!! Please keep getting pledges. Your child may dress as any animal that day. We are looking for a few more volunteers to make this year a huge success. If you have an hour or the whole morning, we can use you in any capacity. Siblings are welcomed to join. Please contact Jen Rhodes the volunteer coordinator at 620-0240. She can work with your schedule and the running schedule to place you in a position that works for you! I will let you know our running time as soon as I have that information!
The Beach Bums Reading Program posters are due April 30th! Please make sure they are turned in by Wednesday. Remember even if it is not complete, prizes are awarded for 5, 10 and 15 books read as well so turn in what you have. If you have misplaced your poster, you can write the titles read on a piece of paper. Please remember to add your child’s name and Beach Bum Reading Program to this sheet of paper.
This month’s book order has been sent. Our final Scholastic book order for this year will be sent in May 23rd so that we will have these materials before the end of the year!
Next Weeks Snack –Andrews, Baty, Cole, Jonas. Thank you!
The beginning of next week is your last chance to donate to the March of Dimes program. The classroom who collects the most money will receive a pizza party! So far we have collected quiet a bit of money. We could easily be in the running for classroom winner!
The Scholastic Book Fair is going on in our Library from Thursday April 25th to Friday May 2nd .
Our final snack menu for the year has gone home with your child in their folders. It has also been posted on our website!
Annual Stepping Up Ceremony ~ Our Kindergarten students will celebrate their Stepping Up to First Grade on Thursday June 5th at 2:00 in our classroom. Parents, siblings and other family members are encouraged to attend! More information will be provided to you if your child will be participating in this event! Just remember to Save The Date!
Move-a-Thon is next Friday!!! Please keep getting pledges. Your child may dress as any animal that day. We are looking for a few more volunteers to make this year a huge success. If you have an hour or the whole morning, we can use you in any capacity. Siblings are welcomed to join. Please contact Jen Rhodes the volunteer coordinator at 620-0240. She can work with your schedule and the running schedule to place you in a position that works for you! I will let you know our running time as soon as I have that information!
The Beach Bums Reading Program posters are due April 30th! Please make sure they are turned in by Wednesday. Remember even if it is not complete, prizes are awarded for 5, 10 and 15 books read as well so turn in what you have. If you have misplaced your poster, you can write the titles read on a piece of paper. Please remember to add your child’s name and Beach Bum Reading Program to this sheet of paper.
This month’s book order has been sent. Our final Scholastic book order for this year will be sent in May 23rd so that we will have these materials before the end of the year!
Next Weeks Snack –Andrews, Baty, Cole, Jonas. Thank you!
Friday April 18, 2014
With Earth Day coming up next week, we have continued to focus on taking care of our plants. I would love to start transferring some of these thing into our garden within the next couple of weeks. Please let me know if you would like to help our children begin to plant in our garden.
Thank you to the Larrea and Hickman families for the band-aid donations!
The students continue to amaze me with the generosity of their contributions to our current March of Dimes program. Only a couple more weeks left!!!!
Keep reading for your Beach Bums Reading Program. The final date for these posters to be returned is April 30th.
Thank you for filling out my teacher survey for this year. Your feedback is very important to me. I also appreciate the time each of you took to help support our classroom for the future.
Our next Scholastic book order will be sent in Friday April 25th.
Next Weeks Snack –Space, Stark, VanderVulcht and White. Thank you!
Thank you to the Larrea and Hickman families for the band-aid donations!
The students continue to amaze me with the generosity of their contributions to our current March of Dimes program. Only a couple more weeks left!!!!
Keep reading for your Beach Bums Reading Program. The final date for these posters to be returned is April 30th.
Thank you for filling out my teacher survey for this year. Your feedback is very important to me. I also appreciate the time each of you took to help support our classroom for the future.
Our next Scholastic book order will be sent in Friday April 25th.
Next Weeks Snack –Space, Stark, VanderVulcht and White. Thank you!
Friday April 11, 2014
This week and this month we will continue to focus on plants and things that grow. We are taking care of our flowers and vegetables we planted before break. We are making sure they get plenty of sunlight and water (but not too much). We are pruning as needed. The kindergartners have also started a plant journal to document the changes their plant is making. We are doing lessons in science with plant parts and seeds. We have many new works out in practical life and sensorial focusing on spring and Easter Eggs!
I am very happy to say that we officially have a new part-time assistant with us every morning. Her name is Liz Yarch. Liz has been with our classroom all week and we just adore her! She wears many hats in and outside of our school. She is, most importantly , a mother of a little girl and a little boy. Her daughter attends our school and her son will be attending next year. She is our PTO President. She works in the afternoons in the office as an administrative assistant and was previously an assistant to a child in another classroom. Please welcome Liz and Psaira to our classroom environment when you get a chance! We are so lucky to have them both!!!
We are in need of band-aids. Tis the season for cuts and scrapes.
During April, the month of the young child, we will be collecting spare change to go to the March of Dimes program. The classroom who collects the most will receive a pizza party! Please have your child bring in their spare change in a plastic baggie labeled March of Dimes, if contributing. I want to make sure they have checked with you before bringing in any contributions.
Some of our Beach Bums Reading Program Posters have already started coming in! When completed you many turn them in at any time. The final date for these posters to be returned is April 30th.
In the near future I will be inviting all families via email to complete an on-line survey. The answers to these questions will help me service your family better as well as become a part of my final teacher evaluation for this year. I would like to thank you in advance for your help and support in completing this survey.
Our Kindergarten students attended a personal safety lesson on Thursday afternoon. During this lesson the children were taught not to go anywhere with a stranger. One thing that was taught to the class was that families should have a magic password, like their teddy bear’s name. If a stranger asks a child for help, or tells a child to come with them the child could ask the stranger what the “Magic Password” is. If a person doesn't know the magic password they should not go with them. It is a great idea to create a family “magic password.” Another important point to this lesson, if a child was approached by a stranger the students were taught to, “Say No, Get Away, Tell Someone and Yell if you need to.”
Our next Scholastic book order will be sent in Friday April 25th.
Next Weeks Snack –Larrea, Robinson, Schroeder, Burden, Thank you!
I am very happy to say that we officially have a new part-time assistant with us every morning. Her name is Liz Yarch. Liz has been with our classroom all week and we just adore her! She wears many hats in and outside of our school. She is, most importantly , a mother of a little girl and a little boy. Her daughter attends our school and her son will be attending next year. She is our PTO President. She works in the afternoons in the office as an administrative assistant and was previously an assistant to a child in another classroom. Please welcome Liz and Psaira to our classroom environment when you get a chance! We are so lucky to have them both!!!
We are in need of band-aids. Tis the season for cuts and scrapes.
During April, the month of the young child, we will be collecting spare change to go to the March of Dimes program. The classroom who collects the most will receive a pizza party! Please have your child bring in their spare change in a plastic baggie labeled March of Dimes, if contributing. I want to make sure they have checked with you before bringing in any contributions.
Some of our Beach Bums Reading Program Posters have already started coming in! When completed you many turn them in at any time. The final date for these posters to be returned is April 30th.
In the near future I will be inviting all families via email to complete an on-line survey. The answers to these questions will help me service your family better as well as become a part of my final teacher evaluation for this year. I would like to thank you in advance for your help and support in completing this survey.
Our Kindergarten students attended a personal safety lesson on Thursday afternoon. During this lesson the children were taught not to go anywhere with a stranger. One thing that was taught to the class was that families should have a magic password, like their teddy bear’s name. If a stranger asks a child for help, or tells a child to come with them the child could ask the stranger what the “Magic Password” is. If a person doesn't know the magic password they should not go with them. It is a great idea to create a family “magic password.” Another important point to this lesson, if a child was approached by a stranger the students were taught to, “Say No, Get Away, Tell Someone and Yell if you need to.”
Our next Scholastic book order will be sent in Friday April 25th.
Next Weeks Snack –Larrea, Robinson, Schroeder, Burden, Thank you!
Thursday March 27, 2014
Happy Spring Break to each and every one of you. May you enjoy yourself and your time with your wonderful children wherever you may be spending this next week.
I would like to introduce one of our new assistants. Yes I did say one. It really does take a lot to fill Ms. Shelly’s shoes ;-)! As of Monday Ms. Psaira (Sara) Baty, Lula’s mom, will be in our classroom. She will be our new full time, all day every day assistant! I am so happy to have her joining our classroom as she has experience working in Ms. Flaherty’s and Mrs. Larrea’s classrooms. She brings a wealth of knowledge with her. She has been in our classroom as a substitute assistant as well as to just observe and I feel confident that this will be a great fit for your children. There will also be another part-time morning position posted. I have requested another assistant for the morning as well. Until we find a person for this spot I hope to have a substitute assistant in our classroom each morning! Thank you again for your patience and support during this transition. I have had many parents volunteer there time for the week we return from spring break if needed. You are an amazing team of parents. I do feel very confident that our classroom will continue to run as usual and as always please contact me if you have any questions or concerns.
During April, the month of the young child, we will be collecting spare change to go to the March of Dimes program. The classroom who collects the most money will receive a pizza party! Please have your child bring in their spare change in a plastic baggie labeled March of Dimes, if contributing. I want to make sure they have checked with you before bring in any contributions.
Our Beach Bums Reading Program has began. Please return your child's poster no later than April 30th for some amazing prizes!
Young People’s Theater ~ This is a special Kindergarten Only activity before we say goodbye at the end of this year. On the afternoon of April 14th will be walking to central grade school to watch the play, “Peter Pan.” Please turn in your permission slip and donation no later than Wednesday April 9th, thank you.
Kindergarten families please sign and return your report card envelopes to class as soon as possible.
Our next Scholastic book order will be sent in Friday April 25th.
Next Weeks Snack –Medler, Morgan, Murphy and Doty!
I would like to introduce one of our new assistants. Yes I did say one. It really does take a lot to fill Ms. Shelly’s shoes ;-)! As of Monday Ms. Psaira (Sara) Baty, Lula’s mom, will be in our classroom. She will be our new full time, all day every day assistant! I am so happy to have her joining our classroom as she has experience working in Ms. Flaherty’s and Mrs. Larrea’s classrooms. She brings a wealth of knowledge with her. She has been in our classroom as a substitute assistant as well as to just observe and I feel confident that this will be a great fit for your children. There will also be another part-time morning position posted. I have requested another assistant for the morning as well. Until we find a person for this spot I hope to have a substitute assistant in our classroom each morning! Thank you again for your patience and support during this transition. I have had many parents volunteer there time for the week we return from spring break if needed. You are an amazing team of parents. I do feel very confident that our classroom will continue to run as usual and as always please contact me if you have any questions or concerns.
During April, the month of the young child, we will be collecting spare change to go to the March of Dimes program. The classroom who collects the most money will receive a pizza party! Please have your child bring in their spare change in a plastic baggie labeled March of Dimes, if contributing. I want to make sure they have checked with you before bring in any contributions.
Our Beach Bums Reading Program has began. Please return your child's poster no later than April 30th for some amazing prizes!
Young People’s Theater ~ This is a special Kindergarten Only activity before we say goodbye at the end of this year. On the afternoon of April 14th will be walking to central grade school to watch the play, “Peter Pan.” Please turn in your permission slip and donation no later than Wednesday April 9th, thank you.
Kindergarten families please sign and return your report card envelopes to class as soon as possible.
Our next Scholastic book order will be sent in Friday April 25th.
Next Weeks Snack –Medler, Morgan, Murphy and Doty!
Friday March 21, 2014
This week we welcomed the first day of Spring by planting vegetable and flower seeds that we will eventually transfer into our classroom garden as soon as the weather really warms up.
Report cards went home on Friday. Kindergarten families please sign and return your envelopes to class as soon as possible.
Our next Scholastic book order will be sent in Thursday March 27th
Next Weeks Snack –Leftovers, Thank you!
Report cards went home on Friday. Kindergarten families please sign and return your envelopes to class as soon as possible.
Our next Scholastic book order will be sent in Thursday March 27th
Next Weeks Snack –Leftovers, Thank you!
Friday March 7, 2014
We continue to study Australia, decorating boomerangs and didgeridoos. The didgeridoos and looking ‘So Cool!’ We made lamingtons for snack one morning. Lamingtons are a popular Australian dessert. It consists of squares of sponge cake coated first in a layer of chocolate sauce, then wrapped in coconut. We will continue with more research on the the Great Barrier Reef next week.
Next Tuesday, March 11th our afternoon students will have an opportunity to go ice-skating on the rink behind Thirlby Field during the Primary recess. A school parent has volunteered his time to chaperone this 30-minute activity from 1:40 to 2:10. If your child would like to participate they MUST have their own skates and helmet. Ms. Shelly will be helping out on the rink as well as one parent volunteer from our room. If you would like to come skate for half an hour you are more than welcome to join the group!
Due to a snow (cold) day our Kindergarten Information Night will now be Tuesday March 18th from 6:00 to 7:00 pm. This is mainly for new families interested in our program with a kindergarten aged child for next year’s enrollment. If you have questions about the KDG curriculum you are welcome to attend. Please spread the word to family, friends and neighbor who may be interested!
Our next Scholastic book order is will be sent in Thursday March 27th!
We will be headed to Water’s Edge Gym the morning of Monday March 10th. Thank you for completing all of the needed information in such a short period of time. Remember if you would like to join us you may follow the bus or meet us there. We plan on leaving the school at 8:30 with an arrival time of 8:45. Please remember to have your child dress in gym attire for this event.
I have posted the schedule for parent teacher conferences on our website under documents. Please check this schedule for your specific day and time for conferences and let me know as soon as possible if you may need to make a change to the schedule. It was so great to meet with the first round of families Thursday evening!
Many parents have inquired about Intent To Enroll Forms for next year’s enrollment. It looks like I will be sending these home during conferences and Friday afternoon. Please fill these out as soon as possible and return them to school so that your child is guaranteed placement for next year. Directions state that if your are enrolling in the Toddler or Preschool program to immediately submit this form plus the registration fee of $50.00 and the first weeks tuition in order to hold your position on the enrollment roster.
Next Weeks Snack –Andrews, Baty, Cole and Jonas, Thank you!
Next Tuesday, March 11th our afternoon students will have an opportunity to go ice-skating on the rink behind Thirlby Field during the Primary recess. A school parent has volunteered his time to chaperone this 30-minute activity from 1:40 to 2:10. If your child would like to participate they MUST have their own skates and helmet. Ms. Shelly will be helping out on the rink as well as one parent volunteer from our room. If you would like to come skate for half an hour you are more than welcome to join the group!
Due to a snow (cold) day our Kindergarten Information Night will now be Tuesday March 18th from 6:00 to 7:00 pm. This is mainly for new families interested in our program with a kindergarten aged child for next year’s enrollment. If you have questions about the KDG curriculum you are welcome to attend. Please spread the word to family, friends and neighbor who may be interested!
Our next Scholastic book order is will be sent in Thursday March 27th!
We will be headed to Water’s Edge Gym the morning of Monday March 10th. Thank you for completing all of the needed information in such a short period of time. Remember if you would like to join us you may follow the bus or meet us there. We plan on leaving the school at 8:30 with an arrival time of 8:45. Please remember to have your child dress in gym attire for this event.
