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Mrs. Hood: Sensorial Exploration!

Posted on by Andrea Hood

Maria Montessori believed that nothing comes into the mind except through the senses. During the early years, as children develop their senses, their attention is directed toward the environment. The purpose of the Sensorial activities is to help the child in their efforts to sort out the many varied impressions given by the senses. These activities are specifically planned to help the child develop discrimination, order, and to broaden and refine the senses. These experiences also help prepare them to be a logical, aware, and perceptive person.

As we continue our studies on the rainbow, we started this week by observing a walking rainbow experiment.  Using cups with water, paper towels and red, blue and yellow food coloring, the children got to observe how the water traveled through the paper towel and mixed in the empty cups creating new colors like orange, green and purple.

How does this experiment work? The water moves up the paper towels through a process called capillary action. The paper towel is made from fibers and the water is able to travel through the gaps in the fibers. The gaps in the paper towel act like capillary tubes and pull the water upward. This is what helps water climb from a plant’s roots to the leaves at the top of the plant or tree.

The water is able to move upward against gravity because of the attractive forces between the water and the fibers in the paper towel.

Children observed in awe the different stages of this experiment throughout the week. The main expression used was: Wow! Followed by giggles and little dances.

Another Sensorial activity the children really seemed to love this week was a pouring and spooning work in our practical life area. As a point of interest we changed the pouring water for vinegar and the spooning objects for baking soda. The sound of the sizzling baking soda mixing with the vinegar and the carbon dioxide bubbles that created as a result, brought priceless smiles and laughter to your children. This was definitely a very popular work this week! Take a small peek of some children working with it!

As an addition, children explored the sensory bin this week searching for golden coins inside green rice. Using a slotted spoon, children sifted the rice and recollected only the coins. So fun!

On another note,  children enjoyed working with the go-together cards in our language area, sorting and matching the corresponding pictures. We have also started our studies in Wild animals. Animals like: Giraffe, Zebra, Elephant, Cheetah, Lion, Hippopotamus, Raccoon, Moose, Bear, Wolf, Orangutan, Monkey and alligator have been introduced and we have  explored some of their characteristics. If you have an opportunity to visit the zoo during the spring break, I highly recommend giving your toddler the time to observe these animals in action.

Lastly, for Food tasting, children explored Asparagus this week and had a great time exploring the outdoors and all its magic!

We leave you here with the song of the week, as children looked forward each day to sing it!

We hope you have a great Spring break! See you back on March 27th!

Best,

Mrs. Hood and Ms. Marissa  

Upper El’s Week

Posted on by Karen Sankey

We have packed as much as possible into this week before our two-week March Break.

Everyone had updated individual lessons in math, with many students moving on to new concepts. We will hit the ground running when we return from break! In geometry, fourths continued their lessons on proving equivalence between two figures. Fifths are working with area formulas, most recently finding the area of acute and right triangles.

In history, students started learning about their ancient civilizations for our extensive research project. They will spend the next few weeks researching their assigned civilizations and working with their group members to write papers, prepare presentations, and make three-dimensional models of their civilizations. Then, on Research Night, April 13th, at 5:00, students will present their research to you and their peers. They are very excited to work together on this project. I will send more information about Research Night and the work leading up to it when we return from March Break.

Thank you to Raquel for coming in this week and working on our class plate, and gift for the Here We Grow Spring Gala and Auction! The children enjoyed expressing their creativity while painting the plate and cornhole game.

Wishing you a marvelous March Break,
Karen and Angie

Lower Elementary: Wrapping It Up

Posted on by Ashley O'Connell

The teaching of grammar is an integral part of the Montessori language curriculum for elementary children. The aims of this work are for the children to learn the parts of speech and to understand the relationships between them. This work also provides practice reading and writing and enriches the vocabulary of the children. Introductory lessons for each part of speech are given as part of a story; their purpose is to give an impression of the function played by each different part of speech. The children are introduced to grammar symbols for each part. Lessons are followed up with work which is a tool for the children to explore the parts of speech. The first years have been learning about adjectives, second years adverbs, and third graders interjections!

Have a restful and energizing spring break! See you in two weeks!

