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Ms. Vicki’s Weekly Update

Posted on by Vicki Downs

Oh boy, this week brought some very hot days! We still enjoyed plenty of outdoor time, but in shorter chunks to help everyone stay cool and avoid overheating. Thankfully, popsicles helped make the heat a little more fun!

This week, we brought out the car mat, and it quickly became a favorite activity. The children had so much fun zooming around toy cars, buses, and emergency vehicles.

We also introduced a new colored salt activity to our shelves. The children traced shapes with glue, then carefully sprinkled colorful salt with salt and pepper shakers. This was wonderful practice for hand control, coordination, and concentration. The finished creations were beautiful!

We were lucky enough to attend two school performances this week! Upper Elementary and Middle School performed Willy Wonka on Thursday, and Lower Elementary performed Jungle Story on Friday

The children did an amazing job being part of the audience. They stayed quiet during the performances, loved clapping for the actors, and excitedly shared their favorite parts once we returned to the classroom. It was such a great practice in learning how to be a respectful and engaged audience member.

It has been a busy week filled with creativity, imagination, and exciting new experiences.

Important Reminders:

  • No school on Monday
  • Next week is Toddler Activity Day! Thursday, May 28, is coming fast. Make sure your child has a bathing suit and a towel ready to go!
  • Next week, the weather will warm up again. Please bring water shoes or sandals for outside play and extra summer clothes in case we do water play.

Keeping Young Minds Active All Summer Long

Posted on by Gina Tryforos

As the school year comes to a close, summer brings excitement, adventure, and a well-earned break from busy school routines. Long sunny days, family trips, camps, and extra time to play are all part of what makes summer so special for children. While this season is important for rest and recharge, it can also present a challenge for young learners: the “summer slide.”

The summer slide refers to the learning loss that can occur when children spend extended time away from academic routines, particularly in reading and math. Even a small amount of practice over the summer can make a meaningful difference in helping students retain skills, build confidence, and return to school ready to learn in the fall.

The good news is that learning during the summer does not need to feel like schoolwork. Some of the best learning happens naturally through everyday experiences. Reading together before bedtime, writing postcards while traveling, measuring ingredients while cooking, practicing math at the grocery store, or exploring nature outdoors are all simple ways to keep young minds active while still enjoying the fun of summer.

To help support families, our teachers have carefully curated age-appropriate summer learning resources for every grade level. These activities and tools are designed to be flexible, engaging, and easy to incorporate into daily life, giving families practical ways to encourage learning throughout the summer months. Upper Elementary and Middle School students will also receive specific summer assignments from their teachers to complete before returning in the fall.

These resources will be available on your MyFWM dashboard in the coming weeks.

By working together to keep children reading, thinking, creating, and exploring over the summer, we can help ensure that students return to school refreshed, confident, and ready for another successful year of learning.

 

Reflection and Growth in LE

Posted on by Carlie Taveras

As the school year begins to wind down, our days feel even fuller. Lessons continue to flow, routines stay steady, and the children will continue to learn and grow right up until the very end. We are focused on finishing the year with intention and making every moment count.

This time of year, despite it being what feels like the busiest time of all, invites a quiet pause to look back at the school year that is almost behind us. I consistently find myself in awe at just how fast the school year has passed and how much the children have grown and changed since the beginning of the school year. What once required sustained effort and careful guidance now unfolds with a sense of ease. There is greater independence, deeper concentration, and growing perseverance in the way the children move through their work cycles. In the midst of the daily rhythm of the school year, these moments can quietly pass by, but the end of the year creates space to pause and reflect.

Our visit to the Adventure Park this week was one of those moments where we had the opportunity to witness, outside of the classroom, how much the children have grown. The day felt like pure fun to the children, but it was full of so much meaningful learning under the surface. I chose not to participate in the climbing so I could remain available and observe the children more closely. I walked the grounds all day, and from that place, I was able to witness all of the children and their moments of pure joy, deep bravery, and the quiet ways they pushed past their limits.

The adventure course was so much more than a day of fun and an opportunity to work on balance, coordination, and strength. Each obstacle required the children to think, be patient, and persevere if something didn’t work out the first time. By the end of the day, you could see the children’s confidence grow so much. There were so many incredible acts of bravery and children confidently stepping outside of their comfort zones. By the middle of the day, many children who were initially hesitant were moving through the course with such a sense of trust in themselves and their abilities and pure excitement.

There was also a strong sense of community throughout the day. The children cheered for each other, offered encouragement, supported one another when challenges arose, and celebrated everyone’s successes. That kind of support is what we always encourage, but seeing it show up so naturally in a different setting was a beautiful reminder of how much it is part of our classroom culture.

As we keep moving through these final weeks, there will continue to be a lot of learning happening. We are finishing projects, introducing and reviewing important skills, and making sure the children are prepared for the upcoming school year. There is also so much fun ahead and time to celebrate the great year we’ve had together and all the growth and progress that has been made!

Mrs. Lopes Class

Posted on by Amanda Lopes

Last week, we began our unit on insects. The children learned the parts of an insect, and we sang the song “Head, Thorax, Abdomen” to reinforce what they were learning. We also learned that 90% of the animals on earth are insects and there are over 5 million different kinds of insects.

On Tuesday, we did our Annual Bug Scavenger Hunt. The children had so much fun searching outside for all kinds of bugs — looking under rocks, on the wall, and under the swings.