I have posted the schedule for parent teacher conferences on our website under documents. Please check this schedule for your specific day and time for conferences and let me know as soon as possible if you may need to make a change to the schedule. It was so great to meet with the first round of families Thursday evening!
Many parents have inquired about Intent To Enroll Forms for next year’s enrollment. It looks like I will be sending these home during conferences and Friday afternoon. Please fill these out as soon as possible and return them to school so that your child is guaranteed placement for next year. Directions state that if your are enrolling in the Toddler or Preschool program to immediately submit this form plus the registration fee of $50.00 and the first weeks tuition in order to hold your position on the enrollment roster.
Next Weeks Snack –Andrews, Baty, Cole and Jonas, Thank you!
Friday February 28, 2014
On Wednesday February 26th Ms. Shelly’s friend Mr. Tony visited our classroom with his very own didgeridoo! Mrs. Larrea’s class joined us for this presentation. He talked to the class about how this instrument is made and how it may actually be the oldest instrument ever created. He was able to play his didgeridoo for the group as well. It makes many different sounds depending on how tight or loose the player's lips are when blowing through the tube. The class loved when he made is sound like an elephant trumpet! We also started making our very own didgeridoos! I have posted a few more of these photos in the Gallery!
This week in our peace lessons we talked again about encouraging others. We also revisited the book, “Have You Filled A Bucket Today!” The students have been working hard on trying to fill each others buckets with smiles, kind words and kind acts! It has been so fulfilling to see these amazing little ones show such acts of kindness.
Ms. Shelly conducted a very interesting science experiment with the class on Tuesday! She dissected an owl pellet for the students to observe. When owls catch and eat their small pray their bodies are unable to digest the fur, bones, teeth and feathers of these animals. These extra parts are formed into a tight pellet inside the owl and are then later spit up. Our owl pellet contained many bones from what we believe to be a brown rat. Ms. Shelly is graciously taking the bones home to sterilize them so that the students may further analyze their findings!
Water’s Edge Gymnastic’s Field Trip is schedule for the morning of Monday March 10th. The TCAPS permission slip and the Water’s Edge waiver have both been sent home. They are also on our website under documents. Please have both forms completed and turned in by Next week Thursday March 6th. Wow, is it really March already!
I have posted the schedule for parent teacher conferences on our website under documents. Please check this schedule for your specific day and time for conferences as our first day is this Thursday. Let me know as soon as possible if you may need to make a change to the schedule. Please do not assume that a space is available because it is currently open on the schedule posted on our website. Sometimes I make changes internally and do not post the updates as changes can occur often. If you contact me I will help meet you and your families needs.
Next Weeks Snack –Space, Stark, VanderVlucht and White! Thank you!
I have posted the schedule for parent teacher conferences on our website under documents. Please check this schedule for your specific day and time for conferences as our first day is this Thursday. Let me know as soon as possible if you may need to make a change to the schedule. Please do not assume that a space is available because it is currently open on the schedule posted on our website. Sometimes I make changes internally and do not post the updates as changes can occur often. If you contact me I will help meet you and your families needs.
Next Weeks Snack –Space, Stark, VanderVlucht and White! Thank you!
Friday February 21, 2014
This week in our Australia lessons the students have begun working on Australian Aborigine Dot Art. We have some hanging in the hallways. We have also been learning some of the language of this continent.
Hello – G’Day
Countryside – Bush
Friend – Mate
Kangaroo – Roo
To Complain - grizzle
I have posted a few 100s Day photos to our Gallery. I know how much you love to see photos of your children at work! Please remember, I would love some help with this. If you happen to have a free minute, please stop in, grab my camera, and take some photos for us that I can place on the website. This would be a great help!
Art project needs – Please keep sending in the inside tubes from paper towel rolls and empty cereal boxes. We will be making boomerangs and didgeridoos as soon as we have enough materials. Thank you for your help and support.
Parent Readers and Gym Volunteers – I have uploaded the most recent Google documents for these two schedules under the Documents Tab on our website. We very much appreciate the generous donation of your time for these activities. You really do make up an amazing group of parents this year! It is my hope that by having easy access to these schedules you many not need further reminders of your assigned days, times and activities. It’s unbelievable that we have these lists just about completed up until the end of the school year. What a commitment. As always if you cannot make your scheduled activity, no worries, we just appreciate it when you are able to be here. Thank you.
We have an exciting field trip planned to Water’s Edge Gymnastic’s the morning of Monday, March 10th. I will be sending home permission slips shortly as well as a release form from the gym. We will be using PTO funds to pay for this trip so no money will need to be collected. Thank you PTO!
If you walk into the building from the side doors on 13th street you will see the amazing Primary Giving Tree. You will find leaves on the tree that have items we are in need of. If you are so inclined you can take the leaf off the tree and bring in the specific item. This will be used by all five Montessori classrooms so please look for my name on the leaves for things we are specifically in need of.
LAST CALL Please sign up for Parent Teacher Conferences. Sign up sheets are currently in my blue classroom folder in the main foyer. This Wednesday February 26th will be the last day to sign up. I plan to have a final schedule for you this coming Friday! Thank you.
Next Weeks Snack – Leftovers, Thank you!
Please read below for another parent education piece on the Montessori philosophy.
Normalization
According to Dr. Montessori, children that are free to make constructive choices develop positive personality characteristics. When a child is “normalized” he in turn makes good choices. Good choices in terms of work habits, concentration, grace and courtesy, care for their environment and more. A “normalized” child will independently choose their work and be able to concentrate on their work for long periods of time.
A Montessori teacher merely needs to set the child’s developmental energy free. One must understand what “freedom” means. It is a guided freedom, freedom within limits. Educational freedom, in a Montessori environment, means that the child is able to pursue their creative energy, which is the urge of life toward the development of the individual. Children will naturally use their energy toward learning if they are allowed the freedom to follow their curiosities.
The child’s ability and desire to concentrate and learn is strongly related to “normalization.” The child must be allowed the freedom to develop their natural curiosities to become truly “normalized.” Over leading, directing or intervening by the teacher will hinder the child and thus the normalized classroom may never be achieved.
Hello – G’Day
Countryside – Bush
Friend – Mate
Kangaroo – Roo
To Complain - grizzle
I have posted a few 100s Day photos to our Gallery. I know how much you love to see photos of your children at work! Please remember, I would love some help with this. If you happen to have a free minute, please stop in, grab my camera, and take some photos for us that I can place on the website. This would be a great help!
Art project needs – Please keep sending in the inside tubes from paper towel rolls and empty cereal boxes. We will be making boomerangs and didgeridoos as soon as we have enough materials. Thank you for your help and support.
Parent Readers and Gym Volunteers – I have uploaded the most recent Google documents for these two schedules under the Documents Tab on our website. We very much appreciate the generous donation of your time for these activities. You really do make up an amazing group of parents this year! It is my hope that by having easy access to these schedules you many not need further reminders of your assigned days, times and activities. It’s unbelievable that we have these lists just about completed up until the end of the school year. What a commitment. As always if you cannot make your scheduled activity, no worries, we just appreciate it when you are able to be here. Thank you.
We have an exciting field trip planned to Water’s Edge Gymnastic’s the morning of Monday, March 10th. I will be sending home permission slips shortly as well as a release form from the gym. We will be using PTO funds to pay for this trip so no money will need to be collected. Thank you PTO!
If you walk into the building from the side doors on 13th street you will see the amazing Primary Giving Tree. You will find leaves on the tree that have items we are in need of. If you are so inclined you can take the leaf off the tree and bring in the specific item. This will be used by all five Montessori classrooms so please look for my name on the leaves for things we are specifically in need of.
LAST CALL Please sign up for Parent Teacher Conferences. Sign up sheets are currently in my blue classroom folder in the main foyer. This Wednesday February 26th will be the last day to sign up. I plan to have a final schedule for you this coming Friday! Thank you.
Next Weeks Snack – Leftovers, Thank you!
Please read below for another parent education piece on the Montessori philosophy.
Normalization
According to Dr. Montessori, children that are free to make constructive choices develop positive personality characteristics. When a child is “normalized” he in turn makes good choices. Good choices in terms of work habits, concentration, grace and courtesy, care for their environment and more. A “normalized” child will independently choose their work and be able to concentrate on their work for long periods of time.
A Montessori teacher merely needs to set the child’s developmental energy free. One must understand what “freedom” means. It is a guided freedom, freedom within limits. Educational freedom, in a Montessori environment, means that the child is able to pursue their creative energy, which is the urge of life toward the development of the individual. Children will naturally use their energy toward learning if they are allowed the freedom to follow their curiosities.
The child’s ability and desire to concentrate and learn is strongly related to “normalization.” The child must be allowed the freedom to develop their natural curiosities to become truly “normalized.” Over leading, directing or intervening by the teacher will hinder the child and thus the normalized classroom may never be achieved.
Friday February 14, 2014
Valentines Day!!! – Wow, I just feel so blessed to work with so many involved and generous families! The families that volunteered and donated for this party did such an amazing job, and best of all, the students had a blast! Thank you from the bottom of my heart to all involved, as I have said before, I simply could not do these things without your help and support! The students had “Pink Love Potion Number 9” smoothies and fruits, veggies and cheese for a snack. They listened to a Valentine’s Day story and made hugs for a craft. We will be sending home another Valentines Day craft completed at the party that I know you will love early next week! The students also participated in music and movement activities complete with prizes! HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!
Australia – We have just begun a cultural study on Australia. We have lessons planned around Aboriginal art, musical instruments, animals, games, language, food, land-forms and many other things dealing with this amazing continent. If you have any first hand knowledge of Australia please email me, the students love when parents and families come in to share their learning experiences.
Art project needs – The inside cardboard tubing of paper towel rolls and empyy cereal boxes.
Math Night ~ Don’t forget about Math Night February 18th. Soup and salad will be served at 5:00. We will have a brief PTO meeting from 6:00 to 6:30 and Math Night will begin at 6:30.
100 Day ~ We will be celebrating the 100th day of school on Thursday February 20th! For this day students are encouraged to bring in a collection of 100 things. It might be 100 buttons, pasta noodles, toy cars, cotton balls etc.
Please sign up for Parent Teacher Conferences. Sign up sheets are currently in my blue classroom folder in the main foyer. So far it looks like we have about half the class signed up! The last day to sign up will be February 26th so that I may prepare a final schedule. Thank you.
Next Weeks Snack – Larrea, Robinson, Schroeder, Burden, Thank you!
Friday February 7, 2014
WOW our first full week of school this year! It has just been so nice to have the consistency back! Pajama Day and Pancake morning was so much fun! We did reach our classroom goal of 30 pajamas! Thank you so much to everyone who donated to this great cause. The students had such an amazing time Friday morning. They ate pancakes prepared by our volunteer chefs and then had some free friend time to work with their buddies in the classroom. Thank you to our Chefs and each family who donated supplies for the day. We would never have been able to do it without your generosity. The morning concluded with a very impromptu play. The older students, under the guidance of Ms. Shelly, performed “The Gingerbread Man” for our younger students. Friday morning we had a lot of parents asking what time the play was??? Upon request, Ms. Shelly and I may plan a date later in the year to perform for a bigger audience if time permits.
Math Night ~ Is scheduled for Tuesday February 18th beginning first with a PTO meeting at 5:00. I find that many parents are very curious about the math materials that are being presented to your children. They ARE very interesting! Please join us this evening for math lessons for our parents so that you main gain a greater awareness of what you child is experiencing here in our Montessori classrooms!!!
Valentine’s Day Celebration ~ is scheduled for February 14th from 8:30 to 10:00. If your child would like to bring in Valentine’s Day Cards please have them simply sign their name to 20 cards. This will help make the passing out process run much more smoothly!
Don’t forget, Preschool Raffle Ticket Sales ended Friday February 7th. Please return these materials to school as soon as possible.
100 Day ~ This year we have been counting the number of days in school. As long as there are no snow-days in the near future, Thursday February 20th will be our 100th Day of school! I will keep you posted! For this day students are encouraged to bring in a collection of 100 things. It might be 100 buttons, pasta noodles, toy cars, cotton balls etc.
Please mark your calendars for our next set of Parent Teacher Conferences:
· Thursday, March 6th ~ 4:30-7:30
· Tuesday March 11th ~ 4:30-7:30
· Thursday March 13th ~ 12:30-3:30
Sign up sheets are currently in my blue classroom folder in the main foyer. Please sign up as soon as possible for the best time for you and your family.
Some classroom needs - Napkins. Thank you.
Next Weeks Snack – Medler, Morgan, Murphy and Doty, Thank you!
Math Night ~ Is scheduled for Tuesday February 18th beginning first with a PTO meeting at 5:00. I find that many parents are very curious about the math materials that are being presented to your children. They ARE very interesting! Please join us this evening for math lessons for our parents so that you main gain a greater awareness of what you child is experiencing here in our Montessori classrooms!!!
Valentine’s Day Celebration ~ is scheduled for February 14th from 8:30 to 10:00. If your child would like to bring in Valentine’s Day Cards please have them simply sign their name to 20 cards. This will help make the passing out process run much more smoothly!
Don’t forget, Preschool Raffle Ticket Sales ended Friday February 7th. Please return these materials to school as soon as possible.
100 Day ~ This year we have been counting the number of days in school. As long as there are no snow-days in the near future, Thursday February 20th will be our 100th Day of school! I will keep you posted! For this day students are encouraged to bring in a collection of 100 things. It might be 100 buttons, pasta noodles, toy cars, cotton balls etc.
Please mark your calendars for our next set of Parent Teacher Conferences:
· Thursday, March 6th ~ 4:30-7:30
· Tuesday March 11th ~ 4:30-7:30
· Thursday March 13th ~ 12:30-3:30
Sign up sheets are currently in my blue classroom folder in the main foyer. Please sign up as soon as possible for the best time for you and your family.
Some classroom needs - Napkins. Thank you.
Next Weeks Snack – Medler, Morgan, Murphy and Doty, Thank you!
Friday January 31, 2014
Hello Families,
There is not much to report this week, as it has been so short. I will say that is has been so nice to spend time with your children again. We all missed each other very much. I will be traveling downstate right after class on Thursday to attend a funeral of a very dear family friend. Ms. Shelly will hold down the fort in my absence.
Lets hope for a much more prosperous week next week. We will be staring a winter theme, very fitting!
Next weeks snack is: Leftovers, Thank you!
There is not much to report this week, as it has been so short. I will say that is has been so nice to spend time with your children again. We all missed each other very much. I will be traveling downstate right after class on Thursday to attend a funeral of a very dear family friend. Ms. Shelly will hold down the fort in my absence.
Lets hope for a much more prosperous week next week. We will be staring a winter theme, very fitting!
Next weeks snack is: Leftovers, Thank you!
Friday January 24, 2014
We are having a blast with our Gingerbread theme. We are counting gingerbread, sorting gingerbread by attributes, making gingerbread patterns, retelling versions of stories and comparing many different versions as well. Thursday we read, “The Cajun Cornbread Boy,” by Diane De Las Casas. The students are also learning about mammals this week including the parts of a horse.
January’s Scholastic Book Orders have been placed. Our next book order will be due on February 21st.
