Blog

Ms. Vicki’s Weekly Update

Posted on by Vicki Downs

This week we have been enjoying the ever-changing weather from warm sunny days to chilly, cloudy, and rainy ones. No matter the forecast, the children have certainly found plenty of ways to get their energy out!

Outside, the children loved:

  • running around with the dump trucks
  • swinging
  • drawing with chalk
  • chasing and playing with friends

There has been lots of movement, laughter, and fresh air as we embraced all kinds of spring weather.

Inside the classroom, we focused on activities that help build hand strength and coordination. The children practiced:

  • scissor work
  • peeling and sticking different-sized stickers
  • gluing felt clippings onto a caterpillar to create a fuzzy little friend

These activities support fine motor development while also allowing the children to be creative and expressive.

We have also been spending time practicing communication skills and encouraging the children to use their words and voices to let friends know what they need. Learning how to communicate with peers in kind and respectful ways is such an important part of growing together in the classroom community.

For food tasting this week, we tried cantaloupe, and the children really enjoyed the sweet, juicy fruit. There were lots of happy faces and requests for more!

It has been a very productive week full of movement, creativity, learning, and growing friendships. Very busy hands and busy bodies!

This Week in Upper El

Posted on by Karen Sankey

“Don’t you sometimes feel bewildered when you think of the millions of things that put life together?’ … ‘I’m not bewildered. I’m filled with the deepest awe and wonder. The miracle is that in its complexity it all works.” -Julie Andrews Edwards, The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles

We spent most of last week testing, and everyone handled the schedule like pros! Students spent their early mornings rehearsing for the spring musical, followed by our class chapter-book read-aloud, and then testing. After following this schedule Monday through Thursday, we were glad to get back to a more typical routine on Friday with student-led yoga after our read-aloud and some work cycle time before lunch. Students are hard at work on an end-of-the-year biology project, researching and writing reports about the vital functions of animals. Their options for completing the project are either to prepare a presentation with a slideshow about their animal or to write an informational booklet.

This coming week is our last week before we head off to Massachusetts for Nature’s Classroom. We are getting very excited, and students will choose their activities in the next couple of days. If you haven’t turned in your medical forms yet, please do that by Tuesday at the latest. I will be inviting you to join a WhatsApp text group for communication while we are away. I’ll use this group to share photos, in real time when possible, and communicate information about our trip while we are away.

Coming Up!

  • Monday, May 18 – DEADLINE to Order Pilot Lunch Program
  • Thursday, May 21 @ 7:00 – Spring Musical
  • Friday, May 22 – DEADLINE to Order a Yearbook
  • Monday, May 25 – No School: Memorial Day
  • Tuesday, May 26 – Thursday, May 28  – Nature’s Classroom Trip
  • Friday, May 29 – May and Summer Birthday Breakfast

The Next Chapter

Posted on by Jill Skilton

Every improvement we make to this campus is in service of our students—giving them the space, the resources, and the environment they need to grow into independent, curious, and capable individuals.

David Newman, Head of School

What We’re Building

The centerpiece of the project is a new Physical Education and Performing Arts Center, created by transforming a previously underutilized area of our campus. This will allow us to renovate our current PE and Performing Arts space into four new classrooms as well as transforming the current Makerspace area into a new common area featuring lockers and expanded restroom facilities. More than an upgrade to daily logistics—this extends the prepared environment of our school. In Montessori education, the spaces children move through throughout the day are not incidental, they are considered essential to development. Social interaction, the rhythms of transition, and the quiet moments of community that happen in shared spaces provide children the freedom to move, connect, and grow not just in the classroom, but throughout their entire day.

Three Summers. One Vision.

This is the third consecutive summer that Fraser Woods has invested meaningfully in its campus. Each project has built on the last — and together they tell a story about a school that takes its mission seriously enough to keep reaching.

Athletic Field & Campus Grounds | Summer 2024
A new multi-use synthetic athletic field, driveway improvements, and updated landscaping — changing how our students experience the outdoors every single day.