Mrs. Wilson: Busy Little Toddlers

Posted on by Cynthia Wilson

This week was a busy week for our toddlers. We started and ended the week with birthday celebrations. In between that we made Irish Soda Bread. The children each took a turn to add in the ingredients to the bread machine. Throughout the morning they were able to watch the machine mix, knead, rise, and bake the delicious bread. The delightful smell of the warm bread filled the classroom. The next day the children enjoyed it as an extra special treat.

On Tuesday the weather was too windy to go outside so we had fun playing in the gym. The children had fun throwing and kicking small foam balls and rolling and chasing hoops. It was a great way to get all our extra energy out.

Food Tasting: This week the children tasted asparagus.

See you after Spring Break,

Cynthia and Sara

Mrs. Semmah: Going to the Zoo

Posted on by Kaoutar Semmah

On Thursday, we welcomed the Beardsley Zoo animal ambassadors for a presentation on colors in nature. We met Patty the turtle, Cooper the dove, Gabby the gecko, and Munson the alligator.  We learned how the colors on their body relate to where they live and even how they communicate with their unique patterns. The animal ambassador handlers also made sure each child got an up close look of the animal, while providing interesting and engaging facts.  The children loved learning all about each animal and having the opportunity to ask questions about their diet, their habitat and even the sounds they make.

We wish everyone a chance to unwind and enjoy the time with your families over the course of the next two weeks!

Warmly,

Kaoutar & Lizette

Mrs. Lopes: Going to the Zoo

Posted on by Amanda Lopes

On Thursday, we welcomed the Beardsley Zoo animal ambassadors for a presentation on colors in nature. We met Patty the turtle, Cooper the dove, Gabby the gecko, and Munson the alligator.  We learned how the colors on their body relate to where they live and even how they communicate with their unique patterns. The animal ambassador handlers also made sure each child got an up close look of the animal, while providing interesting and engaging facts.  The children loved learning all about each animal and having the opportunity to ask questions about their diet, their habitat and even the sounds they make.

We wish everyone a chance to unwind and enjoy the time with your families over the course of the next two weeks!

Warmly,

Amanda & Hema

Mrs. Doyle: Going to the Zoo

Posted on by Michelle Handibode

On Thursday, we welcomed the Beardsley Zoo animal ambassadors for a presentation on colors in nature. We met Patty the turtle, Cooper the dove, Gabby the gecko, and Munson the alligator.  We learned how the colors on their body relate to where they live and even how they communicate with their unique patterns. The animal ambassador handlers also made sure each child got an up close look of the animal, while providing interesting and engaging facts.  The children loved learning all about each animal and having the opportunity to ask questions about their diet, their habitat and even the sounds they make.

We wish everyone a chance to to unwind and enjoy the time with your families over the course of the next two weeks.

Peace & Love,

Michelle & Maria

Upper El: Ancient Civilizations

Posted on by Karen Sankey

The time has finally come for our big Ancient Civilizations Research Project!

Upper El students study ancient civilizations to learn to see them as an evolutionary stage and to identify with the process of civilization. They learn to challenge the notion of a simplistic, linear progression of human development and discover the most significant events of civilization. We will explore the contributions of cultures, and we hope these studies will arouse each student’s curiosity for expanded studies of civilizations. As we learn about the development of civilizations, we will explore how each group satisfied specific fundamental needs. We will look for ways they expressed basic human tendencies and compare and contrast groups. Each study will focus on geography, cultural activities, everyday life, and political and economic systems. Upper el students will work in small groups, each focusing on one civilization. Working together, they will complete their research in school. They will present to their peers and parents at Research Night on Thursday, April 13th.

After a week of introductory lessons and browsing our classroom library of books on ancient civilizations, students ranked their top four choices. The cultures were narrowed down to Aztecs, Greeks, Vikings, and Egyptians. They received their research group assignments on Friday at the end of the day. The majority, if not all, of the research and presentation preparations, will be completed in school. I’ll update you as we go and let you know if any work is to be completed at home. The children are very excited and look forward to collaborating to present this project to you!

We hope you have a wonderful weekend,
Karen and Angie