Keep those PJ's coming in, just 2 weeks left for our pajama drive!
How are Preschool Raffle Ticket Sales going? I can issue you more tickets if you have sold your first ten and have handed in these monies to me. Also, winning tickets are transferable. AND Buyers can purchase tickets and put someone else’s name on them.
Please mark your calendars for our next set of Parent Teacher Conferences:
· Thursday, March 6th ~ 4:30-7:30
· Tuesday March 11th ~ 4:30-7:30
· Thursday March 13th ~ 12:30-3:30
Sign up sheets are currently in my blue classroom folder in the main foyer. Please sign up as soon as possible for the best time for you and your family.
Some classroom needs, Thin Dry Erase Markers (Thank you Kristin Larrea for your donation) and Napkins. Thank you.
Next Weeks Snack – Weadock, Guerin, Hickman an Mahlich. Thank you!
Montessori School/Home Connection:
Grace and Courtesy
“Montessori education includes explicit instruction on social behavior in a part of the curriculum called Grace and Courtesy, which are on par with lessons in math, music, and language” (Lillard, 2007, p. 198). These may include lessons on how to say please and thank you, politely interrupting someone, making verbal greetings, or introducing friends and acquaintances. Through the lessons of Grace and Courtesy, a child is able to develop and refine social skills while building self-esteem and independence. Montessori stressed the relationship of these exercises to the general happiness and well being of the child. “A child who becomes a master of his acts through… repeated exercises [of grace and courtesy], and who has been encouraged by the pleasant and interesting activities in which he has been engaged, is a child filled with health and joy and remarkable for his calmness and discipline” (Montessori, 2007, p. 93). Lillard (2007) further explains the importance of educating the whole child, “the goal of Montessori education in fact, is explicitly stated to be the education of the whole child, not only the intellect” (p. 198-199). Taken from http://dirigomontessori.pbworks.com/w/page/64871416/FrontPage
Parents can do many things at home to foster independence through Grace and Courtesy. The best way to do this is to lead by example. If your child sees you kindly holding the door open for someone else, they will be more likely to do the same. If your children consistently sees you covering your mouth when you sneeze so will they. Grace and Courtesy can also be taught at home through let’s pretend scenarios. First demonstrate the proper behavior, breaking down the lesson into distinct steps. Then give your child opportunities to practice the lesson. Invite siblings and dolls to play along. Let’s pretend mom is on the phone and you have a question to ask her. What can you do to interrupt politely? Act out these scenarios with your child. They love it! You will quickly see them creating opportunities to use these newly taught skills. When your child uses the skill appropriately be very specific with your praise. I was so happy that you said “Excuse me Mommy,” when I was on the phone. Continue these lessons if your child still needs help performing these techniques consistency. It truly is amazing to see what children can accomplish is we give them the skills and practice time needed to be
January’s Scholastic Book Orders have been placed. Our next book order will be due on February 21st.
Keep those PJ's coming in, just 2 weeks left for our pajama drive!
How are Preschool Raffle Ticket Sales going? I can issue you more tickets if you have sold your first ten and have handed in these monies to me. Also, winning tickets are transferable. AND Buyers can purchase tickets and put someone else’s name on them.
Please mark your calendars for our next set of Parent Teacher Conferences:
· Thursday, March 6th ~ 4:30-7:30
· Tuesday March 11th ~ 4:30-7:30
· Thursday March 13th ~ 12:30-3:30
Sign up sheets are currently in my blue classroom folder in the main foyer. Please sign up as soon as possible for the best time for you and your family.
Some classroom needs, Thin Dry Erase Markers (Thank you Kristin Larrea for your donation) and Napkins. Thank you.
Next Weeks Snack – Weadock, Guerin, Hickman an Mahlich. Thank you!
Montessori School/Home Connection:
Grace and Courtesy
“Montessori education includes explicit instruction on social behavior in a part of the curriculum called Grace and Courtesy, which are on par with lessons in math, music, and language” (Lillard, 2007, p. 198). These may include lessons on how to say please and thank you, politely interrupting someone, making verbal greetings, or introducing friends and acquaintances. Through the lessons of Grace and Courtesy, a child is able to develop and refine social skills while building self-esteem and independence. Montessori stressed the relationship of these exercises to the general happiness and well being of the child. “A child who becomes a master of his acts through… repeated exercises [of grace and courtesy], and who has been encouraged by the pleasant and interesting activities in which he has been engaged, is a child filled with health and joy and remarkable for his calmness and discipline” (Montessori, 2007, p. 93). Lillard (2007) further explains the importance of educating the whole child, “the goal of Montessori education in fact, is explicitly stated to be the education of the whole child, not only the intellect” (p. 198-199). Taken from http://dirigomontessori.pbworks.com/w/page/64871416/FrontPage
Parents can do many things at home to foster independence through Grace and Courtesy. The best way to do this is to lead by example. If your child sees you kindly holding the door open for someone else, they will be more likely to do the same. If your children consistently sees you covering your mouth when you sneeze so will they. Grace and Courtesy can also be taught at home through let’s pretend scenarios. First demonstrate the proper behavior, breaking down the lesson into distinct steps. Then give your child opportunities to practice the lesson. Invite siblings and dolls to play along. Let’s pretend mom is on the phone and you have a question to ask her. What can you do to interrupt politely? Act out these scenarios with your child. They love it! You will quickly see them creating opportunities to use these newly taught skills. When your child uses the skill appropriately be very specific with your praise. I was so happy that you said “Excuse me Mommy,” when I was on the phone. Continue these lessons if your child still needs help performing these techniques consistency. It truly is amazing to see what children can accomplish is we give them the skills and practice time needed to be
__________________________________
Friday January 17, 2014
Remember there will be no school on Monday January 20th in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
Pajama Drive – All five Primary Classrooms will begin a pajama drive Tuesday January 21st through Friday February 7th. If you would like to donate a pair of PJ’s to children in need please send them to school in your child’s backpack in a bag labeled ‘Pajama Drive.’ The pajamas will be donated to the families staying at the Goodwill Inn and Father Fred’s.
Cherry Capital Subaru and Cadillac along with Traverse Motors will donate $50 to each classroom that collects 30 pajamas - for classroom supplies.
Pajama Day will be February 7th, in culmination of our Pajama Drive. We would love to make Pancakes that morning. Please email me if you would like to donate a box of pancake mix, juice, syrup or toppings. I also need two cooks for that day. Cooking times will be from 8:15 until 10:00. Please let me know if you would like to help on this exciting day!
Icy Peaceful Goodbyes – Please be very careful walking up to and around our building. With the quick warm up we had everything has frozen pretty solid out there and things are very slippery.
Please mark your calendars for our next set of Parent Teacher Conferences:
· Thursday, March 6th ~ 4:30-7:30
· Tuesday March 11th ~ 4:30-7:30
· Thursday March 13th ~ 12:30-3:30
Sign up sheets are currently in my blue classroom folder in the main foyer. Please sign up as soon as possible for the best time for you and your family.
We are in desperate need of thin dry erase markers for our Kindergarten Handwriting practice. Any donations would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.
Next Weeks Snack – Andrews, Baty, Cole and Jonas. Thank you!
Pajama Drive – All five Primary Classrooms will begin a pajama drive Tuesday January 21st through Friday February 7th. If you would like to donate a pair of PJ’s to children in need please send them to school in your child’s backpack in a bag labeled ‘Pajama Drive.’ The pajamas will be donated to the families staying at the Goodwill Inn and Father Fred’s.
Cherry Capital Subaru and Cadillac along with Traverse Motors will donate $50 to each classroom that collects 30 pajamas - for classroom supplies.
Pajama Day will be February 7th, in culmination of our Pajama Drive. We would love to make Pancakes that morning. Please email me if you would like to donate a box of pancake mix, juice, syrup or toppings. I also need two cooks for that day. Cooking times will be from 8:15 until 10:00. Please let me know if you would like to help on this exciting day!
Icy Peaceful Goodbyes – Please be very careful walking up to and around our building. With the quick warm up we had everything has frozen pretty solid out there and things are very slippery.
Please mark your calendars for our next set of Parent Teacher Conferences:
· Thursday, March 6th ~ 4:30-7:30
· Tuesday March 11th ~ 4:30-7:30
· Thursday March 13th ~ 12:30-3:30
Sign up sheets are currently in my blue classroom folder in the main foyer. Please sign up as soon as possible for the best time for you and your family.
We are in desperate need of thin dry erase markers for our Kindergarten Handwriting practice. Any donations would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.
Next Weeks Snack – Andrews, Baty, Cole and Jonas. Thank you!
Friday January 10, 2014
We have had a fantastic first week back. Your little ones came back ready to “work,” which is always great to see! Our main focus this short week has been talking about Courage. To stand up for yourself and others when you see injustices. We also just began our Gingerbread Theme which will carry us through the next couple of weeks.
Preschool Raffle tickets went home to our preschool families on Wednesday January 8, 2014. Please remember to return the tickets to me if you are choosing not to sell tickets. You may also contact me if you need more tickets to sell. The official end date for this raffle is Friday February 7th, 2014
Next Weeks Snack – Space, Stark, VanderVlucht and White. Thank you!
Preschool Raffle tickets went home to our preschool families on Wednesday January 8, 2014. Please remember to return the tickets to me if you are choosing not to sell tickets. You may also contact me if you need more tickets to sell. The official end date for this raffle is Friday February 7th, 2014
Next Weeks Snack – Space, Stark, VanderVlucht and White. Thank you!
Friday December 20, 2013
Mrs. Shelly shared her family’s Polish tradition of celebrating Wegilia. This is a special Christmas Eve Vigil. She talked about the various foods that are eaten on this day and the games that are played and some songs her family sings. She then passed out little cookies to the class and explained that her family uses wafers for this part of the celebration. Two friends come together and each friend takes a piece of each others cookie. (wafer) Then they give a Christmas wish to that friend. “I wish you health and happiness in the New Year.” It was so cute to hear the children giving holiday wishes to their friends.
Kristin Larrea, Ryan’s mom, shared a family tradition with the class on Tuesday. Kristin shared one of her families favorite Christmas stories, “The Polar Express.” She then gave a lesson to the class on making a bell necklace. In the book the little bell represents the spirit of Christmas. It was fun to hear the students walking around ringing their necklaces after they made them!
We also had a Very Special visit from Santa Claus Friday Afternoon! He shared some interesting information about his elves, his reindeer and the North Pole. Santa has a great sense of humor and he had the students just cracking up! I loved it!
I will post some misc. pics to the website to end the year!
Our new snack menu for the New Year has been posted on our website. I have also sent home a hard copy.
New Years Snack (Week of January 6th) – Larrea, Robinson, Schroeder and Burden! Thank you!
I will see you in the new year!!!
Best wishes,
Sarah Socks.
Friday December 13, 2013
This week the students learned about the holiday of Kwanzaa! We have been weaving place mats in red, black and green and coloring Kinaras in art. Our Peace Lesson this week focused on empathy (the first ‘e’ in pEace). We have been labeling acts of empathy when we see them!
On Tuesday December 10th Rowen’s Nana and Bumpa came into our classroom to share one of their special holiday traditions! Nana and Rowen love to bake gingerbread cookies together! One of Rowen’s favorite books is “The Gingerbread Baby,” by Jan Brett. Nana taught the students a gingerbread cookie poem and then shared the book with the class. When she was finished she passed around tiny gingerbread baby cookies for the class to enjoy! It was really fun!! Thank you Nana and Bumpa for visiting our classroom!
Report cards went home last week. If your child is in Kindergarten please remember to sign and return your report card envelope.
It was just so amazing to see such a huge turn-out for our holiday program complete with parents, grandparents, siblings, aunts, uncles and family friends. It goes without saying that your children are your most prized possessions and that you are totally investing in their lives. I’m filled with gratitude to be able to spend my days with such wonderful children who come from such caring families! Thank you!!! Like I said before, I just love this time of year!
Next Week’s Snack – Leftovers, thank you!
On Tuesday December 10th Rowen’s Nana and Bumpa came into our classroom to share one of their special holiday traditions! Nana and Rowen love to bake gingerbread cookies together! One of Rowen’s favorite books is “The Gingerbread Baby,” by Jan Brett. Nana taught the students a gingerbread cookie poem and then shared the book with the class. When she was finished she passed around tiny gingerbread baby cookies for the class to enjoy! It was really fun!! Thank you Nana and Bumpa for visiting our classroom!
Report cards went home last week. If your child is in Kindergarten please remember to sign and return your report card envelope.
It was just so amazing to see such a huge turn-out for our holiday program complete with parents, grandparents, siblings, aunts, uncles and family friends. It goes without saying that your children are your most prized possessions and that you are totally investing in their lives. I’m filled with gratitude to be able to spend my days with such wonderful children who come from such caring families! Thank you!!! Like I said before, I just love this time of year!
Next Week’s Snack – Leftovers, thank you!
_______________________________
Friday December 6th
This week we have been studying Hanukkah! We read many books including, “Eight Winter Nights,” by Laura Melmed and “Light the Lights,” by Margaret Moorman. The students have done counting works in math by adding candles to the menorahs. In art they traced their hands to cut them out to make a menorah! On Friday morning we enjoyed Latkes, sour cream and applesauce for a snack!
We were also very excited to welcome Madeleine Jonas’ Nona and Nono into our classroom Friday morning. Her Jewish grandparents are originally from South Africa. They shared many aspects of their Jewish faith. Nona made bread (Challah) and doughnuts and shared them with the class. (Oil is a very important aspect of Hanukkah) They shared the tradition of wearing small caps on their heads during blessings. She read a book explaining many Jewish traditions like the Mezuzah and she explained the similarities between a church and a Synagogue. It was a great way to show how friends who may not be of the same faith still have so very much in common. We thank them kindly for sharing!!!!
Check out the gallery for some recent pics!
We have also begun Peace Lessons as an entire building. Each week we will focus on one character education piece. This week we talked about perseverance. We will move through all 5 traits and return back to the top and repeat the series again. Please see below;
Perseverance
Empathy
Attitude
Caring
Empathy
If you have been in the building recently you may have noticed the word PEACE in various places. Our first PEACE lesson was based around the idea of perseverance, hence the letter 'P'. Please take a minute to read the paragraph below, and support the quality of perseverance any way you can at home.
Perseverance is the quality that allows someone to continue trying to do something even though it is difficult. This quality is especially important within the Montessori community as children work independently through a work cycle. Children work hard to develop the self- confidence and stamina required to push themselves forward through difficult work to a finished project. Parents and family members can help teach perseverance skills at home by helping children to establish targets, or goals, and work toward them. For example, your child might choose to save money for a new skateboard. Before the saving project begins, discuss the steps necessary for achieving the goal, how much money is needed, how much time the goal may take to achieve and what the child can do to earn the required amount. Finally, an important component of teaching perseverance is to discuss the feelings of happiness and personal satisfaction that come with achieving a goal. With younger children, it is best to start with small goals, and gradually increase the length and complexity of goal setting as the child develops perseverance skills. Families can make a huge difference in the ability of children to persevere through sustained projects at home and at school.
