Mrs. Doyle’s Class: “Think and wonder, wonder and think.”-Dr. Seuss

Posted on by Michelle Handibode

 

“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.” – Dr. Seuss

On Tuesday, we had fun celebrating Dr. Seuss’ birthday.  Schools and libraries across the United States enjoy taking part in a nationwide reading celebration called Read Across America.  This fun tradition is an exciting way to bring together children and books and is celebrated on Dr. Seuss’s birthday, March 2nd.

Here are few fun facts about Dr. Seuss:

  • Dr. Seuss’ real name was Theodore Seuss Geisel.
  • He has written and illustrated 45 children’s books.
  • The book Green Eggs and Ham is made up of 50 sight words. Dr. Seuss’s editor bet him that he could not write a book using fewer words than The Cat in the Hat which had 225 words. Clearly, Dr. Seuss won that bet!

Here at FWM, the children enjoyed wearing their pajamas to school and bringing in a favorite stuffed animal. We read Green Eggs and Ham and then actually got to experience eating those two foods for snack. Thank you to Christi Orlowski and Maria Deligiannis for providing us with the great snack and helping with the crafts. We asked the children what their favorite Dr. Seuss book was and it was exciting to see their knowledge and love for his work. It was a close vote between Green Eggs and Ham and How The Grinch Stole Christmas.

We wish you much peace, happiness and time to read over our upcoming break…(I hesitate to say spring break!)

Michelle & Sonja

Image result for dr seuss you can find magic wherever you look

Ms. Kayser’s Class: Exciting Exploration!

Posted on by skayser

This month in the classroom, the Valentine’s day themed works are not the only activities that have captivated the students; their time has been well spent in our science and geography areas of the classroom!

In geography the students have been learning about the continent of Africa. Each day we have spent time looking at the different countries of Africa and learning a little about the people who live there and their culture. One of the favorite activities of the children is reading stories about the African animals and playing charades! At the end of the day the children love to pick an animal out of the book and try to act it out for their friends. It is a fantastic activity that engages the children and gets their bodies moving after a long day of learning!

In science, the students have been learning about rocks and minerals. One of the favorite books we have read this month is Rocks Are Lively. This book beautifully illustrates the different types of rocks and minerals and even inspired one of our students to want to “make” their own rocks. Of course our wonderful art teacher, Mrs. Reid, jumped at the opportunity and created a beautiful lesson with colored sand that allowed the students to recreate their own geodes. The final product was absolutely breathtaking!

Next week is a busy week for our students. Tuesday, March 5th, is our Dr. Seuss celebration! The students are welcome to wear their pajamas and bring in their favorite stuffed animal to snuggle with while we read and share a delicious snack of green eggs and ham! Yum! Friday, March 8th, is our next field trip for our kindergarten students! We will be traveling to Warrups Farm in Redding to learn all about the maple syrup making process. Although busy, it should make for an amazing week before break!

We hope you have a great week,

Ms. Kayser and Ms. Alli

Mrs. Carroll’s Class: Our Hurried World

Posted on by Cindy Carroll

 

“Help me to do it myself.”

In our hurried world, it is easier to do it ourselves then to stop and show our children how to do a task, and patiently wait until they complete it. Montessori tells us that everything we do for the child that he can do for himself is an obstacle to his development. That bears thinking about!

Our classroom travels have taken us to the continent of Africa this month. We enjoyed exploring the various countries, customs, animals, foods, music, and literature this culturally rich continent has to offer. Time to set sail for a new continent. Viva Europe!

We have a busy week ahead.  On Tuesday, March 5, each each primary class will be celebrating Dr. Seuss’ birthday. The children are invited to come to school in their pajamas accompanied by a favorite stuffed friend.  Morning snack that day will be green eggs and ham! It promises to be a fun morning.

On Friday, March 8th, the Kindergarten children will be taking an afternoon field trip to Warrup’s Farm in Redding. They will be exploring the process of making maple syrup.

Enjoy the week!

Cindy & Sharlene

Mrs. Doyle’s Class: A Busy Week!

Posted on by Michelle Handibode

 

Each time we study a new continent, we first find it on the globe of the world, then we locate the continent on the world map, and finally, we study the individual continent using the specific continent maps. Currently, the children are learning about the continent of Africa. We learn about the geography, culture, weather, animals, and people of Africa.

We are learning lots of fun and fascinating facts about the continent of Africa.

  • Africa is the second largest continent, with 54 countries.
  • The longest river in the world, the Nile, is located in Africa.
  • Over one thousand languages are spoken by the people in Africa.
  • The Sahara, the world’s largest desert is located here.
  • The highest mountain in Africa is Mount Kilimanjaro. It is so tall that glaciers can be found at its summit even though the mountain is near the equator.
  • Africa is the most centrally located continent in the world. Both the prime meridian and the equator cut across it.
  • The world’s tallest animal, the giraffe, and the largest land animal, the African elephant are found in Africa.

