Mrs. Carroll’s Class: A Beacon of Light

Posted on by Cindy Carroll
Friends are like lighthouses, with the source of light coming from their hearts.–Tom Baker

This past Tuesday your children were invited to adventure on the imaginary Isle of Skoo-Ben’s Lighthouse. Our very own Francine Wheeler provided the children with an opportunity to build social and emotional connections through her music and endearing puppet friends. Skoo, Shelly, and Sir Radio playfully exposed feelings, modeled compassion, and encouraged each child to “find and share their own light-to stand tall and shine bright.”  Thank you, Francine, for your bright light and this beautiful, extremely well received journey!

The end of the year is fast approaching. Please be sure to reference myFwm for upcoming events.

Until next week!

Cindy & Sharlene

Mrs. Doyle’s Class: Creating Harmony!

Posted on by Michelle Handibode

 

 

On Tuesday, all the Primary children came together to travel to the imaginary Isle of Skoo-Ben’s Lighthouse. Francine Wheeler provided the children with an opportunity to build social and emotional connections through her music and endearing puppet friends. Skoo, Shelly, and Sir Radio playfully exposed feelings, modeled compassion, and encouraged each child to “find and share their own light-to stand tall and shine bright.”  Thank you, Francine, for your bright light and this beautiful, extremely well received journey!

Our Kindergarten children began working on their number rolls early in the school year. Number rolls are a tradition in a Montessori classroom. The children love being given the opportunity to make their number rolls as long as they want. The basic concept of the number roll is the child writing the  numbers in order, keeping place value as units, tens, hundreds, and thousands.  Typically we go outside to unroll them but this year the wind just would not cooperate.  After several failed attempts to unroll them in the back parking lot we decided to head inside and unroll them in the gym. It is always exciting to see how far each number roll stretches out.

Enjoy the week!

Michelle & Sonja

Mrs. Doyle’s Class: Making Memories!

Posted on by Michelle Handibode

A Grandparent is a little bit parent, a little bit teacher and a little bit best friend.   –Unknown

Relationships with grandparents and special friends all have a profound impact on the development of our children.  The bond between different generations is powerful and beneficial for everyone.

Last Friday, we celebrated Grandparents/Special Friends Day and the children were so excited to welcome their special guests into the classroom. This is a time that the teachers step back and let the children lead. They are so enthusiastic to share the materials and lessons with their grandparent/special friend. We love to observe how much they have grown since the beginning of the school year and the pride they take in their accomplishments. The very best part is seeing the pure joy on everyone’s faces. It is always a special day at school. If a picture speaks a thousand words, there are many stories in the pictures here and they all have a common thread–love.

Have a wonderful week!

Michelle & Sonja

Ms. Kayser’s Class: Spring Cleaning

Posted on by skayser

““The greatest sign of success for a teacher is to be able to say, “The children are now working as if I did not exist.” – Maria Montessori

The end of the school year is right around the corner and the maturity and independence of the children proves it. They continue to amaze us with their ability to work and act so responsibly with little to no need for intervention on our part. We remember the first few weeks of school, the hectic transition period where new and returning students came together for the first time trying to navigate the new year. It was not always easy, but every day was a new learning experience that they have kept with them all year long.

Now that we only have a few weeks left, the children act as if we did not exist; they are able to independently navigate the environment, make peace with their peers when conflict arises, and know the standards we must uphold in our classroom. With the season for “spring cleaning” upon us, there has been an even greater drive in the children to maintain our environment. The children have spent an entire year learning the daily chores that need to be done in the classroom, such as window washing, table scrubbing, dusting, and even flower arranging. What once was a “lesson” on the shelf, is now a daily activity for the children in our room that they truly enjoy.

All the best,

Ms. Kayser and Ms. Alli

Mrs. Carroll’s Class: Ignite Your Excitement

Posted on by Cindy Carroll

 

“There must be provision for the child to have contact with nature; to understand and appreciate the order, the harmony and the beauty in nature,”- Maria Montessori 

Being outdoors ignites a unique excitement and curiosity in children that cannot be replicated in the classroom (unknown).  Every day your children spend time learning, working together, and exploring our natural playground. Daily outdoor learning helps to develop healthy, active lifestyles and routines for the children, while providing them with hands-on experiences in our natural world. Our beautiful natural playground provides unique experiences to stimulate the children’s creativity and contribute to their appreciation of nature.

Helping children develop an appreciation for the outdoors is one of the significant benefits of regular outdoor play. The outside world is full of beautiful sounds, sights, textures, and life. Exposing children early on to the beauty of the world around them can be the perfect way to boost the aesthetic development of a child, allowing them to be more aware of all the beauty around them.