Ms. Chrissie, our school counseling intern, joined our classroom on Monday morning to read a book titled Mean Jean. The class then talked about the book and how it related to their lives. The students are learning how to be kind to others and to step in with kind words if they happen to see other friend acting in an unkind way.
Did you know that your child says a peace pledge on a daily basis is our classroom? It goes as follows,
I promise to make PEACE my personal goal every day. I will stand up for what is right, step in with kind words when I see injustice, and help foster peace in others. As a Montessorian, I pledge peacefulness with honor, and I will lead by example.
Our Holiday program is scheduled for Thursday December 12th @ 8:30. We are looking forward to seeing you!
We had the wonderful opportunity to have a guest speaker from the Ukraine come in to share her culture with the class. Olga came to the United States at the age of 12. Ukraine is one of the biggest countries in Europe. She showed the class pictures of the clothing that is worn in the Ukraine. The women and young girls wear lots of clothes with flowers and flowered head bands. The children like to play tag around trees. For the holidays they decorate Christmas trees. They make food like perogies, stuffed with apples cherries and sour cream. For Easter, they decorate very intricate eggs and bake sweet bread. The eggs and bread are then taken to a church at 5:00 in the morning to be blessed. She talked about many different types of Ukrainian foods like fresh bread, canned mushrooms and breakfast crepes. She shared photos of some musical instruments like the Duo, Trembida and Maracas. The students were even able to watch a short video of a young man playing the Ukrainian Bandura!
Next week we will have a visitor from Russia, who will share more traditions with us. On the 20th, we will have a visitor from the North Pole, Saint Nicholas. He will tell us about his land, and the story of his life. (Please don’t tell your children about this special visitor.)
For the next 2 weeks the classroom will be studying holidays from around the world. I think it’s important for children to develop an awareness of the many ways people celebrate their beliefs and values in the form of their holiday traditions. We would love it if you could come in and share one of your holiday traditions with us, whether it’s a story, a song, a book, a food, or a craft. If you would like to share a family holiday tradition with the class please let me know. With a little background of different cultures, your child will be able to make a connection, and become more open and tolerant in our increasingly multicultural society.
Report Cards went home Friday December 6th. Kindergarten families please sign and return the report card envelop as soon as possible. If you have any questions on the reports please do not hesitate to ask
Next Week’s Snack – Medler, Mahlich, Morgan and Murphy
We were also very excited to welcome Madeleine Jonas’ Nona and Nono into our classroom Friday morning. Her Jewish grandparents are originally from South Africa. They shared many aspects of their Jewish faith. Nona made bread (Challah) and doughnuts and shared them with the class. (Oil is a very important aspect of Hanukkah) They shared the tradition of wearing small caps on their heads during blessings. She read a book explaining many Jewish traditions like the Mezuzah and she explained the similarities between a church and a Synagogue. It was a great way to show how friends who may not be of the same faith still have so very much in common. We thank them kindly for sharing!!!!
Check out the gallery for some recent pics!
We have also begun Peace Lessons as an entire building. Each week we will focus on one character education piece. This week we talked about perseverance. We will move through all 5 traits and return back to the top and repeat the series again. Please see below;
Perseverance
Empathy
Attitude
Caring
Empathy
If you have been in the building recently you may have noticed the word PEACE in various places. Our first PEACE lesson was based around the idea of perseverance, hence the letter 'P'. Please take a minute to read the paragraph below, and support the quality of perseverance any way you can at home.
Perseverance is the quality that allows someone to continue trying to do something even though it is difficult. This quality is especially important within the Montessori community as children work independently through a work cycle. Children work hard to develop the self- confidence and stamina required to push themselves forward through difficult work to a finished project. Parents and family members can help teach perseverance skills at home by helping children to establish targets, or goals, and work toward them. For example, your child might choose to save money for a new skateboard. Before the saving project begins, discuss the steps necessary for achieving the goal, how much money is needed, how much time the goal may take to achieve and what the child can do to earn the required amount. Finally, an important component of teaching perseverance is to discuss the feelings of happiness and personal satisfaction that come with achieving a goal. With younger children, it is best to start with small goals, and gradually increase the length and complexity of goal setting as the child develops perseverance skills. Families can make a huge difference in the ability of children to persevere through sustained projects at home and at school.
Ms. Chrissie, our school counseling intern, joined our classroom on Monday morning to read a book titled Mean Jean. The class then talked about the book and how it related to their lives. The students are learning how to be kind to others and to step in with kind words if they happen to see other friend acting in an unkind way.
Did you know that your child says a peace pledge on a daily basis is our classroom? It goes as follows,
I promise to make PEACE my personal goal every day. I will stand up for what is right, step in with kind words when I see injustice, and help foster peace in others. As a Montessorian, I pledge peacefulness with honor, and I will lead by example.
Our Holiday program is scheduled for Thursday December 12th @ 8:30. We are looking forward to seeing you!
We had the wonderful opportunity to have a guest speaker from the Ukraine come in to share her culture with the class. Olga came to the United States at the age of 12. Ukraine is one of the biggest countries in Europe. She showed the class pictures of the clothing that is worn in the Ukraine. The women and young girls wear lots of clothes with flowers and flowered head bands. The children like to play tag around trees. For the holidays they decorate Christmas trees. They make food like perogies, stuffed with apples cherries and sour cream. For Easter, they decorate very intricate eggs and bake sweet bread. The eggs and bread are then taken to a church at 5:00 in the morning to be blessed. She talked about many different types of Ukrainian foods like fresh bread, canned mushrooms and breakfast crepes. She shared photos of some musical instruments like the Duo, Trembida and Maracas. The students were even able to watch a short video of a young man playing the Ukrainian Bandura!
Next week we will have a visitor from Russia, who will share more traditions with us. On the 20th, we will have a visitor from the North Pole, Saint Nicholas. He will tell us about his land, and the story of his life. (Please don’t tell your children about this special visitor.)
For the next 2 weeks the classroom will be studying holidays from around the world. I think it’s important for children to develop an awareness of the many ways people celebrate their beliefs and values in the form of their holiday traditions. We would love it if you could come in and share one of your holiday traditions with us, whether it’s a story, a song, a book, a food, or a craft. If you would like to share a family holiday tradition with the class please let me know. With a little background of different cultures, your child will be able to make a connection, and become more open and tolerant in our increasingly multicultural society.
Report Cards went home Friday December 6th. Kindergarten families please sign and return the report card envelop as soon as possible. If you have any questions on the reports please do not hesitate to ask
Next Week’s Snack – Medler, Mahlich, Morgan and Murphy
Tuesday November 26, 2013
In this short week we ate our stone soup as a group and practiced table manners and etiquette. We also attended our first Anti-Bullying assembly! We are promising to be a school of peace!
Our Classroom Holiday Program is Scheduled for Thursday December 12th at 8:30 in the morning. Please let me know if you will not be able to attend this event.
For the next 3 weeks the classroom will be studying holidays from around the world. If you would like to share a family holiday tradition with the class please let me know. You could come in and read a favorite story, share a craft, share a meal and/or tell the class how your family celebrates the holidays!
I love this time of year!
There will be no school on Wednesday, Nov. 27th, Thursday Nov. 28th and Friday Nov. 29th.
Our school once again will host a coat, hat, mitten, snow pants drive. Beginning Monday, December 2nd, we will have a shopping cart parked in front of the main office. We will gratefully be accepting good clean used or new; mittens, gloves, hats, socks, coats, snow pants, boots and jackets of all sizes – kids and adults. The idea then is to provide an opportunity for our own school community to pick out items from the cart that they need and the rest will be donated to charity. If you have time, please go through your closets, basements, and mudrooms and gather up the winter clothing that you might not need anymore.
Next Week’s Snack – Jonas, Weadock, Guerin and Hickman.
Our Classroom Holiday Program is Scheduled for Thursday December 12th at 8:30 in the morning. Please let me know if you will not be able to attend this event.
For the next 3 weeks the classroom will be studying holidays from around the world. If you would like to share a family holiday tradition with the class please let me know. You could come in and read a favorite story, share a craft, share a meal and/or tell the class how your family celebrates the holidays!
I love this time of year!
There will be no school on Wednesday, Nov. 27th, Thursday Nov. 28th and Friday Nov. 29th.
Our school once again will host a coat, hat, mitten, snow pants drive. Beginning Monday, December 2nd, we will have a shopping cart parked in front of the main office. We will gratefully be accepting good clean used or new; mittens, gloves, hats, socks, coats, snow pants, boots and jackets of all sizes – kids and adults. The idea then is to provide an opportunity for our own school community to pick out items from the cart that they need and the rest will be donated to charity. If you have time, please go through your closets, basements, and mudrooms and gather up the winter clothing that you might not need anymore.
Next Week’s Snack – Jonas, Weadock, Guerin and Hickman.
Friday November 22, 2013
We had a very special guest Friday morning. Nadine Stark, Nolan’s mom came in to share her Native American Culture. Her and her husband are both Native Americans. Nadine’s tribe is from the Upper Peninsula and her husband Richard’s tribe is from out West. Nadine shared some infomatin about Powwows and read a story titled, “Jingle Dance,” in which the the young girl character Jenna borrows jingles from the women in her family to sew onto her dress so that her dress had a voice when she danced. Nadine brought in some jingles to share with the class as well. Thank you Nadine for sharing your family cutlure!
You may have noticed your child coming home this week with a necklace made from pasta. Ryan Larrea shared this work with the class and the students had the opportunity to make their own necklace in practicle life this week. Thank you Ryan!
Everyone went home with a dream catcher this week. This Native American tradition believes that if you hang this dreamcatcher in your room while you are sleeping that it will catch the bad dreams and only let good ones through. I thank each parent who volunteered some time to help get this project completed.
The students, along with Ms. Shelly’s help, made stone soup Friday morning. Check out some pics in the Gallery. It was really fun to see the students act the story with her help. Ms. Shelly played the stranger who came into the village asking for food. When she asked the villagers (the students) for some food to eat they hid their food and told her that they didn’t have any food to spare. Once she told them that she was going to make soup from a stone, they willing shared their contributins to make her stone soup more tasty. We will enjoy the soup on Monday morning. Thank you for your contributions for this activity!
There is a half-day of school on Tuesday, Nov. 26th with school dismissing at 11:37 a.m. and there will be no extended day on the half day. Also, there will be no school on Wednesday, Nov. 27th, Thursday Nov. 28th and Friday Nov. 29th.
On Tuesday November 26, TCAPS Montessori will be kicking off our Anti Bullying Program!!! Each grade level will be attending an assembly in our gym where peace and anti-bullying will be the main focus. Parents, you are welcome to join us!!! Primary students: 8:40 to 9:15
Our school once again will host a coat, hat, mitten, snow pants drive. Beginning Monday, December 2nd, we will have a shopping cart parked in front of the main office. We will gratefully be accepting good clean used or new; mittens, gloves, hats, socks, coats, snow pants, boots and jackets of all sizes – kids and adults. The idea then is to provide an opportunity for our own school community to pick out items from the cart that they need and the rest will be donated to charity. If you have time, please go through your closets, basements, and mudrooms and gather up the winter clothing that you might not need anymore.
Next Week’s Snack – Stone Soup and Leftovers, Thank you!
Please continue reading below for a Montessori Home Connection
Montessori at Home
As your child’s first and most significant teacher, you may often wonder, how to support your child’s Montessori education at home. There are several easy ways to aid your child’s social development as she is growing and learning. Your child’s innate motivation to learn will appear through your positive encouragement. It is first helpful for the parent to understand the golden rules followed by Montessori methodology:
For the youngest of children, parents can begin to “set” the child up for independence. This is a vital step towards your youngster becoming a self-directed, independent learner. By fostering strategic work at home, you will see your child not only become more independent, but also feel a sense of intrinsic pride and support to your family unit. The following is a simple guide of some expected activities for children to be empowered to complete, at home, on a regular basis:
Age Level Tasks
Toddler Dressing oneself; setting the table; loading the dishwasher; sorting & folding laundry; putting clean laundry away; picking up toys directly after playing with them
Primary All of the above, in addition to: Dressing himself – including shoes, socks and outdoor gear; setting the table; loading the dishwasher, washing and drying dishes; sorting laundry; dusting furniture; sweeping floors; shoveling snow or raking leaves
Lower Elementary All of the above, in addition to: tying shoes; making a bed; making a packed lunch; helping with cooking tasks; packing & unpacking school bag; putting groceries away
Upper Elementary All of the above, in addition to: vacuuming floors; washing clothes; cooking; baking; volunteering in the community
Maria Montessori said, “Little children, from the moment they are weaned, are making their way toward independence.” It is our duty as their parents and teachers, to nurture this independence. Parent Resources: Book: Montessori Play & Learn: A Parents Guide to Purposeful Play from Two to Six by: Lesley Britton Website: http://www.dailymontessori.com/
You may have noticed your child coming home this week with a necklace made from pasta. Ryan Larrea shared this work with the class and the students had the opportunity to make their own necklace in practicle life this week. Thank you Ryan!
Everyone went home with a dream catcher this week. This Native American tradition believes that if you hang this dreamcatcher in your room while you are sleeping that it will catch the bad dreams and only let good ones through. I thank each parent who volunteered some time to help get this project completed.
The students, along with Ms. Shelly’s help, made stone soup Friday morning. Check out some pics in the Gallery. It was really fun to see the students act the story with her help. Ms. Shelly played the stranger who came into the village asking for food. When she asked the villagers (the students) for some food to eat they hid their food and told her that they didn’t have any food to spare. Once she told them that she was going to make soup from a stone, they willing shared their contributins to make her stone soup more tasty. We will enjoy the soup on Monday morning. Thank you for your contributions for this activity!
There is a half-day of school on Tuesday, Nov. 26th with school dismissing at 11:37 a.m. and there will be no extended day on the half day. Also, there will be no school on Wednesday, Nov. 27th, Thursday Nov. 28th and Friday Nov. 29th.
On Tuesday November 26, TCAPS Montessori will be kicking off our Anti Bullying Program!!! Each grade level will be attending an assembly in our gym where peace and anti-bullying will be the main focus. Parents, you are welcome to join us!!! Primary students: 8:40 to 9:15
Our school once again will host a coat, hat, mitten, snow pants drive. Beginning Monday, December 2nd, we will have a shopping cart parked in front of the main office. We will gratefully be accepting good clean used or new; mittens, gloves, hats, socks, coats, snow pants, boots and jackets of all sizes – kids and adults. The idea then is to provide an opportunity for our own school community to pick out items from the cart that they need and the rest will be donated to charity. If you have time, please go through your closets, basements, and mudrooms and gather up the winter clothing that you might not need anymore.
Next Week’s Snack – Stone Soup and Leftovers, Thank you!
Please continue reading below for a Montessori Home Connection
Montessori at Home
As your child’s first and most significant teacher, you may often wonder, how to support your child’s Montessori education at home. There are several easy ways to aid your child’s social development as she is growing and learning. Your child’s innate motivation to learn will appear through your positive encouragement. It is first helpful for the parent to understand the golden rules followed by Montessori methodology:
- To allow freedom within limits
- To respect the individuality of the child
- To resist imposing your own will and personality on the child.
