Mrs. Lopes: Deepening Our Dinosaur Studies

Posted on by Amanda Lopes

Our dinosaur study continued last week, with the children diving deeper into these fascinating prehistoric creatures through books. We explored different types of dinosaurs, learned more about their unique characteristics, and discovered new facts that built upon what we already knew. The children’s questions grew more sophisticated as their understanding deepened, and they loved sharing dinosaur facts they’d discovered with their classmates.

Our Kindergartners embarked on an exciting literacy project last week: writing and illustrating their own books! This meaningful work allows them to apply their growing reading and writing skills while exploring topics they’re passionate about. Each child chose their subject, carefully forming letters, composing sentences, and adding detailed illustrations. The concentration and pride evident on their faces as they worked showed the deep satisfaction that comes from creating something uniquely their own.

This author work supports the development of fine motor skills, creative expression, storytelling abilities, and confidence as writers. Watching these young learners transition from readers to authors is one of the joys of the Kindergarten year!

Extending Learning at Home

Support your budding author by encouraging them to tell you stories and helping them write them down. Keep blank paper and crayons accessible so your child can create books at home, just like in the classroom!

UPCOMING EVENTS & ANNOUNCEMENTS

This Week

Tuesday, October 28: Playground Volunteer–Carina and Logan, Pumpkin Patch on the Playground, Nicolas’ Birthday Walk
Wednesday, October 29: Guest Reader–Katie and Classroom Pumpkin Carving
Thursday, October 30: Primary Pajama Day, Classroom Harvest Celebration & Kindergarten Veggie Skeleton
Primary students are invited to wear their favorite pajamas to school on Thursday, October 30! Please help us keep the day fun and focused by leaving stuffed animals, toys, and other special items at home, as these can be difficult to keep track of and may be distracting during our learning activities.
Friday, October 31: No School—Montessori Schools of CT Conference

Mrs. Sargeant: Geography and Community

Posted on by Christine Sargeant

Last week, the classroom was alive with geographical exploration! The children were captivated by our globe work, learning the names of the seven continents. They traced their fingers across the blue oceans and colorful landmasses, beginning to understand the vastness of our world. Many students progressed to the beautiful work of pin-pricking, carefully creating their own maps of the continents. This meticulous work develops fine motor control and hand-eye coordination while building early map-reading skills and spatial awareness.

We also touched upon the holiday of Diwali, one of the most important celebrations in Hindu culture. Diwali symbolizes the victory of light over darkness and good over evil. The children were fascinated to learn that Diwali is celebrated over five days and that people wear new clothes and exchange gifts during this joyful time. We will continue our exploration of this beautiful tradition with a special celebration early next month.

New Works in the Classroom

Two delightful new works appeared on our shelves this week. The rock “painting” activity uses only water and a thin paintbrush, allowing children to see how rocks change color when wet—a simple yet magical demonstration of transformation. The clementine peeling work supports independence and fine motor development while providing a healthy snack that the children prepared themselves!

Learning from Each Other

Our Kindergarteners took a field trip to New Pond Farm in Redding last week, where they visited a working farm and discovered the differences between dairy cows and those raised for meat. They explored the barn and chicken coop, cleaned wool from a sheep, and used tools to make wool bracelets. The children learned that sheep serve as natural lawn mowers and even got to practice milking a cow!

The kindergarten students were absolutely thrilled to share what they learned with their younger classmates. The most fascinating fact? Sheep have more than one stomach! This beautiful example of our mixed-age community shows older children building confidence through teaching while younger ones look up to their mentors with admiration.