Here’s to rising temperatures, longer days, and the opportunity to spend time exploring the outdoors!

Until next week,

Cindy & Sharlene

Music: DELIGHTFUL RHYMING

Posted on by Yun-Kyung Kim

“There should be music in the child’s environment, just as there does exist in the child’s environment spoken speech. In the social environment, the child should be considered and music should be provided.”~Maria Montessori

Our Primary classes have enjoyed learning rhyming songs with accompanying movements. These young children, who possess absorbent minds, love chanting poems and singing songs especially when they rhyme. Beyond the delighted participation, there has been lots of research proving the benefits of ‘Nursery rhymes’ for Primary-aged children. Below are some of the most significant findings.

Cognitive Development

  • Repetition of rhymes and stories is good for the brain, teaching how language works and building memory capabilities.
  • Nursery rhymes help develop inferencing skills, both with encountering new words and in reading comprehension.
  • Because these verses are made up of patterns, they are easy first memorization pieces.

Speech

  • Nursery rhymes are important for language acquisition and help with speech development.
  • They help children develop auditory skills such as discriminating between sounds and developing the ear for the music of words.
  • Rhymes like these help kids articulate words, modulate voices (practicing pitch, volume, and inflection) and enunciate clearly by saying them over and over without fear of criticism.
  • Nursery rhymes are excellent, natural choice for a first recitation selection.
  • The mouth and tongue muscles are developed as children say these rhymes.
  • Listening comprehension is a foundational skill that is often skipped, but nursery rhymes can help ensure this crucial ability (that precedes reading comprehension) is covered.

Reading

  • Nursery rhyme knowledge provides an excellent foundation for later literary works.
  • They are a great introduction to stories since many contain a beginning, middle, and end (sequencing).
  • Familiarity with nursery rhymes makes good readers, even despite differences in social background.
  • Work with these verses helps children detect phonetic segments of words.

Language

  • Nursery rhymes increase vocabulary.
  • They help children assimilate language.
  • They are a wonderful introduction to poetry.
  • They promote spelling skills.
  • Verses like these introduce literary devices like alliteration, onomatopoeia, and imagery.

Creativity

  • Nursery rhymes expand children’s imagination.
  • They promote creative dramatization when kids act the scenarios out.

History

  • These classic verses preserve the culture and provide something in common between multiple generations (a good way to bond with grandparents or when meeting new people!)
  • Nursery rhymes teach history and connect a child to the past.

Math

  • Nursery rhymes are full of patterns, sequencing, numbers, and counting (forward and backward).
  • They also discuss size, weight and other important math vocabularies.

Physical

  • Since many nursery rhymes involve movement, coordination and physicality are integrated with their readings (Think “Ring Around the Rosey” or “London Bridge.”)
  • Coordinating finger-plays are helpful for fine motor skill development.

Social and Emotional

  • Nursery rhymes develop humor.
  • Because of the connection between movement, rhythm, and words, singing these songs can be a great group activity.
  • Children can learn social skills from many of the rhymes.
  • Nursery rhymes are familiar and can thus provide comfort and support to youngsters in uncomfortable situations.

 

Mrs. Carroll’s Class: Straight From the Heart

Posted on by Cindy Carroll

“A grandparent is a special part of all that is cherished in the heart.” Author unknown

This Friday, we celebrated Grandparents/Special Person Day. Each of our visitors were excited to get a glimpse into their grandchildren’s classrooms, but more importantly the children were excited to share their pride in and ownership of their space. Observing our children navigate the crowd, independently selecting and confidently completing favorite works reminds me of the greatness of our Montessori environment.  Our visitors love, individualized attention, and warm smiling faces reflected their joy in just being with their grandchildren.

Enjoy the photos!!!

Cindy & Sharlene

Ms. Kayser’s Class: A Day to Remember!

Posted on by skayser

This week our students got the chance to share their classroom with their grandparents and special people in their life. The day started out with an amazing concert that filled our hearts with joy. The students took so much pride in practicing the songs and when they finally got the chance to go up on stage to sing for everyone, you could see it beaming on their smiling faces!

After the concert was over was when the real fun began. All of the special persons and grandparents came back to our room and got to spend the morning learning all of the exciting things we do with the children every day. The experience was not only rewarding for the grandparents, it was also so special for the children. Each and every one of them got the chance to show off their hard work, and spend extra time with the ones they loved. Many students paired up and shared their loved ones and created memories that will surely last a lifetime.

Thank you to everyone who came and visited our classroom. It made us beyond delighted to share it with you, and see all of our students carefree and joyful.

Have a beautiful weekend,

Ms. Kayser and Ms. Alli