For the youngest of children, parents can begin to “set” the child up for independence. This is a vital step towards your youngster becoming a self-directed, independent learner. By fostering strategic work at home, you will see your child not only become more independent, but also feel a sense of intrinsic pride and support to your family unit. The following is a simple guide of some expected activities for children to be empowered to complete, at home, on a regular basis:
Age Level Tasks
Toddler Dressing oneself; setting the table; loading the dishwasher; sorting & folding laundry; putting clean laundry away; picking up toys directly after playing with them
Primary All of the above, in addition to: Dressing himself – including shoes, socks and outdoor gear; setting the table; loading the dishwasher, washing and drying dishes; sorting laundry; dusting furniture; sweeping floors; shoveling snow or raking leaves
Lower Elementary All of the above, in addition to: tying shoes; making a bed; making a packed lunch; helping with cooking tasks; packing & unpacking school bag; putting groceries away
Upper Elementary All of the above, in addition to: vacuuming floors; washing clothes; cooking; baking; volunteering in the community
Maria Montessori said, “Little children, from the moment they are weaned, are making their way toward independence.” It is our duty as their parents and teachers, to nurture this independence. Parent Resources: Book: Montessori Play & Learn: A Parents Guide to Purposeful Play from Two to Six by: Lesley Britton Website: http://www.dailymontessori.com/
Friday November 15, 2013
This week the students are learning about the Native American Culture. We have read some Native American Legends like, “The Legend of the Indian Paintbrush,” and “The Legend of the Blue Bonnet,” along with other stories. The students have watched some short video clips with photos of Native Americans and we have been listening to some traditional music. We are telling stories with symbols and in the process of making vest and dreamcatchers! We have had many discussions about how the Native Americans lived many years ago and how they used the land to help to live and survive. We will be decorating our vests with crushed berries as paint next week!
We are still in need of 17 large brown paper bags for the above craft project!
Many students had their left pinky finger painted blue today. This was and idea created by one our an Upper Elementry Student. She started this as a pledge to being peaceful and frendly in our school!
Please make sure all your of your child’s outerwear is clearly labeled. It is that time of year when hats and gloves are so very easily misplacesd. Our all day kiddoes bring all of their outside clothing down to the lunchroom hallway each day before lunch. They are then getting dressed in this area along with all the other primary classrooms before going outside for recess. It is very hectic and things tend to be misplaced at this time.
Our school Lost and Found is getting very full. This is located in the breezeway on the way to the lunchroom. If your child is missing personal belongs please check this area on a daily basis, sometimes it takes a few day before something shows up down there. We also send the kiddos down on their time, but they are not always successful at locate their own missing objects among all of the clothing in this area. Usually around once a month all of the unclaimed belongings are bagged up and taken to Good Will so please remember to look in this area often for missing items.
We are very luck to have a couple of counseling interns in our building this year. Chrissie (one of our counseling interns) needs to begin her hours working with groups of students. I invited her into our classroom Friday morning. She did a “bibliotherapy session,” which involves reading a trade book to the students on an issue and having a group discussion. She read the book “Tacky The Penguin” by Helen Lester. The class talked about how to be a good friend to everyone, even when someone seems different than you. Chrissie may be taking small groups of students to do some team building and friendship exercises as well. Before your child participates in a small group counseling session a parent consent form needs to be signed by you. I will be sending these forms home soon in your child’s communication folder.
Thank you to our volunteers who have signed up to make dream catchers next week. Please check the google doc if you are still interested in helping out, there may still be some days or times available.
We are very excited to announce that we have a new kindergarten student joining our classroom on Monday. Her name is Hayden Doty. Welcome to our classroom family Hayden!
During inclement weather (rainstorms particularly) we will be dismissing students from our classroom door. Older students are to come to their youngest siblings classroom. In the event that we will do indoor pick up, there will be a polka-dot flag sticking out of an orange cone located on Griffin Street at the gate next to the building and another one located on 13th Street at the gate by the primary playground.
We will be making Stone Soup - Please remember to send in the following food item on or before Friday November 22nd.
Last name starts with:
A through B – 1 large box/can of vegetable broth
C through G – 2 Carrots
H Through K – 2 stalks of Celery
K through L - 1 small onion
M through Q - 2 small redskin potatoes R - 1 zucchini
S - 1 clove of garlic
T through V - 1 yellow squash
W through Z – small box of plastic spoons Adults/Culture: I would like to extend an invitation to all of you or anyone you may know to come in and share something about a culture. This may be something in your heritage, somewhere you have visited or a family friend who has experience and is willing to share 20 minutes of their time. Each and every experience provides our children with a broader view of our world and a better understanding of differences. Email me if you have ideas to share, cook, make, etc. The sky is the limit! :-)
Scholastice Book Orders - Our next order will be due on December 6th so that we will have these orders before the winter holiday. Books make great gifts and if you plan on ordering some for the holidays please give me a heads-up and I will contact you personally when the order arrives. Please see the BOOK ORDER page for more details.
Our scholastic book fair will be held in the Montessori Library from November 14th to November 22nd from 8:00a.m. to 4:00p.m.
Next Weeks Snack is: White, Andrews, Baty and Cole, Thank you.
We are still in need of 17 large brown paper bags for the above craft project!
Many students had their left pinky finger painted blue today. This was and idea created by one our an Upper Elementry Student. She started this as a pledge to being peaceful and frendly in our school!
Please make sure all your of your child’s outerwear is clearly labeled. It is that time of year when hats and gloves are so very easily misplacesd. Our all day kiddoes bring all of their outside clothing down to the lunchroom hallway each day before lunch. They are then getting dressed in this area along with all the other primary classrooms before going outside for recess. It is very hectic and things tend to be misplaced at this time.
Our school Lost and Found is getting very full. This is located in the breezeway on the way to the lunchroom. If your child is missing personal belongs please check this area on a daily basis, sometimes it takes a few day before something shows up down there. We also send the kiddos down on their time, but they are not always successful at locate their own missing objects among all of the clothing in this area. Usually around once a month all of the unclaimed belongings are bagged up and taken to Good Will so please remember to look in this area often for missing items.
We are very luck to have a couple of counseling interns in our building this year. Chrissie (one of our counseling interns) needs to begin her hours working with groups of students. I invited her into our classroom Friday morning. She did a “bibliotherapy session,” which involves reading a trade book to the students on an issue and having a group discussion. She read the book “Tacky The Penguin” by Helen Lester. The class talked about how to be a good friend to everyone, even when someone seems different than you. Chrissie may be taking small groups of students to do some team building and friendship exercises as well. Before your child participates in a small group counseling session a parent consent form needs to be signed by you. I will be sending these forms home soon in your child’s communication folder.
Thank you to our volunteers who have signed up to make dream catchers next week. Please check the google doc if you are still interested in helping out, there may still be some days or times available.
We are very excited to announce that we have a new kindergarten student joining our classroom on Monday. Her name is Hayden Doty. Welcome to our classroom family Hayden!
During inclement weather (rainstorms particularly) we will be dismissing students from our classroom door. Older students are to come to their youngest siblings classroom. In the event that we will do indoor pick up, there will be a polka-dot flag sticking out of an orange cone located on Griffin Street at the gate next to the building and another one located on 13th Street at the gate by the primary playground.
We will be making Stone Soup - Please remember to send in the following food item on or before Friday November 22nd.
Last name starts with:
A through B – 1 large box/can of vegetable broth
C through G – 2 Carrots
H Through K – 2 stalks of Celery
K through L - 1 small onion
M through Q - 2 small redskin potatoes R - 1 zucchini
S - 1 clove of garlic
T through V - 1 yellow squash
W through Z – small box of plastic spoons Adults/Culture: I would like to extend an invitation to all of you or anyone you may know to come in and share something about a culture. This may be something in your heritage, somewhere you have visited or a family friend who has experience and is willing to share 20 minutes of their time. Each and every experience provides our children with a broader view of our world and a better understanding of differences. Email me if you have ideas to share, cook, make, etc. The sky is the limit! :-)
Scholastice Book Orders - Our next order will be due on December 6th so that we will have these orders before the winter holiday. Books make great gifts and if you plan on ordering some for the holidays please give me a heads-up and I will contact you personally when the order arrives. Please see the BOOK ORDER page for more details.
Our scholastic book fair will be held in the Montessori Library from November 14th to November 22nd from 8:00a.m. to 4:00p.m.
Next Weeks Snack is: White, Andrews, Baty and Cole, Thank you.
Friday November 8, 2013
Our cultural theme this week continues to be “Children Around the World.” The children each have a passport where they have been coloring in the country flags from the countries that were represented on cultural day. We have been reading many books about how chilren around the world are the same as us and different than us. We read a book titled, “Shades of People,” by Shelley Rotner. The students are in the process of making self portraits paying close attention to the shade of their skin and the color of their hair and eyes.
The next few weeks we will touch on the Native American Culture. For these lessons we are in need of brown paper bags, both large sized and lunchbag sized. Please shop around at home and send in a few if you would like to help with these activities.
If you have a cultural heritage related to Native Americans and would like to share a part of this culture with our classroom please let me know.
Thankful Turkey – Owen’s mom has been working with the class and decorating a turkey with thankful feathers. Each child will contribute one feather to the turkey complete with one thing that they are thankful for. It is very cute. Stop by the next few weeks and check it out.
Lockdown – Wednesday afternoon we had our first official Lockdown drill. We have been practicing these Lockdown drills for about a week now. We begin the year talking about firedrills and knowing what to do in order to keep our bodies safe if there was ever a fire in our school. For our lockdown drill I simply tell the class that we will find a spot in the room to sit quielty, to keep our bodies safe, during these types of drills. For example during a lockdown when we are in the classroom the students go into the math room and sit on the floor. All the doors are locked and windows are covered. If they are in the cafateria there is a safe spot on the stage for the students to enter, with adult assistance of course. I try to make this a very peaceful time and not a time to be scared or concerened. It is basically a way to keep there bodies safe in case of an emergency.
Fine tip dry erase markers – The kindergarteners practice their handwriting on individual dry erase boards. Our markers are beginning to dry out. We are currelty in need of packages of fine tip dry erase markers. Thank you.
I have posted some new pics to the gallery. Thank you Dustine for coming in and taking some photos for the website!
We will be making Stone Soup - Please send in the following food item on Friday November 22nd, or before, so that the children can prepare their vegtables for our community feast on Monday November 25th.
Last name starts with:
A through B – 1 large box/can of vegetable broth
C through G – 2 Carrots
H Through K – 2 stalks of Celery
K through L - 1 small onion
M through Q - 2 small redskin potatoes
R - 1 zucchini
S - 1 clove of garlic
T through V - 1 yellow squash
W through Z – small box of plastic spoons
Adults/Culture: I would like to extend an invitation to all of you or anyone you may know to come in and share something about a culture. This may be something in your heritage, somewhere you have visited or a family friend who has experience and is willing to share 20 minutes of their time. Each and every experience provides our children with a broader view of our world and a better understanding of differences. Email me if you have ideas to share, cook, make, etc. The sky is the limit! :-)
Scholastice Book Orders - Our next order will be due on November 15, 2013. Please see the BOOK ORDER page for more details.
Our Father Fred Food Drive is off to a great start! Please help us as we support our neighbors in need. We will collect food through November 15th.
Our scholastic book fair will be held in the Montessori Library from November 14th to November 22nd from 8:00a.m. to 4:00p.m.
Next Weeks Snack is: Leftovers, thank you!
The next few weeks we will touch on the Native American Culture. For these lessons we are in need of brown paper bags, both large sized and lunchbag sized. Please shop around at home and send in a few if you would like to help with these activities.
If you have a cultural heritage related to Native Americans and would like to share a part of this culture with our classroom please let me know.
Thankful Turkey – Owen’s mom has been working with the class and decorating a turkey with thankful feathers. Each child will contribute one feather to the turkey complete with one thing that they are thankful for. It is very cute. Stop by the next few weeks and check it out.
Lockdown – Wednesday afternoon we had our first official Lockdown drill. We have been practicing these Lockdown drills for about a week now. We begin the year talking about firedrills and knowing what to do in order to keep our bodies safe if there was ever a fire in our school. For our lockdown drill I simply tell the class that we will find a spot in the room to sit quielty, to keep our bodies safe, during these types of drills. For example during a lockdown when we are in the classroom the students go into the math room and sit on the floor. All the doors are locked and windows are covered. If they are in the cafateria there is a safe spot on the stage for the students to enter, with adult assistance of course. I try to make this a very peaceful time and not a time to be scared or concerened. It is basically a way to keep there bodies safe in case of an emergency.
Fine tip dry erase markers – The kindergarteners practice their handwriting on individual dry erase boards. Our markers are beginning to dry out. We are currelty in need of packages of fine tip dry erase markers. Thank you.
I have posted some new pics to the gallery. Thank you Dustine for coming in and taking some photos for the website!
We will be making Stone Soup - Please send in the following food item on Friday November 22nd, or before, so that the children can prepare their vegtables for our community feast on Monday November 25th.
Last name starts with:
A through B – 1 large box/can of vegetable broth
C through G – 2 Carrots
H Through K – 2 stalks of Celery
K through L - 1 small onion
M through Q - 2 small redskin potatoes
R - 1 zucchini
S - 1 clove of garlic
T through V - 1 yellow squash
W through Z – small box of plastic spoons
Adults/Culture: I would like to extend an invitation to all of you or anyone you may know to come in and share something about a culture. This may be something in your heritage, somewhere you have visited or a family friend who has experience and is willing to share 20 minutes of their time. Each and every experience provides our children with a broader view of our world and a better understanding of differences. Email me if you have ideas to share, cook, make, etc. The sky is the limit! :-)
Scholastice Book Orders - Our next order will be due on November 15, 2013. Please see the BOOK ORDER page for more details.
Our Father Fred Food Drive is off to a great start! Please help us as we support our neighbors in need. We will collect food through November 15th.
Our scholastic book fair will be held in the Montessori Library from November 14th to November 22nd from 8:00a.m. to 4:00p.m.
Next Weeks Snack is: Leftovers, thank you!
_______________________________________________
Friday November 1, 2013
A HUGE THANK YOU to all the families that helped out on Cultural Day. The Halloween Party was such a huge success! The students enjoyed cultural snacks from India, North America and South America. (They also made Ghost Toast) We had some fun Halloween games with prizes; pumpkin ring toss and pin the eyes on the pumpkin! We had an art station where the students decorated a song page about Five Little Pumpkins. The students also listened to a story titled, “Skeletons for dinner,” and then made Witches stew!!! Each of these stations was run by parent volunteers! It was amazing!
Ms. Shelly and I dressed as Pilgrims for Cultural Day. We shared with the class how Europeans travel to America by boat. The students thought about what our country looked like back then. We thought about survial and what the colonists needed to do in order to eat and have shelter. We made cornbread as a class and shared this cultural food with the other primary classrooms for Cultural Day. We also tasted Dodo from Nigera (Yamasaki), German Potato Salad for Germany (Flagerty) Queso con Guave from South America (Larrea) and Mango Lassi from India (Belovich)
George Guerin’s Oma and Opa visited our classroom on Cultural Day. Oma wore her traditional clothes from the Netherlands. She talked with the boys and girls about what life was like when she was their age and what her school was like. She brought in many tradition foods to try as well. The students tasted cheese, chocolate, honey bread and two different types of cookies! Thank you Oma and Opa!
