Mrs. Lopes Class: Learning About North America

Posted on by Amanda Lopes

During these past couple of weeks the children have been immersed in learning more about the continent we live on, North America. At the beginning of this week we introduced the North America puzzle map. When using this lesson, children are taught to take one country out of the puzzle at a time and match it to the control map. The control map helps the child see where each country is located in the continent as well as help the child to independently put the puzzle back together. With the introduction of the North America puzzle map many children were interested in making their own maps! We have seen such focus and concentration while the children trace the countries, color their maps according to the colors on our puzzle maps, and then correctly label the individual countries using the control map.

The children also enjoyed our first in-house field trip of the year on Wednesday. We were excited to welcome a Native American storyteller who entertained with her legendary tales, teaching life lessons. We have enjoyed learning about the continent of North America this month and hope that your child has shared information with you.

During our study of North America, we have also been discussing the importance of Thanksgiving and the feeling of gratitude. We are looking forward to our bread making and Thanksgiving ceremony next week!

Best,

Amanda & Deanna

Mrs. Carroll’s Class: A Walk Around the Sun

Posted on by Cindy Carroll

Birthday celebrations are so special in a Montessori environment. For a child, one year is a significant amount of time relative to their life. As part of the Montessori tradition, we strive to celebrate birthdays in a way that is both meaningful and educational.

Our children in the primary environment celebrate birthdays with a tradition called “a walk around the sun.” A walk around the sun can be different from school to school, but typically begins by lighting a candle representing the sun in the middle of our class circle. Labels for each month of the year are laid out around the candle. The teacher and class form a circle around the candle and the birthday child walks around the “sun” once for each year of their life, holding an Earth globe. We encourage parents to share a milestone from each year of their child’s life during their walk around the sun.

After the walk has been completed, the birthday child is invited to share photos and/or special items from their past, and share a special birthday snack with classmates. Classmates may take this time to have a special question-and-answer session with the birthday child. Students gather to ask questions and learn more about what makes that student so special.

The Montessori Birthday Walk is more than just a birthday celebration, it’s a Celebration of Life, a lesson in science, astronomy, and grace, and a community building experience for the entire class.

The children enjoyed our first in-house field trip of the year on Wednesday. We were excited to welcome a Native American storyteller who entertained with her legendary tales, teaching life lessons. We have enjoyed learning about the continent of North America this month and hope that your child has shared information with you.

Looking forward to our bread making and Thanksgiving ceremony next week!

Nvwatohiyada (Cherokee word for peace),

Cindy & Sharlene

Mrs. Doyle’s Class: Classifying Animals

Posted on by Michelle Handibode

So far this year, we have learned that all things in the world are either living or non-living.  Then, we classified living things as animals or plants. Now we are ready to go one step further and begin our study of zoology.

The children learn that the study of animals is called zoology. All animals can be classified as vertebrates or invertebrates. Vertebrates have a backbone and invertebrates are animals that do not have a backbone. We help, the children understand this concept by having them run their fingers along their spines to feel their backbone.

The majority of animals that we think about, such as dogs, cats, birds, fish, alligators, and frogs are vertebrates. However, there are actually more invertebrates living on our planet. More than 90% of all animals are invertebrates. Vertebrates tend to be larger in size because their backbones allow them to have muscles and a strong body. Invertebrates tend to be small, as no backbone means they can’t support a large body.

Learning about vertebrates and invertebrates is an important lesson. With this knowledge, we are ready to begin classifying vertebrates into five different groups: mammals, amphibians, fish, birds and reptiles.

The children enjoyed our first in-house field trip of the year on Wednesday. We were excited to welcome a Native American storyteller who entertained with her legendary tales, teaching life lessons. We have enjoyed learning about the continent of North America this month and hope that your child has shared information with you.

We also welcome our new friend Blake and his family to our class!  The children have been so excited to have Blake and are really doing an amazing job of helping him learn the routines of our day.

Have a wonderful week!

Michelle & Jeannine

Mrs. Carroll’s Class: It’s Off To Work We Go

Posted on by Cindy Carroll

There exists in the small child an unconscious mental state which is of a creative nature. We have called it the “Absorbent Mind.” The tiny child’s absorbent mind finds all its nutriment in its surroundings…Especially at the beginning of life. We must, therefore, make the environment as interesting and attractive as we can. -Maria Montessori

Montessori Method is based on self-motivation to learn. Children are considered to be at work during the day, but they have fun doing it. They go beyond life skills, learning geometry, geography, phonics, and much more. Young children have the capacity to absorb, learn, and do so much. They just need a controlled, creative environment to allow them to pursue their interests.