We have a busy week ahead.  On Tuesday, March 5th, each Primary class will be celebrating Dr. Seuss’ birthday.  The children are invited to come to school in their pajamas accompanied by a favorite stuffed friend. Morning snack that day will be green eggs and ham! It promises to be a fun morning.

On Friday, March 8th, the Kindergarten children will be taking an afternoon field trip to Warrup’s farm in Redding.  They will be exploring the process of making maple syrup.

Have a wonderful week!

Michelle & Sonja

Image result for montessori quote let us give the child a vision of the whole universe

Mrs. Carroll’s Class: Friendship and Love

Posted on by Cindy Carroll

We’ve had so much fun preparing for and enjoying Valentine’s Day. This week the children distributed notes and treasures to friends, decorated delicious cookies, and agreed that the true meaning of Valentine’s Day is about friendship and love.

The Kindergarten children also celebrated the 100th day of school during their afternoon class. This is always a beloved and exciting tradition in Kindergarten. Since the first day of school the children have been counting by 1’s, 5’s and 10’s until they reached 100. Today, the children made 100 day headbands, used the writing prompt “If I had $100 dollars I would buy….,” and took turns estimating how many items were in jars to see who could guess the correct amount. Last but not least, they enjoyed a great snack, but not before making the number 100 out of  cookies.

May your hearts be happy!

Cindy & Sharlene

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

Posted on by skayser

 

“True love blooms when we care more about another person, than we care about ourselves” – Jeffrey R. Holland

I think the beauty of celebrating Valentine’s Day in the classroom comes from the selflessness of the children. Although they were excited to get Valentine’s Day cards and candy- the true excitement laid in giving rather than receiving. The week prior to the celebration, the children couldn’t stop talking about all the hard work and effort they were putting into creating special valentines for each of their classmates.

The most beautiful part of this preparation came when we asked the students if they wanted to write Valentine’s Day cards for the troops. We explained that sometimes the men and women who work to protect us cannot be home with their loved ones for Valentine’s day and it makes them happy to receive letters. The children were immediately called to action! All of the students in the class took off to write a Valentine’s Day card or thank you card for our troops. The time they spent making these cards beautiful and sincere was beyond heartwarming.

The day before Valentines Day, when we got to sit and celebrate the holiday together, all the children set out their hand-made Valentine’s bags and waited eagerly to be able to pass out their Valentine’s. Each child took a turn to walk around the circle and give out their cards and wish their friends a Happy Valentine’s Day. Each card was received with a smile from every child. Even for the children who were not able to be in class that day, our students made sure that their bags were filled to the brim with cards signed with love and affection.  To end our celebration, all the students got to sit and decorate cookies together. Pink and red frosting and colorful sprinkles covered the tables as the sound of the student’s laughter rang through the room.

Thank you to all of the parents who took time to provide all the supplies as well as take time to help us out in the classroom; the morning went smoothly because of everything you did and we are so grateful to have such an amazing group of parents!

With love,

Ms. Kayser and Ms. Alli

Mrs. Doyle’s Class: Let’s Celebrate!

Posted on by Michelle Handibode

 

Last Wednesday, despite an unpredictable week of weather, we were able to have our Valentine’s Day celebration. First, we decorated bags to hold all of the anticipated cards and goodies. Then we gathered together and took turns placing a valentine in each friend’s bag. Thank you to Brooke Hopkins for coming in to spend the morning and help with each stage of the day. Meg Zeruk sent in a delicious Valentine trail mix that was a big hit. You may have even heard about the “cookie crisis!”  Meg Gill worked so hard to bake cookies and provide the decorations so that the children could each decorate their own cookie. Alas, as we all know, even the best laid plans can go awry and it just wasn’t in the plan for us to decorate cookies that day! However, it also meant that when we returned to school, we could continue our Valentine’s Day celebration with cookie decorating on Tuesday.    Thank you Meg for all of your hard work and sense of humor!

This Wednesday, we celebrated the 100th day of school.  From the very first day of school, the kindergarten children have been learning to count by 1’s, 5’s and 10’s to 100.  They spent the afternoon going to different stations that all revolved around the number 100. They drew pictures of what they would like when they were 100, what they would buy with $100, what they wished they had a hundred of, made a 100 headband and then played a game called Race to 100.  Thank you to Jennifer Sommer for providing the amazing 100th day of school snack.

Enjoy the week!

Michelle & Sonja

Mrs. Carroll’s Class: Absorbent Minds

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 do 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”!

We will be celebrating Valentines Day on Wednesday, February 13th. Giving and receiving valentines is a special part of a child’s school experience.  There are 22 students in our class.  Please have your child sign (alone or with your help) each valentine. Leave the envelope blank (with no specific name on it).  This enables your child to distribute his/her valentines without having to read each classmate’s name.  If your child is able to read the names of the children then they may write the names on the outside of the envelops, as this is a nice reading practice.  Please allow time for the name writing process.  This is a great vehicle for them to practice writing their name so remember to use upper case only for the first letter of their name.