Gigi’s Dad “Mr. Mike” took some great photos of our Cultural Day celebration! Please check our our photo gallery. I do plan on posting some new pics this weekend!
Adults/Culture: I would like to extend an invitation to all of you or anyone you may know to come in and share something about a culture. This may be something in your heritage, somewhere you have visited or a family friend who has experience and is willing to share 20 minutes of their time. Each and every experience provides our children with a broader view of our world and a better understanding of differences. Email me if you have ideas to share, cook, make, etc. The sky is the limit! :-)
Picture retakes will take place November 7th.
Scholastice Book Orders - Our next order will be due on November 15, 2013. Please see the BOOK ORDER page for more details.
We will be running a food dive from November 5th to November 17th! If you plan on participating, please send in your donations with your child to our classroom.
Next Weeks Snack is: Murphy, Space, Stark, VanderVlucht.
___________________________________
Friday October 25, 2013
Our Cultural Kick-Off has begun! The students have been listening to stories such as “We Are The Same, We Are Different.” We have been singing a song titled, “The World is a Rainbow.” In geography we have been coloring the flag of the United States of America and learning about the parts of a flag. We have also continued our continent study in preparation for cultural day!
Mrs. Larrea kindly invited our afternoon class to her room on Friday where we had the pleasure of visiting a special guest from the country of Ghana in Africa. She shared photos of her country and talked about the native animals and clothing. She talked about the countries love of music, dance and soccer. She shared with us how to say thank you and how are you. The students had so many good questions! It was very special.
Adults/Culture: I would like to extend an invitation to all of you or anyone you may know to come in and share something about a culture. This may be something in your heritage, somewhere you have visited or a family friend who has experience and is willing to share 20 minutes of their time. Each and every experience provides our children with a broader view of our world and a better understanding of differences. Email me if you have ideas to share, cook, make, etc. The sky is the limit! :-)
With the weather changing so quickly, please do take this opportunity to start practicing snow clothes. It is imperative that your child is able to dress him/herself independently during the winter season!! :-) We do a little chant when it is time to get ready so that the children learn the order of getting dressed. Snow pants, boots, coats, hats, mittens!! Thanks for your help as we prepare for Michigan weather! :-)
Thank you Kristi Weadock, Owen’s mom, for more material donations. I think we are all set now for quite a while!!!!
Thank you Tammy Space, Malina’s mom for the juice glasses. We are not set with those as well!!
Website Photo’s – I would love our photo gallery updated at the very least every other week. I know it means a lot to our families that you are able to see some activities that your child is working on in school. I’m finding that this year, with just Ms. Shelly and I, taking classroom class photos is last on the list when trying to give lessons to all your little ones. I would love for parents to volunteer to visit our classroom during “work time” to take some photos. If you happen to have a few extra minutes in your day, stop in and ask for my camera. All you have to do is take the photos with my camera and I’ll do the rest.
Good times for photos are as follows;
Monday 8:30 to 10:00 and 1:00 to 1:30.
Tuesday 10:00 to 10:45 and 1:00 to 1:30.
Wednesday 8:30 to 9:45 and 1:00 to 1:30
Thursday 8:30 to 10:30 and 1:00 to 1:30.
Friday 8:30 to 9:45.
Looks like our parent group has a fantatastic Halloween celebration planned for Thursday October 31st from 9:00 to 10:00. Please plan on having your child come to school in their Halloween costumes. We will share our costumes first thing in the morning and talk about the culture that each child is representing. I plan on having each child color in the various countries’ flags in their very own passport! After our Halloween Party the students that are staying all day will change out of their costumes into their normal school wear. So if your child stays all day please either send them in with a change of clothes or dress them with their costumes over their clothes for the morning. We will have a costume parade in the afternoon, time to be arranged. If your child only attends in the moring you are welcome to bring them back for the parade in the afternoon. I will send our more specifics about the parade as soon the times are given to me.
All Day Preschool – I have uploaded a change of schedule form under the DOCUMENTS page on our website. Please refer to this document when making temporory or permant changes to your child’s all day preschool schedule. This document explains that 48 hours to 1 week of notice is expected depending on the type of change to a child’s schedule. Keep in mind this document is only for children attending all day preschool.
Scholastice Book Orders for October have been sent. Our next order will be due on November 15, 2013. Please see the BOOK ORDER page for more details.
Next Weeks Snack is: Hickman, Mahlich, Medler and Morgan.
______________________________________
Friday October 18, 2013
Conferences have concluded and I had the pleasure of meeting with all of my students' families. It’s heartwarming to know that our Montessori families are vested in their childrens’ education. Please know that I am always here for you if you have questions or concerns through-out the year.
All Kindergarten students will be taking the AIMS test early in November. This is a computerized assessment and the students are required to have some basic computer knowledge in order to take this assessmet. I currently have some upper elementary students coming down to work with our kindergarteners on this skill. If you have a computer at home please help your child learn how to navigate around a website. They will be using laptops with a touchpad instead of a mouse for this test. We have been using the website Starfall for computer skills and to aid in our language development. You may find this website useful at home as well.
Thank you Kristin Larrea, Ryan’s mom, for the snack dishes!!! What a huge help!!! We are still in need of some small juice size glasses.
Thank you Jill and Jake Burden, Max’s parents, for the donation of fabric. We will be sewing buttons soon. This is a great work for fine motor skills, focus and concentration.
I had a great parent question the other day about half day dismissal for our ½ day families. While you are normally doing carline, when we have an all school ½ day the students will be dismissed via peaceful goodbyes. Our first half day is scheduled for November 1st. You will have to safely park your vehicle and find us on the toddler playground! Please let me know if you need further clarifciation.
Scholastic Book Orders are due next week Friday the 25th. See our Book Order tab for further information.
The weather is beginning to get colder. Please make sure you are helping your child dress for the weather each day. We do go outside on a daily basis.
Next Weeks Snack is: Burden, Jonas, Weadock and Guerin
_______________________________
Friday October 11, 2013
The students have been doing many different lessons centered around leaves this week. We read stories about leaves, “There Was an Old Woman Who Swallowed Some Leaves!” by Lucille Colandro and “The Leaf Man,” by Lois Ehlert to name a few. We went on a leaf hunt to find our own leaves. We have been doing leaf shading in art, leaf counting in math and learning about the parts of a leaf in science. We even created leaf creatures out of our very own leaves that we collected!!!
Dave Gibbs from Oryana visited the primary classrooms on Thursday morning. He brought with him many different types of fruits and vegtables. The students tasted kale chips and yummy blueberries. His message was that our bodies, like a machine, need fuel to function. The best way to get the proper fuel for our bodies is to eat a rainbow of fruits and vegtables. The darker the color the better.
A note from the kitchen: Lunch has gone up from last year. The cost is $2.35. The website has been updated accordingly.
Library Reminders: We attend library every Friday, please help your child to remember to return their library books by bringing them to class Friday morning.
Juice glasses and appetizer/snack plates: The students are well underway preparing their own snack, serving themselves and washing their materials so that the next friend can eat as well! The Montessori philosophy believes that children should be using real materials as much as possible. This allows them to get the feel of real plates and glasses. It helps them to slow down and concentrate on the task at hand. It also allows for them to find out what happens when these material are dropped. :-0 We always seem to have a need for more juice size glasses and small plates. It is that time of year where we seem to be surprising low. We have had many accidents in the past few weeks. I think we may be down to only 3 glasses. Please look around if you happen to be garage-saling or in second hand stores. You may even have an old set of plates at the house you were looking to get rid of. The plates don’t even have to match. I thank you for your help in this matter.
Conferences: It was so great to meet for conferences with families on Wednesday. I’m looking forward to seeing the remaining families next week. Wednesday the 16th we have Lula, Franklin, Max, Finley, Madeleine and Hattie. On Thursday October 17th we have Nolan, Marian, Owen, Gigi and Duncan. Please find the schedule under Documents for your specific time.
Classroom Observations: Some families have expressed an interest in observing our environment. If you would like to come into our classroom and observe a work period please contact me directly and we can set up a time and date that would work for our schedules.
Thank you Laura Guerin, George’s mom, for the donation of buttons. We just need some small squares of fabric to start sewing!!!!! Maybe you have a family member who sews that has some extra fabric lying around!?!
Our Art schedule has been changed to every other Monday from 10:00 to 11:15.
Local Harvest order forms are due Monday October 14th.
Next Weeks Snack is: Cole, Larrea, Robinson and Schroeder
Dave Gibbs from Oryana visited the primary classrooms on Thursday morning. He brought with him many different types of fruits and vegtables. The students tasted kale chips and yummy blueberries. His message was that our bodies, like a machine, need fuel to function. The best way to get the proper fuel for our bodies is to eat a rainbow of fruits and vegtables. The darker the color the better.
A note from the kitchen: Lunch has gone up from last year. The cost is $2.35. The website has been updated accordingly.
Library Reminders: We attend library every Friday, please help your child to remember to return their library books by bringing them to class Friday morning.
Juice glasses and appetizer/snack plates: The students are well underway preparing their own snack, serving themselves and washing their materials so that the next friend can eat as well! The Montessori philosophy believes that children should be using real materials as much as possible. This allows them to get the feel of real plates and glasses. It helps them to slow down and concentrate on the task at hand. It also allows for them to find out what happens when these material are dropped. :-0 We always seem to have a need for more juice size glasses and small plates. It is that time of year where we seem to be surprising low. We have had many accidents in the past few weeks. I think we may be down to only 3 glasses. Please look around if you happen to be garage-saling or in second hand stores. You may even have an old set of plates at the house you were looking to get rid of. The plates don’t even have to match. I thank you for your help in this matter.
Conferences: It was so great to meet for conferences with families on Wednesday. I’m looking forward to seeing the remaining families next week. Wednesday the 16th we have Lula, Franklin, Max, Finley, Madeleine and Hattie. On Thursday October 17th we have Nolan, Marian, Owen, Gigi and Duncan. Please find the schedule under Documents for your specific time.
Classroom Observations: Some families have expressed an interest in observing our environment. If you would like to come into our classroom and observe a work period please contact me directly and we can set up a time and date that would work for our schedules.
Thank you Laura Guerin, George’s mom, for the donation of buttons. We just need some small squares of fabric to start sewing!!!!! Maybe you have a family member who sews that has some extra fabric lying around!?!
Our Art schedule has been changed to every other Monday from 10:00 to 11:15.
Local Harvest order forms are due Monday October 14th.
Next Weeks Snack is: Cole, Larrea, Robinson and Schroeder
_________________________________
Friday October 4, 2013
Please check the lunch calendar: There have been two different lunch calendars floating around for the month of October. The official calendar has been posted on our website. Please make sure you are following this one if your child plans on eating lunch for the day.
Pahls was fantastic! The weather was perfect, the children were amazing and we had so much fun! Thank you to all of our wonderful parent volunteers, we couldn’t have done it without each and every one of you. It truly takes a village! Please keep checking out our FIELD TRIP tab for pics. I plan on uploading what I have this weekend!
Continents This week we continued with the continent song by matching the globe to the continent puzzle and by also matching animals to their respective continent.
Show me the continents, show me the continents, show me the continents of the world.
There’s North America, South America, Europe, Asia and Africa Don’t forget Australia
Don’t forget Antarctica
Show me the continents, show me the continents, show me the continents of the world.
Parent Readers We will begin parent readers next week. If you have volunteered for this I would like to thank you in advance. We can discuss specifics of this duty when you come in to listen to the students read. The schedule has also been posted on our DOCUMENTS tab. Thank you TJ for completing this list for the class.
Inclement Weather Dismissal Our future plan for inclement weather at the end of the afternoon will be to pick up your children from the youngest child's classroom, this does not include toddlers as their dismissal is earlier. I thank each family for being so understanding during dismissal time on Thursday afternoon. For the remainder of the year, you can pick up your child from my classroom door leading to the outside playground.
Inclement Weather Dismissal for morning Preschool will take place at the doors on 13th street. We will run carline as normal but will be taking the students out these doors to enter vehicles. The first vehicle at carline will have to stop at the sidewalk leading down from these doors.
Conferences Schedules have been posted on our website under Documents. Please open this document and make note of your scheduled appointment. Are first scheduled day is next week Wednesday October 9th. I’m looking forward to seeing the following families; Medler, Hickman, Space, Mahlich, Murphy, Guerin and VanderVlucht
Halloween This year, on October 31st, we will celebrate “International Culture Day”, as well as Halloween. This will be our ‘All school kick off' for the culture studies that will take place this year. As a team we took the theme of “Children Around the World.” Maria Montessori believed in world peace. She believed that the only way to achieve this was through the children. It was her dream to teach children about other children all over the world. She felt that this knowledge at a young age would bring about tolerance of individual differences, as children become adults. In the Primary Grades our cultural studies first takes the worldview approach, the Seven Continents. We then examine each one a little more closely, ending with a close up look at the United States, Michigan and Traverse City.
Children will have the option to dress up on this day. If you choose to participate with a costume we are asking for each child to wear something that represents a particular country, such as India or Italy. We are hoping that your child will be able to tell us about his “country”, and we will find it on the map. Each primary classroom will prepare a food from one of the continents, and we will share tastes from around the world. Since this is a school wide activity, the children will benefit by the sharing from many other classrooms. Begin talking with your child about the land he or she will represent.
We will still have our traditional Halloween party in the morning, and a parade in the afternoon. The primary classrooms will be parading in their cultural costumes if your child has chosen to dress up for this event. The parent group will be contacting families soon who have shone an interest in helping out for this event.
Kindergarten Sight Words I am hearing great feedback from the Kindergarteners that they have already begun to study at home! Great Job!!
Next Weeks Snack is: Leftovers
Pahls was fantastic! The weather was perfect, the children were amazing and we had so much fun! Thank you to all of our wonderful parent volunteers, we couldn’t have done it without each and every one of you. It truly takes a village! Please keep checking out our FIELD TRIP tab for pics. I plan on uploading what I have this weekend!
Continents This week we continued with the continent song by matching the globe to the continent puzzle and by also matching animals to their respective continent.
Show me the continents, show me the continents, show me the continents of the world.
There’s North America, South America, Europe, Asia and Africa Don’t forget Australia
Don’t forget Antarctica
Show me the continents, show me the continents, show me the continents of the world.
Parent Readers We will begin parent readers next week. If you have volunteered for this I would like to thank you in advance. We can discuss specifics of this duty when you come in to listen to the students read. The schedule has also been posted on our DOCUMENTS tab. Thank you TJ for completing this list for the class.
Inclement Weather Dismissal Our future plan for inclement weather at the end of the afternoon will be to pick up your children from the youngest child's classroom, this does not include toddlers as their dismissal is earlier. I thank each family for being so understanding during dismissal time on Thursday afternoon. For the remainder of the year, you can pick up your child from my classroom door leading to the outside playground.
Inclement Weather Dismissal for morning Preschool will take place at the doors on 13th street. We will run carline as normal but will be taking the students out these doors to enter vehicles. The first vehicle at carline will have to stop at the sidewalk leading down from these doors.