We also have 5 fully formed chrysalis in our classroom.  The children are anxiously awaiting the arrival of butterflies, hopefully this week!

Extending Learning at Home

Head outside and go on your own bug hunt! See how many insects your child can find and ask them to point out the head, thorax, and abdomen. A magnifying glass makes it even more fun!

Magical May with Ms. Mollie

Posted on by Mollie Smith

May is truly the most magical time of year in a toddler Montessori classroom. The days are filled with outdoor adventures, gardening, joyful play, and watching all of the skills we have nurtured throughout the year begin to blossom together. The children move with such confidence and purpose now — helping one another, caring for their environment, and engaging deeply in meaningful work.

As Maria Montessori once said, “Play is the work of the child.” In these beautiful spring days, we see that work unfolds effortlessly and calmly around us. From digging in the garden beds to imaginative outdoor play and collaborative friendships, the growth happening before our eyes is nothing short of amazing.

May reminds us to slow down, soak in these moments, and celebrate just how far our little learners have come.

With Full Hearts,

Ms.Mollie and Ms.Lizette

Ms. Handibode’s Class

Posted on by Michelle Handibode

Now that we are entomologists, we went on a bug scavenger hunt. Ask your children what insects they were looking for and which ones they found. For the sharing box this week, Mila dressed in her beekeeper suit and shared honeycomb from her beehives. It was a wonderful addition to our continued studies on insects and prompted a lot of conversations among the children.

Our author study this month is Mem Fox. Our favorite story so far is Harriet, You’ll Drive Me Wild. Veda’s dad read Grumpy Monkey Don’t Be Scared to the class. The children loved this book and asked me to read it to them again later that day. We love the excitement that books continue to elicit in the classroom.

Extending Learning at Home

Look for other books by Mem Fox at your local library — there are so many wonderful ones to explore together. If your child is still buzzing about bees, ask them to tell you what they learned from Mila’s visit!

 

UPCOMING EVENTS & ANNOUNCEMENTS

Next Week

  • Monday, May 18
    Sharing Box and Flowers: Hannah B.
  • Tuesday, May 19
    Playground Volunteer: Dhanishry N.
  • Tuesday, May 19
    Kindergarten Field Trip to Flanders Nature Center
  • Wednesday, May 20
    Guest Reader: Kay M.
  • Thursday, May 21
    Birthday Celebration: Hannah B.

Looking Ahead

  • Monday, May 25
    No School — Memorial Day
  • Tuesday, May 26
    Playground Volunteer: Jeremy H.
  • Tuesday, May 26
    Sharing Box and Flowers: Remi L.

Mrs. Sargeant: A Peek at the Week

Posted on by Christine Sargeant

This week in our classroom, there was a lot of curiosity and hands-on learning happening all around us. The children were fascinated watching our caterpillars transform into chrysalises, checking on them each day, and sharing their observations with excitement. We also headed outside for a fun scavenger hunt where the students searched for all kinds of insects and practiced noticing the differences between insects and spiders, especially the number of legs and body parts.

Inside the classroom, our kindergartners have been working hard on their autobiographies, drawing pictures, and writing about themselves, their families, and the things they love. Another favorite activity this week was working together in small groups to build Roman arches with blocks. The children experimented with balance, problem-solving, and teamwork as they discovered how the shape of an arch can hold weight and stay standing.

Strawberry slicing was a big hit this week. After washing the berry, they use a strawberry huller to remove the stem. Then they use an egg slicer to slice the berry and serve it to friends, followed by heading to the sink to wash and dry each item from the tray.

Please return your child’s Take Home Folder each week, otherwise they have no place to put their work during the week.

Extending Learning at Home

Invite your child to help in the kitchen — washing fruit, slicing with a child-safe knife, or setting the table are all great ways to practice the same practical life skills we work on in the classroom. You can also head outside together and see how many insects your child can spot, and ask them how they know it’s an insect and not a spider!

 

UPCOMING EVENTS & ANNOUNCEMENTS

Next Week

  • Monday, May 18
    Rayna: Food, Flowers & Sharing Bag
  • Tuesday, May 19
    Kindergarten Field Trip to Flanders Pond Study
  • Tuesday, May 19
    Driscoll Playground Volunteer
  • Wednesday, May 20
    Ava’s Birthday Celebration

Ms. Marissa: Weekly Update

Posted on by Marissa Frisk

The children had so much fun preparing colorful fruit kabobs during food preparation this week. Carefully slicing bananas, threading blueberries and grapes onto skewers, and creating their own patterns gave everyone a chance to practice independence, coordination, and concentration while enjoying a healthy treat together. There is always such a sense of pride when the children prepare food with their own hands, and this activity was no exception. Some children have also continued working on our long cubing chains in the hallway, counting farther and farther each day as we make our way closer to 1000. The children are developing such patience and perseverance as they watch the quantities grow before their eyes.

As the school year begins to wind down, our classroom conversations naturally turn toward change and growth. Our Kindergarteners are preparing to move on to Lower Elementary, while we look ahead to welcoming new toddlers into our community next year. In many ways, it feels like our final lesson on life cycles – reflecting on how we grow, change, and make space for new beginnings. The children are beginning to recognize that just like the plants, butterflies, and animals we have studied throughout the year, classrooms also go through seasons of transformation.