UPCOMING EVENTS & ANNOUNCEMENTS

This Week
Tuesday, October 28: Pumpkin Patch on the Playground & Daly Playground visit
Wednesday, October 29: Classroom Pumpkin Carving & Driscoll Guest Reader
Thursday, October 30: Primary Pajama Day, Classroom Harvest Celebration & Kindergarten Veggie Skeleton
Primary students are invited to wear their favorite pajamas to school on Thursday, October 30! Please help us keep the day fun and focused by leaving stuffed animals, toys, and other special items at home, as these can be difficult to keep track of and may be distracting during our learning activities.
Friday, October 31: No School – MSC Conference

Ms. Rhodora: Sink and Float

Posted on by Rhodora Santayana

Last week, the classroom buzzed with scientific inquiry! The children were completely absorbed in our sink and float experiments, testing various objects in water and making predictions about what would happen. They observed, hypothesized, and discovered the properties that make some items sink while others float. This work develops critical thinking skills and introduces the scientific method in a concrete, hands-on way.

The hammering a pumpkin work was an instant favorite. Children used small hammers and golf tees to create designs on pumpkins, strengthening hand muscles and practicing careful, controlled movements. This seasonal practical life activity combines the joy of fall with important fine motor development.

The nuts and bolts work continues to draw focused attention as children practice the twisting motion needed to screw and unscrew various sizes. The geometric solids allow children to explore three-dimensional shapes and feel the differences between spheres, cubes, cylinders, and cones.

Extending Learning at Home

Continue the science exploration at home by gathering household items for your own sink and float experiment in the bathtub or a large bowl. Ask your child to predict first, then test their hypothesis!

Discovering Our World

Our geography work expanded this week as the children explored land and water forms, specifically learning about peninsulas and gulfs. Using our beautiful landform models, they traced the shapes with their fingers and poured water to see how land and water meet in different formations. We also began studying the state of New Jersey, including its location on the map and its unique features.

UPCOMING EVENTS & ANNOUNCEMENTS

This Week
Tuesday, October 28: Pumpkin Patch on the Playground
Wednesday, October 29: Classroom Pumpkin Carving
Thursday, October 30: Primary Pajama Day, Classroom Harvest Celebration & Kindergarten Veggie Skeleton
Primary students are invited to wear their favorite pajamas to school on Thursday, October 30! Please help us keep the day fun and focused by leaving stuffed animals, toys, and other special items at home, as these can be difficult to keep track of and may be distracting during our learning activities.
Friday, October 31: No School – MSC Conference

Ms. Handibode: Celebrating Culture and Stories

Posted on by Michelle Handibode

Last week, we had our first guest readers of the year! Veda’s mom and dad shared the wonderful story “Binny’s Diwali” with our class. The children learned about Diwali, the Festival of Lights celebrated by Hindu communities around the world. They discovered that families celebrate by lighting oil lamps called diyas, creating beautiful rangoli patterns with colored powders, sharing sweet treats, and gathering with loved ones. The story helped the children understand that Diwali symbolizes the victory of light over darkness and good over evil. This is such a special time that the children truly enjoy, and we are grateful to Veda’s family for sharing this beautiful tradition with us.

Our Kindergartners took a field trip to New Pond Farm in Redding last week. This working farm allowed the children to spend time with sheep, chickens, cows, and pigs. Each child then learned how to turn sheep’s fleece into yarn for knitting and weaving. They washed the fleece, hand-carded (combed) it, and then hand-spun it into yarn to make a bracelet.

“What the hand does, the mind remembers.” —Maria Montessori

Every Montessori classroom has a Sensorial area filled with materials that help children study their environment through their five senses. Maria Montessori believed that sensorial experiences begin at birth for every child and that refining these skills helps them understand their surroundings. The sensorial materials allow children to acquire precise information and classify things around them. They use their senses not only to create their own experiences and knowledge but also to help them process the different impressions each sense receives. The child is, therefore, a natural “sensorial explorer.”

Each material in this area has a built-in control of error so that, after an initial lesson, little teacher direction is needed. This control of error helps a child determine what needs to happen to complete the lesson successfully. The children can distinguish, categorize, and relate new information to what they already know. Each sensorial material isolates one specific quality, such as color, weight, shape, texture, size, sound, or smell. These materials emphasize this particular quality by eliminating or minimizing other differences. Many of the sensorial materials are also the basis of future mathematical concepts that the children will learn.