Building Envelope Renovation | Summer 2025
New siding, windows, and roofing — improving energy efficiency, and giving our building the warmth and presence it deserves.

The Largest Project in Our History | Summer 2026
A new PE & Performing Arts Center, four new classrooms, and expanded common areas. The most ambitious thing we have ever built — together.

What to Expect This Summer

Our summer program will run as scheduled. Some activities will use alternative spaces during construction, and there may be small adjustments to traffic flow on campus. We will keep you informed every step of the way — clearly, and well in advance of any changes.

On Gratitude

For more than five decades, the Fraser Woods community has made quiet, consistent choices that put children first. This expansion is the latest expression of that commitment—and it didn’t happen because of any single decision or any single year. It happened because of all of you, over a very long time.

We are proud to be a school that is growing. Not just in the size of our campus, but in what we are able to offer the children who walk through our doors — and in the depth of the community that walks alongside them.

We can’t wait to welcome you into these new spaces.

To learn more about our campus and the environment we are building for our students, visit our Campus page.

Mrs. Sargeant: Sparkling Windows and New Wings

Posted on by Christine Sargeant

Last week, we were so proud to share our classroom with grandparents and special visitors.

Back in the classroom, window washing has become one of the most popular Practical Life works this week. It may seem like a simple cleaning task, but it is so much more than that. Window washing supports independence and responsibility, builds coordination and fine motor skills, demands concentration and careful sequencing, and offers the deep sensory satisfaction of a job done well. When a child surveys a streak-free window that they cleaned themselves, that quiet pride is the Montessori approach at its heart.

Our insect study is well underway, and the caterpillars have been a source of daily wonder. We said a bittersweet goodbye to our chicks this week. If you would like to visit them or pick up some eggs and other goodies — Palmieri Farm is the place to go.

The week also brought a sweet treat: watermelon and kiwi were shared in the classroom, and many of the children tried both with great enthusiasm.

We are deeply grateful for the heartfelt cards, gifts, and delicious treats that made Teacher Appreciation Week so special. Thank you, sincerely, for your generosity and kindness.

Extending Learning at Home

  • Invite your child to wash a low window or mirror at home — give them a spray bottle with water and a cloth, and watch their focus and pride in action.
  • Look for insects together on a walk or in your backyard. Ask your child to describe what they notice about each creature’s body, movement, or habitat.
  • If you visit Palmieri Farm, let your child lead the way — they may have more to share about life cycles than you expect!

UPCOMING EVENTS & ANNOUNCEMENTS

This Week

  • Monday, May 11 — Eliana: Flowers, Food, and Sharing Bag
  • Tuesday, May 12 — Jeannine: Recess Volunteer
  • Wednesday, May 13 — Lacy: Guest Reader

Looking Ahead

  • Tuesday, May 19 — Flanders Farm Kindergarten Field Trip. All children need a parent driver and chaperone — please respond to the earlier email regarding this.

Big Work and Independent Discovery in Lower El

Posted on by Carlie Taveras

One of the many roles of the Montessori teacher is to guide children on their own individual journeys of discovery. We aren’t meant to teach in a traditional sense by imparting knowledge, but rather to guide children toward finding answers for themselves, recognizing patterns, making connections, and allowing them to come up with their own strategies. There truly is nothing better than witnessing that “aha” moment when a child lights up after making their own discovery.

The Montessori materials support this process by giving children enough sensorial experience to derive formulas, rules, and understanding from their own work. Through repeated experiences with the materials, children begin to build generalizations based on the patterns and relationships they discover for themselves.

The elementary child is naturally drawn to “big work.” Big work is work that completely absorbs the child in a large endeavor of time, space, or complexity. It may be physically large in size, deeply detailed, intellectually challenging, or all of the above! We provide the child with essential details and guidance, while we encourage them to go further and research, explore, and discover more on their own.

Big work can happen in any area of the curriculum; it is not limited to one subject or one type of material. It is really about the child entering into work that fully captures their attention and invites them to go further than what was initially presented. This week was filled with beautiful examples of big work unfolding naturally with math work in the classroom.

