Blog

Mrs. Lopes Class: Welcome Fall

Posted on by Amanda Lopes

The weather is getting cooler and the leaves are starting to change as we welcomed the first day of fall. We have enjoyed spending some extra time outdoors this week with the gorgeous weather. In the classroom, we discussed what we like to do in the fall and one of our favorites was apple picking! We had so much fun learning more about apples this week. We studied the life cycle of an apple, talked about the parts of an apple, and even did an apple tasting. It was interesting to watch the children react to each kind of apple and describe how they looked and tasted different. We heard words such as “crunchy,” “juicy,” and “sour.”  At the end of the tasting, each child got to vote for their favorite…Granny Smith won!

We observed the children engaging with the apple-themed works on the shelf in all areas of the classroom this week. We also did some marble painting to make our own apples and our art teacher, Mrs. Reid, shared a yarn apple project that is beautifully displayed on a branch outside our classroom. If you have a chance, make sure to stop by and check it out!

Warmly,

Mrs. Lopes and Ms. Vigue

Mrs. Hood’s Class: Apples, Apples, Apples!

Posted on by Andrea Hood

Fall is here everybody! As the season changes and temperatures start to drop slowly, we entered our unit on the exploration of one of the most delicious seasonal fruits: the apple! With great expectation, your children enjoyed the fun sensorial activity of dissecting an apple! With senses full of curiosity, children touched, observed, smelled, and tasted a delicious apple. While children observed its parts, they were exposed to new vocabulary, such as: skin, flesh, seeds, and stem. A remaining part of the dissected apple is now part of our observation tray where children can observe the different stages of decomposition.

In the language area students that showed readiness were also introduced to three period lessons using different materials. Three period lessons are a fundamental approach in our Montessori environment to introducing a new concept (not just vocabulary) to children. They are used to move the child from basic understanding to mastery. The three period lesson was developed by Edouard Seguin, a French physician who worked with special needs children in France and the United States during the late 19th century. He discovered ways to increase children’s cognitive abilities and believed in the importance of developing their self-reliance and independence. Seguin’s writings were a major inspiration to Maria Montessori and the source of many of her practical ideas. In simple terms, the three steps, or periods, are:

1. Naming (Introduction) “This is a dog.”
2. Recognizing (Identification) “Show me the dog.”
3. Remembering (Cognition) “What is this?”

In the practical life area we focused this week on a fundamental lesson: how to clean a dry spill! As basic as it sounds, this was one of the most popular activities of the week. Practical life activities are the most important activities for toddlers! Activities for care of the environment are both fun and great for developing order, concentration, coordination, and independence.

Other highlights of the week were the introduction to our new song: “Way up High in the Apple Tree,” where children practiced the numbers one through five, and their favorite books: Ten Apples Up on Top by Dr. Seuss, Apple Countdown by Joan Hulub, and Apples, Apples, Apples by Nancy Elizabeth Wallace.

As the weekend approaches, we encourage you to enjoy the sunshine and the beautiful weather and visit an apple farm with your little one. It will be a great experience for them during the continuation of our apple studies.

Reminder:
Oktoberfest is just around the corner! (October 5th) Come and join us for an afternoon of fun activities for the whole family! We really hope to see you there and have a great time together!

Mrs. Wilson Had a Farm E,I,E,I,O

Posted on by Cynthia Wilson

This week we have seen tremendous progress in the children during arrivals. We have seen less and less tearful faces and more smiles and giggles. As your children’s confidence and trust have increased, they have started to explore their environment more intentionally. Some have become more social and even call their peers by name. We have seen others who have shown empathy towards an upset friend by either rubbing their back or offering a hug. It is so endearing. 

Children are like sponges absorbing language and the world around them. To build on their vocabulary, we started with something that was familiar to these children, farm animals. I gave a lesson to the children using our farm animal pictures and objects. To not overstimulate the children as they are trying to absorb language we use very few words. For example, I held up a cow and simply just said, “cow” and “moo.” Then I placed the cow on top of the picture of the cow and repeated just those two words. The children were engaged while watching the lesson and very eager to use it when I had finished. We also sang Old McDonald Had a Farm. 

If you have noticed your child dancing or marching around in a circle that is because we dance around our oval rug to Laurie Berkner’s, We are The Dinosaurs and Baby Shark. These children really love to dance!

One of my favorite events is coming up and I hope you will all join me at Oktoberfest. It is such a great way to meet others in the FWM community!

Enjoy all the photos!

Mrs. Wilson, Miss Sara, and Miss Heather

 

Mrs. Doyle’s Class: Sing Peace Around the World

Posted on by Michelle Handibode

Peace education is a basic tenet of the Montessori philosophy.  In the 3-6 environment, studying the seven continents, including its people and cultures, provides a global view of our world. As Montessori teachers, practicing and teaching peace, kindness, and acceptance is a natural part of our day. Dr. Maria Montessori believed we should think of education as peace, not education for peace.  She also believed that young children were our hope for eliminating conflict and instilling peace throughout the world. Dr. Montessori, as always, knew that lecturing children would accomplish very little and that to truly understand peace they would need to discover it for themselves.

To celebrate the International Day of Peace, on September 20th, our school participated in “Sing Peace Around The World.”  Beginning in New Zealand and ending in Hawaii, Montessori schools around the world sang “Light A Candle For Peace” for five minutes and during a specific time slot. So for 24 hours, this special song was being sung in a different part of the world by Montessori children.