UPCOMING EVENTS & ANNOUNCEMENTS

This Week

Monday, October 27: Zion Flowers and Sharing Box
Tuesday, October 28: Playground volunteer Casey, Pumpkin Patch on the Playground
Wednesday, October 29: Classroom Pumpkin Carving, Guest reader Nicole and Zion’s Birthday Walk
Thursday, October 30: Layla Birthday Walk and Sharing Box, Primary Pajama Day, Classroom Harvest Celebration & Kindergarten Veggie Skeleton
Primary students are invited to wear their favorite pajamas to school on Thursday, October 30! Please help us keep the day fun and focused by leaving stuffed animals, toys, and other special items at home, as these can be difficult to keep track of and may be distracting during our learning activities.
Friday, October 31: No School—Montessori Schools of CT Conference

Ms. Handibode: The Joy of Children’s Work

Posted on by Michelle Handibode

One of Maria Montessori’s most noted quotes is, “Play is the child’s work.”  We’re sure you have heard your child talk about their work at school by now. Dr. Montessori preferred the term “work” over “play” to describe the learning process children are constantly undergoing. Work conveys the amount of effort that children put into their physical, social, emotional, and academic growth. As adults, we have a very different definition of work.

When a child works, he does not do so to attain some further goal. His objective in working is the work itself.
Maria Montessori

Children are driven by a strong, unconscious internal growth process to seek out experiences that will meet their needs. Our role as Montessori teachers is to provide a well-prepared environment that encourages children to be independent and learn at their own pace. The children are free to choose their work and to use it repeatedly. So, while they are ‘working’, each child also builds independence, coordination, self-discipline, and concentration.

We asked the children what their favorite work to do at school was, and below are their responses.

Adeline—Water works in Practical Life
Brooks—Pouring Works
Charlie D.—The Pink Tower
Charley W—Eating Apples
Connor—Playdough
Eloise—Pumpkin Work
Hannah—100 Board
Jasper—Ten Board
Jaxxon—Apple Slicing
Johnny—The Dinosaur Sensory Bin
Layla—The Teen Board		 Melia—The Pink Tower and artwork
Mila—Picture Story
Morgan—Dinosaur matching
Nitzan—Picture Story
Olivia—Number Writing
Remi—Making my own picture stories
Veda—Working with Ms. Handibode
Wilder—Apple Slicing
Zaki—Pouring works
Zion—Reading books

Grace and Courtesy in Action
With the cooler weather, jackets, sweaters, and coats with buttons and zippers are being worn. Our older friends are helping the younger ones put on their coats and button or zip them. These moments of care and support exemplify the grace and courtesy we practice daily in our classroom community.

Exploring the Solar System
We are studying the solar system and learning the planets in order from the Sun. The children are fascinated by the vastness of space and the unique characteristics of each planet.

Extending Learning at Home

  • Mealtime Independence
    Ask your child to stay seated at the table until their meal is done. Talk about and reinforce good table manners. Have your child set up their own dishes and cutlery, and then clean them up when they are finished. Make sure there is no food on their place mat or the floor after each meal.
  • Solar System Conversations
    Questions to ask your children: Is the Sun a planet? Can you sing on Mercury? Can you sing “I Know The Planets How About You?” What color is the planet Mars?

UPCOMING EVENTS & ANNOUNCEMENTS

This Week
Monday, October 20 through Friday, October 24: Parent Teacher Conferences
Monday, October 20: Adeline Sharing Box & Flowers
Tuesday, October 21: Playground Volunteer Allissa
Wednesday, October 22: Guest Reader Darshy
Friday, October 24: No School – Parent Teacher Conferences

Next Week
Tuesday, October 28: Pumpkin Patch on the Playground
Wednesday, October 29: Classroom Pumpkin Carving
Thursday, October 30: Primary Pajama Day, Classroom Harvest Celebration & Kindergarten Veggie Skeleton
Primary students are invited to wear their favorite pajamas to school on Thursday, October 30! Please help us keep the day fun and focused by leaving stuffed animals, toys, and other special items at home, as these can be difficult to keep track of and may be distracting during our learning activities.
Friday, October 31: No School – MSC Conference

 

Mrs. Sargeant: Growing Independence & Autumn Joy

Posted on by Christine Sargeant

This past week was filled with autumn discoveries and beautiful moments of growing independence!