A group of children began working with multiples and quickly moved far beyond the scope of the original lesson. What started as simple follow-up work to a presentation they were recently given turned into an enormous mathematical investigation that required the children to work through every box of bead bars in our classroom. When we ran out, the children eagerly borrowed more from Upper El so they could continue the work. Their excitement only grew as new patterns emerged and they made new discoveries. The school day ended before their work did, and the children pleaded to leave the work out so they could continue discovering more multiples on Monday. Their concentration, collaboration, and pure joy in the work were a reminder that children are capable of far more than we often imagine when they are given the freedom to follow their curiosities.

Another child experienced a similar moment while working with test tube division. After successfully working through the material as it was presented, there was a sudden pause followed by an excited realization of being able to go beyond the material. That single moment led to an entirely new exploration. The child realized they could borrow the racks and boards from other test tube division sets in order to create dividends beyond the millions and divisors greater than four digits. This was a powerful reminder of how the materials are usually far more limited than the Elementary child’s reasoning mind.

In the beginning stages of working with a material, we often need to support the child in creating equations or problems that are appropriate for their level of understanding. However, once a child has developed a solid understanding and a strong level of independence with the material, it becomes important to step back and allow them to create their own problems. This is often when the most meaningful learning happens. This allows the child to take greater ownership of their work and a much deeper connection to it.

It is common for elementary children to create elaborate work and extensive mathematical equations that are far beyond what an adult may have assigned. To the second plane child, the bigger the work, the better. When work comes from their own interests and ideas, they take a much greater sense of ownership in it. They are more invested, more connected, and more motivated to see the work through to completion.

This self-directed approach to learning, paired with thoughtful guidance from the adult, is at the heart of the Montessori elementary environment. While our role is to ensure balance across subject areas and support children in meeting academic expectations, it is essential to protect the child’s freedom to engage deeply in meaningful work. Within this balance, children develop independence, confidence, concentration, and a genuine love of learning.

Grandparents & Special Friends Day

Posted on by Jill Skilton

This Week in Upper El

Posted on by Karen Sankey

Why I Wake Early

Hello, sun in my face.
Hello, you who make the morning
and spread it over the fields
and into the faces of the tulips
and the nodding morning glories,
and into the windows of, even, the
miserable and crotchety-

best preacher that ever was,
dear star, that just happens
to be where you are in the universe
to keep us from ever-darkness,
to ease us with warm touching,
to hold us in the great hands of light-
good morning, good morning, good morning.

Watch, now, how I start the day
in happiness, in kindness.

Mary Oliver

Wishing the happiest of Mother’s Days to all of our Upper El mamas! 

Thank you for a very special Teacher Appreciation Week! Sara and I feel so loved and appreciated with all of your and your children’s heartfelt messages and gifts last week.

Upper el students are hard at work researching the vital functions of an animal of their choice. The process began with using our classroom materials to gather some initial facts. From there, students are weaving in what they learned in this week’s writing lesson on multi-paragraph reports, taking notes, and building outlines for their final papers. They are focusing on crafting strong topic sentences for each paragraph, then developing supporting and concluding sentences. After writing everything by hand, revising, and editing, they will type their final drafts, transforming their research into books about their chosen animals to share with the class. Their enthusiasm is clear – they’re dedicating a great deal of time and attention to this project. We love seeing them share information with each other as they learn more about their animals.

This week, we had our last sandwich-making morning of the year. We made 208 sandwiches for the soup kitchen! Thank you very much to all who contributed ingredients this month. A very special thank you to Teresa and Brandon for helping us make the sandwiches and dropping them off at St. Vincent DePaul! We appreciate all of you!

Next week, we will take the ERB-CTP5 standardized test. We will do a little each morning and keep the testing as low-key as possible. As a Montessori school, we take this test only as a practical life experience. We know that children will need to take tests in the future, as they enter high school and beyond, and we want to help prepare them for that. At the upper elementary level, we don’t report scores. This is because I use this opportunity to guide them through the test and explain things as questions come up. While I do not provide them with answers, I do give more guidance than the test allows if it is being scored. When students reach the middle school level, their tests are scored, and you will receive those scores.