Enjoy these images of your children at work!

Cindy & Sharlene

Mrs. Doyle’s Class: It’s Off To Work We Go!

Posted on by Michelle Handibode

There exists in the small child an unconscious mental state which is of a creative nature. We have called it the “Absorbent Mind.” The tiny child’s absorbent mind finds all its nutriment in its surroundings…Especially at the beginning of life. We must, therefore, make the environment as interesting and attractive as we can.  -Maria Montessori

The Montessori Method is based on self-motivation to learn. Children are considered to be at work during the day, but they have fun doing it. They go beyond life skills, learning geometry, geography, phonics, and much more. Young children have the capacity to absorb, learn, and do so much. They just need a controlled, creative environment to allow them to pursue their interests.

Enjoy these images of your children at work!

Michelle & Jeannine

Mrs. Lopes’ Class: Engaged in Meaningful Work

Posted on by Amanda Lopes

 

There exists in the small child an unconscious mental state which is of a creative nature. We have called it the “Absorbent Mind.” The tiny child’s absorbent mind finds all its nutriment in its surroundings…Especially at the beginning of life. We must, therefore, make the environment as interesting and attractive as we can. -Maria Montessori

Montessori Method is based on self-motivation to learn. Children are considered to be at work during the day, but they have fun doing it. They go beyond life skills, learning geometry, geography, phonics, and much more. Young children have the capacity to absorb, learn, and do so much. They just need a controlled, creative environment to allow them to pursue their interests.

Enjoy these images of your children at work!

Amanda & Deanna

Mrs. Lopes’ Class: Exploring Our World

Posted on by Amanda Lopes

These last few weeks have been a particularly busy and exciting time with your children. We have traveled through space, explored the eight planets, discovered that the sun is a star, rocketed back to the planet Earth, and are now exploring the first of seven continents; the orange continent, our continent, North America. We will continue to explore the plants and animals native to our continent, map North America’s countries, examine topography, and study how a continents’ proximity to the equator impacts its climate.

The Montessori cultural studies curriculum provides children with an opportunity to explore the whole world including the continents, countries, people, animals, terrain, music, and arts. Children use didactic Montessori materials to familiarize themselves with the needs of all humans for such things as food, housing, and clothing. This early cultural awareness helps cultivate independent, joyful citizens of our world.

Global Culinary Night is Thursday, November 14th, from 6:00-7:00 pm.

This community event is for FWM families to gather together and share a unique dish from their cultural, ethnic, or regional background while also sampling dishes from other FWM families’ cultures. The dish can be homemade or purchased from a local restaurant. We hope you join us as we celebrate the wonderful cultural diversity at our school! This is an entire family event not be missed. Kindly RSVP by November 11th.

Have a great weekend,

Mrs. Lopes and Ms. Vigue

Mrs. Carroll’s Class: Exploring Our World

Posted on by Cindy Carroll

These last few weeks have been a particularly busy and exciting time with your children. We have traveled through space, explored the eight planets, discovered that the sun is a star, rocketed back to the planet Earth, and are now exploring the first of seven continents; the orange continent, our continent, North America. We will continue to explore the plants and animals native to our continent, map North America’s countries, examine topography, and study how a continents’ proximity to the equator impacts its climate.

The Montessori cultural studies curriculum provides children with an opportunity to explore the whole world including the continents, countries, people, animals, terrain, music, and arts. Children use didactic Montessori materials to familiarize themselves with the needs of all humans for such things as food, housing, and clothing. This early cultural awareness helps cultivate independent, joyful citizens of our world.

Global Culinary Night is Thursday, November 14th, from 6:00-7:00 pm.

This community event is for FWM families to gather together and share a unique dish from their cultural, ethnic, or regional background while also sampling dishes from other FWM families’ cultures. The dish can be homemade or purchased from a local restaurant. We hope you join us as we celebrate the wonderful cultural diversity at our school! This is an entire family event not be missed. Kindly RSVP by November 11th.
Enjoy the week!
Cindy & Sharlene