New Works and Popular Activities
The flint corn (Indian corn) tweezing work was a huge hit on our shelves this week! The children carefully used tweezers to sort the colorful kernels, strengthening their fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination while exploring the natural beauty of the autumn harvest.

Celebrating Independence
One of the most rewarding observations this fall was watching children master the simple yet significant task of opening their own snack and lunch containers. Some began the year struggling with lids and zippers, but through daily practice and gentle perseverance, they beamed with pride as they exclaimed, “I opened it all by myself!” These moments of independence built confidence that extended far beyond the lunchroom.

Grace and Courtesy in Action
I received several heartwarming emails from parents sharing stories about their children talking about “filling others’ buckets” and showing kindness at home. It was wonderful to see how our classroom work with grace and courtesy rippled outward, helping children become compassionate members of their families and communities.

Cultural Studies and Learning
Our autumn theme continued with songs, stories, and explorations of the season. The children could not get enough of their new favorite song, “I’ve Got a Skeleton Inside Me”—perfect timing as we approach Halloween! We read about planets, sang songs about pumpkins and autumn leaves, and in the afternoon, our 4 and 5-year-olds were captivated by The Magic Tree House series. We began book number 4 this week, “Pirates Past Noon,” which sparked wonderful conversations about adventure and history.

Caring for Our Environment
Last week, when making our applesauce, we filled our compost bucket with apple scraps. The children were thrilled to participate in this care-of-the-environment work! Each day this week, they eagerly watched as the Upper Elementary students came to collect our fruit and vegetable waste. This simple routine helped children understand their role in caring for the earth and connected them to the larger school community.

Extending Learning at Home

  • Practice Independence
    Let your child open their own containers, zip their own jackets, and put on their own shoes. The pride they feel from these accomplishments is priceless!
  • Autumn Exploration
    Take a nature walk and collect interesting leaves, acorns, or seeds. Talk about the changes you notice as the season shifts.
  • Bucket Filling
    Continue conversations about kindness and how we can “fill buckets” by using kind words and helpful actions with family members.

Your children’s growth, kindness, and joy continued to fill our classroom with warmth!

UPCOMING EVENTS & ANNOUNCEMENTS

This Week
Monday, October 20 through Friday, October 24: Parent Teacher Conferences
Friday, October 24: No School – Parent Teacher Conferences

Next Week
Tuesday, October 28: Pumpkin Patch on the Playground
Wednesday, October 29: Classroom Pumpkin Carving
Thursday, October 30: Primary Pajama Day, Classroom Harvest Celebration & Kindergarten Veggie Skeleton
Primary students are invited to wear their favorite pajamas to school on Thursday, October 30! Please help us keep the day fun and focused by leaving stuffed animals, toys, and other special items at home, as these can be difficult to keep track of and may be distracting during our learning activities.
Friday, October 31: No School – MSC Conference

Mrs. Lopes: Dinosaurs & Fall Celebrations

Posted on by Amanda Lopes

This week, we embarked on an exciting journey back in time to explore the world of dinosaurs! The children have been captivated by these ancient creatures, and their curiosity has sparked rich conversations about what “extinct” means and the scientific theories about why dinosaurs disappeared from Earth.

Our culture shelf has transformed into a paleontology station with new dinosaur-focused works. The children are matching dinosaurs to their fossils, excavating “dinosaur bones” from kinetic sand, and creating their own fossil imprints in the sensory bin. On the art shelf, they’re making dinosaur rubbings and drawings, developing fine motor skills while expressing their fascination with these prehistoric animals.

The dinosaur study naturally connects across our curriculum. As children learn dinosaur names, they practice phonetic sounds and build vocabulary. The fossil matching work supports visual discrimination and classification skills. Even our practical life area reflects the season, with pumpkin-themed activities preparing the children for our upcoming harvest celebrations.