We hope you enjoy this short video and pictures of our school taking part in this simple yet beautiful ceremony.

   Peace is what every human being is craving for, and it can be brought about by humanity through the child.

                                                                                                                ——-Maria Montessori

Tiny Art Show!

Posted on by Jen Reid

In the Art Studio, our young artists from Lower Elementary through Middle School kicked off the school year by putting on a Tiny Art Show! Each artist was given a choice between various small canvases, paper, and even shells to create their tiny artwork on. Students practiced layering art materials such as colorful sharpies and tempera paints, as well as practicing color mixing techniques. There was no specific prompt for what to paint, but rather it was an opportunity for each young artist to trust their creativity and express themselves. The challenge, however, was the small size restriction. Students had to problem solve ways in which they could fit their designs and ideas onto the tiny canvases, as well as how to carefully apply paint with small paintbrushes so as not to lose any detail. It was wonderful to see the variety of artwork created!

Once their tiny artwork was complete, we set up a display in the hallway for the whole school to enjoy. Magnifying glasses were set up with the display so everyone could take a closer look at all of the wonderfully unique tiny works of art!

Mrs.Wilson’s Class: Water Station

Posted on by Cynthia Wilson

 

This week I braced up and introduced the Water Station. I started out by giving a lesson to one child at a time and then allowing that child to have a go at it.  The children are able to access and fill up their own glass. Then they can carry the glass to the table to enjoy. The clear glass allows the child to see how much water they are pouring in and when they have overfilled the glass. And yes! Spills do happen and that is okay; it is all part of the process. We guide them to get a towel and dry up the spill. You would not believe how thirsty your children have become now that they have water at their free will.

The children seem to enjoy listening to the book called We All Sing with the Same Voice By J. Philip Miller.

Mrs. Hood’s Class: La Vaca Lola

Posted on by Andrea Hood

Have you heard of La Vaca Lola?
Maria Montessori believed that the initial six years of a child’s life are crucial for a child’s language development. That from birth a child must receive appropriate stimulation. This is also widely recognized by many specialists in language, also when referring to learning foreign languages.
Research shows that learning a second language boosts problem-solving, critical-thinking, and listening skills, in addition to improving memory, concentration, and the ability to multitask. Children proficient in other languages also show signs of enhanced creativity and mental flexibility. This is why one of our goals this year is to offer a Toddler Spanish immersion experience.

La Vaca Lola (The Cow Named Lola) was a song introduced this week to our students! And, oh boy! They loved it! Some of the students even showed pretty good moves when dancing to it. Based on our farm theme, this week we focused on one of the most beloved farm animals: the cow. Children carefully observed a cow model and engage in conversation about the characteristics of it. One of those is that cows give us milk. Children enjoyed having a taste of milk and while some absolutely refused to taste it, others wouldn’t stop asking for more.

At the end of the week we also had a great Sensorial experience that finished as a magical art project. For this we used food coloring, cotton swabs, dish soap, and of course, milk. As milk has fat in it, the food coloring can float on top of the fat. When you add the dish soap to the milk, the fat separates and moves making magical milk art! The smile in the faces of the children were priceless! At the end of the experience we placed cardstock in the milk and captured a print of the art they made.

Other highlights of the week were the introduction to the routine of changing into indoor shoes when entering the environment and self-serving snack. These two are huge components of our Montessori Toddler curriculum. Independence, hand- eye coordination, and self-regulation is encouraged during these exercises. As children continue to exercise these skills at school, we strongly encourage you to offer the opportunity for the exercise at home.

The Itsy Bitsy Spider and Mary Had a Little Lamb as told and illustrated by Iza Trapani were the children’s favorite books this week. Walking in the Jungle, Listen and Move, and of course, La Vaca Lola were the children’s favorite songs to dance to.

In case you also want to join us in the fun, I will leave you the musical video of La Vaca Lola. Go ahead and turn up the volume and enjoy with your little ones.

La vaca lola ( The cow named Lola)
La vaca lola (The cow named Lola)
Tiene cabeza y tiene cola (It has a head and it has a tail)
Y hace: MUUU (and she goes Mooh)

Working and Having Fun in Lower Elementary

Posted on by Karen Sankey

We had a great second full week of school! We enjoyed our first Community Service day when the Middle School students came to help us with our work. All of the students, Lower Elementary and Middle School, benefit from this experience. We get to have extra individualized attention while connecting with the elders of our school. The Middle School students get to experience the wonderful feeling of giving help where needed. We love the days our older friends visit!

We are diving right into our Writer’s Workshop lessons. Our first unit in each grade focuses on writing true stories about our own lives. The children participate in separate mini-lessons by grade level and then spend some quiet time writing and practicing the new skills they are learning. During this time, Ms. Beckett and I are able to move around the room and conference with individual students, giving them help and instruction where needed. We periodically get together as a whole group and share our writing with each other; this is a favorite part of Writer’s Workshop for many.

Each Friday afternoon we have Friday Fun. This is a time when the children socialize with each other and build our Lower Elementary community, making bonds and creating memories. Whenever possible, during this time we enjoy going to our outdoor classroom and playing in the woods. Spending time in nature is incredibly valuable and it is wonderful to watch the children be creative and play, no equipment needed!