Conferences Schedules have been posted on our website under Documents. Please open this document and make note of your scheduled appointment. Are first scheduled day is next week Wednesday October 9th. I’m looking forward to seeing the following families; Medler, Hickman, Space, Mahlich, Murphy, Guerin and VanderVlucht
Halloween This year, on October 31st, we will celebrate “International Culture Day”, as well as Halloween. This will be our ‘All school kick off' for the culture studies that will take place this year. As a team we took the theme of “Children Around the World.” Maria Montessori believed in world peace. She believed that the only way to achieve this was through the children. It was her dream to teach children about other children all over the world. She felt that this knowledge at a young age would bring about tolerance of individual differences, as children become adults. In the Primary Grades our cultural studies first takes the worldview approach, the Seven Continents. We then examine each one a little more closely, ending with a close up look at the United States, Michigan and Traverse City.
Children will have the option to dress up on this day. If you choose to participate with a costume we are asking for each child to wear something that represents a particular country, such as India or Italy. We are hoping that your child will be able to tell us about his “country”, and we will find it on the map. Each primary classroom will prepare a food from one of the continents, and we will share tastes from around the world. Since this is a school wide activity, the children will benefit by the sharing from many other classrooms. Begin talking with your child about the land he or she will represent.
We will still have our traditional Halloween party in the morning, and a parade in the afternoon. The primary classrooms will be parading in their cultural costumes if your child has chosen to dress up for this event. The parent group will be contacting families soon who have shone an interest in helping out for this event.
Kindergarten Sight Words I am hearing great feedback from the Kindergarteners that they have already begun to study at home! Great Job!!
Next Weeks Snack is: Leftovers
______________________________________________
Friday September 27, 2013
Lets talk about feelings – This week we talked a lot about our feelings. We read many books about feelings. We did a work on the peace shelf that allowed us to make different kinds of feeling faces in a mirror. We sang a song called, “I’m so Mad,” by Jim Gill. It is my hope that by talking about our feeling, the students will be better able to explain how they feel and why. We then took this a step further and talked about ways to calm our bodies when we have strong feelings.
The Silent Game – is a game I have introduced to your children. Maria Montessori created this game when she was working with children. She recognized how children must be taugh what silence is before they can recognize and recreate it. Constant noise can create irritability, frustration, confusion, and even sleepiness. Everyone needs moments of peace to rest our bodies and to listen to our thoughts. Dr. Montessori says that a deeper level of awareness and sensitivity to noise can help us to enter into a “more refined and subtle world”. Montessori therefore came up with the “Silence Game” or “The Exercise of Silence”. She was very firm about the fact that you can not have silence with movement. During the silence game we practice sitting very still and just listening. We listen to the other noises in the classroom, the noises outside our classroom and to the sound of our inner thoughts. We encourage our students to use this as a tool of thoughtfulness. As the year progresses our ability to become a silent classroom for any extended period will increase, This time increases as your children become more aware of their own bodies, and their personal control over them.
The students had a lesson on the globe – and the continent song. The continent song goes like this:
Show me the continents, show me the continents, show me the continents of the world.
There’s North America, South America, Europe, Asia and Africa Don’t forget Australia
Don’t forget Antarctica
Show me the continents, show me the continents, show me the continents of the world.
Welcome Sarah Gottfried – Sarah is a highschool intern from West Senior High. Sarah will be with our classroom 4 mornings a week for an our each day. She will be experiencing our classroom and helping out with the students. We are very excited to host her. She will be with us until the Thanksgiving break.
Putting on a Coat – All of our younger students have had this lesson. If your child is practicing independence with this at home I have sent home the directions for you in your child’s communication folder. Our favorite line is “tag by your toes, over it goes.” Thank you.
Morning Carline has be reestablished for the dismissal of morning preschoolers only – Plese remember the following:
STAY IN YOUR VEHICLE (an adult will escort your child to your vehicle)
Or if you are walking please use the west entrance gate to greet your child.
SIGNS - I have given each family two carline signs. Please make sure to have the a sign in your car. Anyone without a sign will be ID’d.
CHILDREN SHOULD ALWAYS ENTER THE CAR FROM THE CURBSIDE OF THE STREET
USE THE CROSS WALKS if your are walking your child across the street
REMEMBER TO BE AN ALERT, COURTEOUS, & SAFE DRIVER
Contact me…if you have any questions regarding car-line procedures.
Conferences Schedules have been posted on our website under Documents. Please open this document and make note of your scheduled appointment.
Halloween - This year our Montessori school will be placing an emphasis on culure. The intent is NOT to take away Halloween, but rather to make it more instructional in nature . Our Primary Team is meeting to discuss the theme that your little ones will be learning about for this exciting day! I plan to have much more details for you early next week!
Happy Birthday Ava Hickman!!! Ava turned 6 on September 26th!!!
Scholastic Book Orders have been sent today. Our next classroom order will be placed on October 25th. Please see the book order tab for information on how to order online.
Kindergarten students will no longer be resting – We will now be using this time to silently read from our book boxes each day. Resting rugs and all resting buddies are to remain at home from here on out. Thank you. All-day preschoolers will still need resting materials each week, as they will have a rest period for the remainder of the year.
We celebrated Peace Day as a school - on September 23, 2013. We walked over to Thirby Field and created a large peace sign with our bodies. We had a parent photograph this event from the bleachers above. The students then came together for a group song of peace!!! Check out the GALLERY for pics!
Thank you PTO – The PTO has covered the cost of new handwriting lap whiteboards for our classroom!!!
Kindergarten Handwriting has begun – We have been practicing our numbers first. We are also working on writing our names with one capital letter and the rest lowercase letters. Please see a link to handwriting website under “Curriculum” Here you can print out lined paper for your child to practice their name and numbers at home.
A list of Kindergarten Sight Words came home Friday – with suggested activities to do at home. This year there are 29 sight words on the list that need to be mastered by all kindergarteners by the end of the year. Please begin now by practicing a couple words a week so that mastery is achieved. This list has also been posted on the website under KDG. Please see me if you have questions or concerns about this list.
Happy Birthday to Harper VanderVlucht! – Harper turns five on September 28th. We celebrated in class with Harper’s mom. We made apple and yogurt fruit smoothies! Yummy! Thank you Kristin Larrea - (Ryan’s Mom) for the classroom donations of napkins, soap, sponges and baidaids from our WISH LIST. Please check this area for needed classroom supplies if you feel a need to donate to our room. Thank you.
Thank your TJ Andrews – (Franklin’s mom) for the donations of laundry bags for our classroom rugs!
Thank you to Hattie Morgan’s family – for the donations of tissue, soap and cleansing wipes!
The Laundry Schedule has been posted – on the website under documents. It has the families listed and their day or days as well as directions for washing and returning the rugs to class. Thank you in advance for volunteering for this classroom need.
Next Weeks Snack is: VanderVluch, White, Andrews and Baty
Overdue lunch balances Once a student has three unpaid charges to their account their only option for lunch will be a soy butter and jam sandwich, an apple and a milk. No substitutions. It will still charge $1.00 to the students account. Please try to keep you lunch accounts current.
_____________________________
Friday September 20, 2013
We had a wonderful week!!!
We began reading groups with the Kindergarteners and some preschoolers. We have been assessing numbers and getting ready to get into our math shelves. The Olders have been telling stories by drawing a picture and sharing the story in their picture. Some students have begun to add words to their stories as well. We have been able to sustain about an hour of work time and we are seeing glimmers of normalization everywhere.
All the students have been working a completing a work cycle. The ‘work cycle’ is a Montessori term used to explain the following:
1. The student choose a work space (a rug or table)
2. The student chooses a work
3. The student complete the work
4. The student makes the work beautiful for the next person to use and places it back in its spot on the shelf.
THIRTEENTH ST. DOORS: are currently for staff and students from now on. These doors will always be locked and we will welcome students starting at 8:00. Many adults are still entering these doors. So, starting next week, all staff will be reminding any adults who want to enter the building and walk their child to class to use the FRONT doors. We apologize if this causes any inconvenience but in today's world, we need to stay on top of safety procedures that have been put in place to keep our kids safe in school!! Please be respectful if a staff member reminds you to use the front doors. Thanks for your understanding and help as we strive to have a safe school!!
I would like to give a shout out to our Core Group of Parents - This is a group of classroom parents who have agreed to help schedule activities for the classroom, get volunteers into the classroom as needed, as well as help plan parties and extra activities. Our lead parent is Laura Guerin, Georges mom. The group consists of Cherie Robinson (Duncan’s mom), Jake Burden (Max’s dad), Liz Mahlich (Gavin’s mom), TJ Andrews (Franklin’s mom) Asia Lopez-Chard (Dylan’s mom) and Kristi Weadock (Owen’s mom). I thank each and every one of you for taking an active role in this group.
Gym Schedule: - The gym schedule for parent volunteers has been posted on the website under “Documents.” You can always find it here to check for your scheduled day. If this proves to be successful and we continue our mornings with only one assistant, we will be asking for more parental help for the remainder of the year in gym class!!!
Check out the photo “Gallery” on our website! I have begun to post some photos of students working.
Constitution Day – was Tuesday September 17th. The Kindergarten students listened to a book titled, “The Pledge of Allegiance.” We watched a power point explaining the constitution of the United States and played a lets pretend game in relation to the Bill of Rights. We pretended that someone took our writing binders and our writing materials and talked about how that would make us feel. We talked about how, as Americans, we have certain rights that protect our personal property and us.
Bucket Fillers! Peace Day is officially Saturday the 21st. In class we read the book titled, “Have You Filled a Bucket Today?” by Carol McCloud. You may begin to hear some of this language at home. It is a great way to help children understand how our words and actions affect others. It is a story about how everyone carries an invisible bucket. Our bucket’s purpose is to hold our good thoughts and good feelings about ourselves. A full bucket makes us happy; an empty bucket makes us sad. You fill other people’s buckets by showing love and saying or doing something kind. Even sharing a smile will help fill a bucket. When you act kind you are”bucket filler”. When you make fun of someone, say mean things or do things that are hurtful, you are dipping into the person’s bucket and taking good feelings out. This is being a “bucket dipper”. We will be using this language a lot in school as we learn to get along and treat others how we want to be treated!
Pease Rose – We have a peace shelf in our classroom. One of the many activities on this shelf is a ‘Peace Rose.” The students have had lessons on how to use this rose. It is to be used to resolve conflicts peacefully in our classroom. When a child has a conflict with another child they take the rose off the shelf and find the friend they need to talk to. Each friend gets to hold the rose and explain how the other child’s actions made him or her feel. They then apologize, or decide to not make the same mistakes again. Each child then holds the rose and declares a friendship, once the conflict has been resolved. Ms. Shelly and I help the children use the peace rose when needed. Students also use it on their own when they are ready. In remembrance of “Peace Day” each child will take home a peace rose on Monday. Some children have already discussed how they may use this rose with their brothers or sisters at home.
Morning Cubbie Routines: A very famous Montessori quote goes as follows, “Never help a child with a task at which he feels he can succeed.” In the mornings, and through out your child’s days at school, we are teaching them to be independent and to be successful with taking care of their own needs. I am asking for your help and consistency at school and home. Please remember that in the morning your child has very specific duties to perform, taking their coats off, changing their shoes, taking our their folders, turning over their picture cards and making a lunch choice if applicable. For some of our young kiddos we understand that this process may take awhile as it is new. However we will afford them the time to do this on their own. It would very helpful for us if families said there goodbyes at the door, as the cubby area is very small, and let your child enter their classroom independently to begin their day. Thank you for your understanding and help.
With that being said there may not be an adult in the room before 8:00- Please remember that drop off begins at 8:00am. Thank you
Art – If you haven’t already don so, please bring in an art shirt. These shirts will remain in the classroom at all times. An old shirt from mom or dad would be perfect. Make sure it has long sleeves and goes down to your child’s knees. Please label the shirt with your child’s name and do not plan on it coming home in the same condition as you sent it in. ;-)
Rest towels and Pre-k blankets - go home on Friday to be washed and then returned on Monday.
Paperwork – Please make sure you have completed and returned all necessary paperwork from our classroom and the office. You can send in completed forms in your child’s communication folder.
Pahls Pumpkin Patch Permission Slips- went home on Friday. I have also posted a link on our Website under documents. Please return your money and permission slip to the class by next week Friday. This year the only pay option is paying per trip. Thank you.
Turtle Boy- Ms. Shelly brought in her painted box turtle Friday to share with the class. The students enjoyed observing him and recording their observations on paper!!!
Next weeks snack – is Morgan, Murphy, Space and Stark. Thank you!
____________________________________________________
Friday September 13, 2013
Your child may have had the following lessons this week:
Language – beginning letter sounds, opposites, Zoo Phonics (the letter sounds) shelf placement for language
Writing – Drawing a picture and then telling a story, writing about a small moment
Math – Number Assessments
Sensorial – Geometric Solids; cone, sphere, cube and the geometric cabinet
Art- easel painting, play dough
Peace shelf – The Peace Rose (resolving conflicts peacefully)
Practical Life – Preparing snack, dishwashing
Handwriting – Metal insets, KDG the numbers 10-4.
Ms. Shelly Is our fulltime classroom assistant. Originally at the beginning of the year we were planning on having another part-time assistant in the classroom in the mornings. We currently have 20 students enrolled in our classroom. Unless more students enroll throughout the year it will just be Shelly and I. Ms. Shelly and I have worked together for 4 years now and she is such an asset to our classroom! We work very well together and we are so happy to have her back with us again this year! Happy Birthday Franklin Andrews – Franklin celebrated his birthday on Thursday September 12th. Franklin turned three on September 6th. We celebrated with his mom. She brought in a healthy treat to pass and pictures of Franklin throughout his journey of life.
I will be out of the classroom on September 19th. My husband and I will be driving down to Ann Harbor to the Mott’s Children’s Hospital for a follow-up appointment for our son Jack. Ms. Shelly will be here and I am working on getting a familiar face to fill in for me for the day.
Art – Our class is so lucky to be able to attend art classes now with Ms. Barbie! Our times will be on Thursday from 10:00 to 11:15. She will take our class in three separate groups to complete a project. This week the students were painting rubber bands over brownie sheets. Once the rubber bands were painted they would snap the rubber band to spray paint on the paper below!! We are asking that all students bring in an art shirt. These shirts will remain in the classroom at all times. An old shirt from mom or dad would be perfect. Make sure it has long sleeves and goes down to your child’s knees. Please label the shirt with your child’s name and do not plan on it coming home in the same condition as you sent it in. ;-)
Rest towels and Pre-k blankets - go home on Friday to be washed and then returned on Monday.
Paperwork – Please make sure you have completed and returned all necessary paperwork from our classroom and the office. You can send in completed forms in your child’s communication folder.
Save the Date - We will be taking our first field trip on October 3rd. We will be traveling by bus to Pahl’s Pumpkin Patch. More info to come!! See the Upcoming Events page for more upcoming events.