The mixed-age dynamics have been wonderful to observe. Older children are helping younger friends identify different dinosaur species, and everyone is learning together about concepts like herbivores, carnivores, and what it means for something to become extinct.

Extending Learning at Home

  • Nature Walk Connections
    Look for fossils or interesting rocks during walks. Talk about how old they might be and what they can tell us about the past.
  • Kitchen Paleontology
    Press small toys or objects into playdough or clay to create “fossils” together.
  • Library Visit
    Check out dinosaur books and field guides to explore different species and their characteristics.

We’re looking forward to our harvest celebrations next week, where we’ll continue building our classroom community through shared experiences and traditions.

UPCOMING EVENTS & ANNOUNCEMENTS

This Week
Monday, October 20 through Friday, October 24: Parent Teacher Conferences
Friday, October 24: No School – Parent Teacher Conferences

Next Week
Tuesday, October 28: Nicolas’ Birthday Walk
Tuesday, October 28: Pumpkin Patch on the Playground
Wednesday, October 29: Classroom Pumpkin Carving
Thursday, October 30: Primary Pajama Day, Classroom Harvest Celebration & Kindergarten Veggie Skeleton
Primary students are invited to wear their favorite pajamas to school on Thursday, October 30! Please help us keep the day fun and focused by leaving stuffed animals, toys, and other special items at home, as these can be difficult to keep track of and may be distracting during our learning activities.
Friday, October 31: No School – MSC Conference

Ms. Rhodora: Celebrating Fall and Scientific Discoveries

Posted on by Rhodora Santayana

Last week, our classroom was buzzing with autumn excitement! The children immersed themselves in all things pumpkin—from seed to harvest—while also exploring fascinating scientific concepts that connected to their natural curiosity about the world around them.

Our pumpkin study brought together multiple areas of learning. The children discovered the life cycle of pumpkins and explored the many ways we use them in cooking. They created beautiful pumpkin artwork using tissue paper, developing their fine motor skills and artistic expression. On the math shelf, the children practiced counting small pumpkins using golden beads, making concrete connections between quantity and number symbols.

We also explored land and water forms, specifically straits and isthmuses. The children traced these formations and learned how water and land interact to create the geography of our planet. This naturally led to an exciting science experiment about states of matter—solid, liquid, and gas. Watching water transform from ice to liquid to vapor captivated the children and sparked wonderful questions about how matter changes in our everyday lives!

The sensorial area was especially popular this past week, with children using the geometric solids while blindfolded. This work helped refine their tactile sense and built concentration as they identified three-dimensional shapes through touch alone.

The kindergarten field trip was a wonderful adventure, and the children came back full of stories and observations from their experience!

We also celebrated a special birthday walk this week. Thank you to the parents who joined us for this meaningful Montessori tradition. The children loved watching the birthday child walk around our “sun” to represent each year of their life.

Extending Learning at Home

  • Continue the pumpkin exploration by cooking together! Making pumpkin bread, soup, or roasted pumpkin seeds gives your child hands-on experience with measuring, following steps in sequence, and discovering how heat transforms food—all wonderful practical life skills.
  • Take nature walks to observe the changes of fall. Can your child identify different land and water forms in your neighborhood? Look for puddles, streams, ponds, or where land meets water.
  • Explore states of matter in your kitchen. Let your child observe ice melting in a glass, water boiling for pasta, or steam from hot cocoa. Talk about how the same substance can take different forms.

UPCOMING EVENTS & ANNOUNCEMENTS

This Week
Monday, October 20 through Friday, October 24: Parent Teacher Conferences
Friday, October 24: No School – Parent Teacher Conferences

Next Week
Tuesday, October 28: Pumpkin Patch on the Playground
Wednesday, October 29: Classroom Pumpkin Carving
Thursday, October 30: Primary Pajama Day, Classroom Harvest Celebration & Kindergarten Veggie Skeleton
Primary students are invited to wear their favorite pajamas to school on Thursday, October 30! Please help us keep the day fun and focused by leaving stuffed animals, toys, and other special items at home, as these can be difficult to keep track of and may be distracting during our learning activities.
Friday, October 31: No School – MSC Conference