Because we are in rehearsals for the musical until 10:00 each morning next week, the May and summer birthday breakfast will be on May 29, the day after we return from Nature’s Classroom.

If you have not yet turned in your child’s medical forms for our trip, please do so as soon as possible. 

Upcoming Dates

  • Thursday, May 21
    • Spring Musical @7:00
  • Friday, May 22
    • Yearbook Orders Due
  • Monday, May 25
    • No School – Memorial Day
  • Tuesday, May 26 – Thursday, May 28
    • Big Trip to Nature’s Classroom!
  • Friday, May 29
    • May and Summer Birthday Breakfast @8:30
  • Monday, June 1
    • First Annual Variety Show @4:00

Ms. Handibode: The Future is So Bright You Have to Wear Shades

Posted on by Michelle Handibode

 

Last week brought a bittersweet milestone: our chicks have left Fraser Woods and are on their way to a farm. But the life cycle study is far from over! We welcomed five caterpillars into the classroom, and the children have been watching them with the same intense fascination they brought to the eggs and chicks. In just a short time, the caterpillars have grown noticeably, and the anticipation of witnessing metamorphosis is palpable every morning.

May always carries a particular kind of magic in the classroom. It is the month when we look back at how far each child has come since August and also look forward to what remains. Learning at this stage is deeply cumulative — every skill builds on what came before. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the kindergarten animal research project, which has been underway for several weeks. This project draws on reading, writing, geography, science, and mathematics all at once, which is exactly why it lives at the end of the year.

As part of the project, each kindergartner was asked what they hope to be when they grow up — for the “About the Author” section of their books. Word spread quickly, and soon the whole class wanted in on the interview. Their answers speak for themselves:

  • Adeline: An artist who makes the most beautiful art that can be framed.
  • Brooks: A UPS driver who delivers packages to houses and stores.
  • Charlie D.: A builder who builds really tall castles.
  • Charley W.: An eye doctor because she likes to check people’s eyes and make sure they are working.
  • Connor: A scientist who makes potions.
  • Eloise: A ballerina who dances everywhere and a mom who has six children.
  • Hannah: An artist who draws hearts, stars, rainbows, and unicorns.
  • Jasper: A police officer who catches robbers.
  • Johnny: A movie maker who makes movies about dinosaurs or robots.
  • Layla: A make-up artist who makes people look beautiful for their weddings.
  • Melia: A dancer who likes to dance to Peppa Pig music.
  • Mila: An artist who makes tie-dye shirts for people.
  • Morgan: A construction worker who builds houses, schools, and bridges.
  • Nitzan: A basket maker who sells them to people who need to put stuff in them.
  • Olivia: A mommy who makes breakfast and dinner for everyone.
  • Remi: A construction worker who builds houses made out of plastic Legos.
  • Veda: A teacher who teaches little children how to read.
  • Wilder: A scientist who studies moonstones or an astronaut who travels to space.
  • Zaki: A doctor who helps people who are sick.
  • Zion: A prophet of God.

We are so proud of each one of them — and we have no doubt this group will do all of it and more.

Finally, “thank you” feels like far too small a phrase for the kindness shown during Teacher Appreciation Week. We felt the love every single day and are truly grateful for the relationships we have built with each child and with all of you.

UPCOMING EVENTS & ANNOUNCEMENTS

This Week

  • Monday, May 11 — Sharing Box and Flowers: Mila M.
  • Tuesday, May 12 — Playground Volunteer: Casey W.
  • Wednesday, May 13 — Guest Reader: Nick L.
  • Friday, May 15 — Birthday Celebration: Mila M.

Next Week

  • Monday, May 18 — Sharing Box and Flowers: Adeline G.
  • Tuesday, May 19 — Playground Volunteer: Dhanishry N.
  • Tuesday, May 19 — Kindergarten Field Trip to Flanders Nature Center
  • Thursday, May 21 — Birthday Celebration: Hannah B.