Snack menu – The snack menu for September and the first couple weeks of October has been sent home Friday in your child’s communication folder. Please check to see what week you have been assigned. It looks like each family will be responsible for the classroom snack every 6 to 7 weeks. Please send in snack on Monday morning. This menu is also posted on our website under ‘SNACK.’
Next weeks snack – is Guerin, Hickman, Mahlich and Medler Thank you!
Toys at school – Our classroom policy is that all toys remain at home. We are finding that some children have been bringing toys to school in the backpacks. Please remind your little ones to keep these toys safe at home. If your child has one specific stuffed animal friend that he or she would like to rest with, that may come to school in your child’s backpack, but please limit these items to only one. Thank you.
Missing Classroom Works – It never fails, especially at the beginning of the year, classroom materials seem to go missing. ;-) The Montessori works are set up with a control of error. Each “work” only works if all the pieces are complete. I find that the students at the beginning of the year are so eager to get their hands on the materials that some little pieces may end up going home. Many of these materials may look like toys, for example, little cars, animals and other objects. If you happen to find any of these materials at home, please ask your child to return them to the classroom the next day. Thank you for your help!
Sign up for October conferences!!! Primary conferences will be held on Wednesday October 9th, Wednesday October 16th and Thursday October 17th form 4:00 to 6:40. If you didn’t sign up at open house our classroom folder is on the table next to the main office. Please sign up as soon as possible as spots are filling up quickly. The due date to sign up is September 27, 2013.
______________________________________________________________________________________
Language – beginning letter sounds, opposites, Zoo Phonics (the letter sounds) shelf placement for language
Writing – Drawing a picture and then telling a story, writing about a small moment
Math – Number Assessments
Sensorial – Geometric Solids; cone, sphere, cube and the geometric cabinet
Art- easel painting, play dough
Peace shelf – The Peace Rose (resolving conflicts peacefully)
Practical Life – Preparing snack, dishwashing
Handwriting – Metal insets, KDG the numbers 10-4.
Ms. Shelly Is our fulltime classroom assistant. Originally at the beginning of the year we were planning on having another part-time assistant in the classroom in the mornings. We currently have 20 students enrolled in our classroom. Unless more students enroll throughout the year it will just be Shelly and I. Ms. Shelly and I have worked together for 4 years now and she is such an asset to our classroom! We work very well together and we are so happy to have her back with us again this year! Happy Birthday Franklin Andrews – Franklin celebrated his birthday on Thursday September 12th. Franklin turned three on September 6th. We celebrated with his mom. She brought in a healthy treat to pass and pictures of Franklin throughout his journey of life.
I will be out of the classroom on September 19th. My husband and I will be driving down to Ann Harbor to the Mott’s Children’s Hospital for a follow-up appointment for our son Jack. Ms. Shelly will be here and I am working on getting a familiar face to fill in for me for the day.
Art – Our class is so lucky to be able to attend art classes now with Ms. Barbie! Our times will be on Thursday from 10:00 to 11:15. She will take our class in three separate groups to complete a project. This week the students were painting rubber bands over brownie sheets. Once the rubber bands were painted they would snap the rubber band to spray paint on the paper below!! We are asking that all students bring in an art shirt. These shirts will remain in the classroom at all times. An old shirt from mom or dad would be perfect. Make sure it has long sleeves and goes down to your child’s knees. Please label the shirt with your child’s name and do not plan on it coming home in the same condition as you sent it in. ;-)
Rest towels and Pre-k blankets - go home on Friday to be washed and then returned on Monday.
Paperwork – Please make sure you have completed and returned all necessary paperwork from our classroom and the office. You can send in completed forms in your child’s communication folder.
Save the Date - We will be taking our first field trip on October 3rd. We will be traveling by bus to Pahl’s Pumpkin Patch. More info to come!! See the Upcoming Events page for more upcoming events.
Snack menu – The snack menu for September and the first couple weeks of October has been sent home Friday in your child’s communication folder. Please check to see what week you have been assigned. It looks like each family will be responsible for the classroom snack every 6 to 7 weeks. Please send in snack on Monday morning. This menu is also posted on our website under ‘SNACK.’
Next weeks snack – is Guerin, Hickman, Mahlich and Medler Thank you!
Toys at school – Our classroom policy is that all toys remain at home. We are finding that some children have been bringing toys to school in the backpacks. Please remind your little ones to keep these toys safe at home. If your child has one specific stuffed animal friend that he or she would like to rest with, that may come to school in your child’s backpack, but please limit these items to only one. Thank you.
Missing Classroom Works – It never fails, especially at the beginning of the year, classroom materials seem to go missing. ;-) The Montessori works are set up with a control of error. Each “work” only works if all the pieces are complete. I find that the students at the beginning of the year are so eager to get their hands on the materials that some little pieces may end up going home. Many of these materials may look like toys, for example, little cars, animals and other objects. If you happen to find any of these materials at home, please ask your child to return them to the classroom the next day. Thank you for your help!
Sign up for October conferences!!! Primary conferences will be held on Wednesday October 9th, Wednesday October 16th and Thursday October 17th form 4:00 to 6:40. If you didn’t sign up at open house our classroom folder is on the table next to the main office. Please sign up as soon as possible as spots are filling up quickly. The due date to sign up is September 27, 2013.
______________________________________________________________________________________
Friday September 6, 2013
What a successful first week of school! It is wonderful to be back in the classroom sharing my days with these amazing little ones. The students seem so excited about their classroom and their learning this year. I love it!!! These are some of the lessons that took place this week; Writing Kdg. – preparing binders, story telling with pictures. Language – assessing for sound recognition, pre-language, beginning letter sounds, the moveable alphabet. Math – Pre-Math, red and blue rods. Science – Living and non-living. Sensorial – Manipulatives, pink tower. Art- apple sequencing, cutting practice, crayons and markers, easel coloring, hole punching. Practical Life – toileting, hand washing, rug rolling, carrying a rug, pouring, spooning, tonging, sitting on the line, interrupting an adult or friend and morning routines.
Birthday information on the website. Birthdays in the Montessori classroom are celebrated in a very unique way. This special celebration includes the children in class, parents, siblings and any other family members you wish to invite. Please find more information about this important even on our website under DOCUMENTS. Please contact me at least one week before your child’s birthday so that we can plan for the date and time of each event! Thank you
Sign up for October conferences!!! Primary conferences will be held on Wednesday October 9th, Wednesday October 16th and Thursday October 17th form 4:00 to 6:40. If you didn’t sign up at open house our classroom folder is on the table next to the main office. Please sign up as soon as possible as spots are filling up quickly. The due date to sign up is September 27, 2013.
Starting on Monday no parents will be permitted to enter the 13th street doors at any time. Due to the safety of the community, there will no longer be parent access through these doors at anytime. If you choose to walk your child to the classroom you MUST enter through the office doors. After carline the 13th street doors will remain locked for the rest of the day. Thank you for your help and understanding in this matter.
Independence in the lunch room! Between Ms. Shelly and I we were able to eat in the lunch room three out of the four days this week. I will not be able to continue this routine for the year. I am hoping to get in there at least one day a week and share our lunch together. While there are assistants in the lunchroom there to help it would be very helpful to start practicing some independence at home with mealtime. Please help teach your child how to open and close their lunch box and containers. Also explain to them what you would like them to do with leftover uneaten food. A reminder to start with the main course first might be a good conversation as well. This will help tremendously in the lunchroom. Please be aware that the student only have 20 minutes to eat. I have been talking with the class on a whole about sitting down and eating right away, and then they can socialize with their peers. You are welcome to join your child in the lunchroom anytime. Our scheduled lunch is from 11:24 to 11:44.
Happy Birthday George Guerin!!! George turned five on August 31st. We celebrated his birthday with his family on Friday. He had his mom and two brothers visit our classroom. He shared family photos of his trip to Seattle and the Netherlands!
Specials posted on the website. I have posted our classroom specials on our website under “SPECIALS” We will be attending library every Friday morning beginning next week. Library books must come back to school ever Friday.
Classroom needs I would like to thank each family who brought in donations of snack, art supplies and other materials this week. I will be sending home an official snack calendar the end of this week to begin the week of September 16th. We are still in need of snack donations to get us through next week. We are hoping to get a few blocks of cheese, whole grain crackers, pretzels, carrots, and apples. Also, please see the “Wish List” tab on our website for other classroom needs. Thank you.
SAVE THE DATE! Friday, September 20th! Join school families for a Back-to-School Dinner Picnic here at TCAPS Montessori. Details coming soon
Birthday information on the website. Birthdays in the Montessori classroom are celebrated in a very unique way. This special celebration includes the children in class, parents, siblings and any other family members you wish to invite. Please find more information about this important even on our website under DOCUMENTS. Please contact me at least one week before your child’s birthday so that we can plan for the date and time of each event! Thank you
Sign up for October conferences!!! Primary conferences will be held on Wednesday October 9th, Wednesday October 16th and Thursday October 17th form 4:00 to 6:40. If you didn’t sign up at open house our classroom folder is on the table next to the main office. Please sign up as soon as possible as spots are filling up quickly. The due date to sign up is September 27, 2013.
Starting on Monday no parents will be permitted to enter the 13th street doors at any time. Due to the safety of the community, there will no longer be parent access through these doors at anytime. If you choose to walk your child to the classroom you MUST enter through the office doors. After carline the 13th street doors will remain locked for the rest of the day. Thank you for your help and understanding in this matter.
Independence in the lunch room! Between Ms. Shelly and I we were able to eat in the lunch room three out of the four days this week. I will not be able to continue this routine for the year. I am hoping to get in there at least one day a week and share our lunch together. While there are assistants in the lunchroom there to help it would be very helpful to start practicing some independence at home with mealtime. Please help teach your child how to open and close their lunch box and containers. Also explain to them what you would like them to do with leftover uneaten food. A reminder to start with the main course first might be a good conversation as well. This will help tremendously in the lunchroom. Please be aware that the student only have 20 minutes to eat. I have been talking with the class on a whole about sitting down and eating right away, and then they can socialize with their peers. You are welcome to join your child in the lunchroom anytime. Our scheduled lunch is from 11:24 to 11:44.
Happy Birthday George Guerin!!! George turned five on August 31st. We celebrated his birthday with his family on Friday. He had his mom and two brothers visit our classroom. He shared family photos of his trip to Seattle and the Netherlands!
Specials posted on the website. I have posted our classroom specials on our website under “SPECIALS” We will be attending library every Friday morning beginning next week. Library books must come back to school ever Friday.
Classroom needs I would like to thank each family who brought in donations of snack, art supplies and other materials this week. I will be sending home an official snack calendar the end of this week to begin the week of September 16th. We are still in need of snack donations to get us through next week. We are hoping to get a few blocks of cheese, whole grain crackers, pretzels, carrots, and apples. Also, please see the “Wish List” tab on our website for other classroom needs. Thank you.
SAVE THE DATE! Friday, September 20th! Join school families for a Back-to-School Dinner Picnic here at TCAPS Montessori. Details coming soon
August 6, 2013
Please navigate through the website as some things have been updated.
Recommended School Supplies List for PRIMARY (Preschool & Kindergarten) 2013-14School Year SCHOOL SUPPLIES
Primary School Supplies:
The following are items your child will need for school. Please make sure to bring
everything on the first day so we can unpack and get settled for the year.
Backpack: Large enough to hold folders and child's belongings. Keep in mind all the winter gear that will need to be hauled to school each day!
Extra clothes: A change of clothes in zip-lock type bag. Please label the bag
with your child's name. Accidents happen and learning can be messy!
Two-pocket folder: This folder will be used as our "Communication Folder". It will be the link for home-school communication. Please check your folder each day and send it back with your child on the following day. It can also be used for lunch money, payments, book orders, etc. Please make sure to send a folder to school with your child on their first school day. Thanks!
Inside shoes: Your child will need a pair of rubber-soled shoes to keep at school. Gym shoes are your best choice since the children have gym twice a week. Please send shoes that your child can put on independently. Please do not choose tie shoes unless your child knows how to tie. There will be a shoe tying work on the shelf for your child to practice.
1 package of glue sticks
1 package of colored pencils
1 package of thin or thick markers
All Day Preschool Children ONLY: Small blanket and/or pillow for rest time. All
bedding will be sent home on Friday's for washing.
****Kindergarten Students ONLY****
A Composition Book (recording
work)
Two-Pocket folder to be used for Albanesi math work
1 inch 3-ring binder with a vinyl see-through view pocket on the front and back cover (writing binder)
3-ring binder pencil pouch with zipper ~ to be kept in writing binder
Five Pictures:
Please send in five photographs of your child that can be used for storytelling (they will notbe returned). We will need these pictures the first week of school to kick off our writing program.
Beach or Large Bath towel for resting (kindergarten children only). This will be kept at school and sent
For the Classroom: The following are items that we go through frequently.
We appreciate any donations to keep our classroom stocked.
These are only suggestions and are not mandatory.
The snack donations on the list are much appreciated to help us get through our first week of snack.
Thank you so much!!
Kleenex, wipes, Dixie cups (5oz), Sanitizing wipes, napkins,
Band-aids, Zip-locks (any size), paper plates, whole grain crackers, graham
crackers, granola bars, bag of apples, block of cheese, hand soap.
Primary School Supplies:
The following are items your child will need for school. Please make sure to bring
everything on the first day so we can unpack and get settled for the year.
Backpack: Large enough to hold folders and child's belongings. Keep in mind all the winter gear that will need to be hauled to school each day!
Extra clothes: A change of clothes in zip-lock type bag. Please label the bag
with your child's name. Accidents happen and learning can be messy!
Two-pocket folder: This folder will be used as our "Communication Folder". It will be the link for home-school communication. Please check your folder each day and send it back with your child on the following day. It can also be used for lunch money, payments, book orders, etc. Please make sure to send a folder to school with your child on their first school day. Thanks!
Inside shoes: Your child will need a pair of rubber-soled shoes to keep at school. Gym shoes are your best choice since the children have gym twice a week. Please send shoes that your child can put on independently. Please do not choose tie shoes unless your child knows how to tie. There will be a shoe tying work on the shelf for your child to practice.
1 package of glue sticks
1 package of colored pencils
1 package of thin or thick markers
All Day Preschool Children ONLY: Small blanket and/or pillow for rest time. All
bedding will be sent home on Friday's for washing.
****Kindergarten Students ONLY****
A Composition Book (recording
work)
Two-Pocket folder to be used for Albanesi math work
1 inch 3-ring binder with a vinyl see-through view pocket on the front and back cover (writing binder)
3-ring binder pencil pouch with zipper ~ to be kept in writing binder
Five Pictures:
Please send in five photographs of your child that can be used for storytelling (they will notbe returned). We will need these pictures the first week of school to kick off our writing program.
Beach or Large Bath towel for resting (kindergarten children only). This will be kept at school and sent
For the Classroom: The following are items that we go through frequently.
We appreciate any donations to keep our classroom stocked.
These are only suggestions and are not mandatory.
The snack donations on the list are much appreciated to help us get through our first week of snack.
Thank you so much!!
Kleenex, wipes, Dixie cups (5oz), Sanitizing wipes, napkins,
Band-aids, Zip-locks (any size), paper plates, whole grain crackers, graham
crackers, granola bars, bag of apples, block of cheese, hand soap.