Lower Elementary: Working Together

Posted on by Ashley O'Connell

This Tuesday, our Kindergarten friends joined our class. It was a nice glimpse into what next year’s class will be like. They are such a great group of children and we thoroughly enjoyed starting to get to know each and every one of them. It was a joy to see students completely engaged and happy working with their future classmates. Our mentor students did a wonderful job planning work that was enjoyable and interesting for the Kindergarten students.

This week the children were engaged in History lessons. The first year children had the lesson of The Long Black Line. This lesson is meant to strike the imagination of the children and create a humbling feeling of the appearance of humans on Earth in the perspective of the vast amount of time that Earth has existed. The second year children had lessons on the Clock of Eons. These lessons introduce the sequence of events that resulted in the evolution of life on Earth, give the history of life on Earth, and introduce the interrelatedness of all organisms and the fragile balance that maintains life. The third year students had lessons on the Time Line of Life. These lessons focus on the interrelatedness of Earth to those who live on it and on the evolution of life on Earth.

We have begun our immersion week in our preparation for this year’s performance of SEUSSICAL THE MUSICAL to be performed by Lower and Upper Elementary students next Thursday, May 9th at 7:00pm.

What is a Montessori Immersion Week?

Maria Montessori believed it is important to give children opportunities to understand the process of working together toward a larger goal and to immerse themselves deeply in meaningful work. At FWM, we expect a lot from our students during the week. We know that challenging academics will help our students get ready for the path that lies ahead. Because we are committed to the development of the whole child, we embrace the prospect to give students the opportunity to be creative in a different setting and to see each other’s strengths in a new light.

Mrs. Carroll’s Class: An Intention to Work

Posted on by Cindy Carroll

Retrieving a mat, picking it up carefully, finding the ideal space to work, and rolling it out provides an opportunity to practice gross motor skills and body consciousness. Everything that gets placed on the mat thereafter becomes the responsibility (and privilege) of the child working on that mat.

Montessori work mats delineate a work space as the child’s own and sets an intention to “work.”  Not only does the child know that their lesson is exclusive to them (unless they invite someone to join them on their mat), they also have the responsibility to put their materials away when they are finished, before they roll up their mat and signal the end of their work session.

Our floors have been a sea of rugs this week!  Your children have skillfully maneuvered themselves throughout the environment, careful not to disturb a friends work. I continue to be amazed at their growing control and respect for friends and the environment.

A gentle reminder to our Kindergarten parents that we will be visiting Flanders Nature Center on Thursday, May 9th. Be on the look out for an email with an additional reminder and overview.

Peace and progress,

Cindy & Sharlene

Mrs. Doyle’s Class: The Three Period Lesson

Posted on by Michelle Handibode

In a Montessori classroom teachers rely on the Three Period Lesson to introduce new vocabulary and concepts and even to highlight the purpose of a material. These lessons allow the child to absorb concepts in a concrete manner while reinforcing each component of the lesson.

The 1st Period is simply naming the concept or material and demonstrating it repeatedly. Some of the more complex materials or concepts may need to be introduced in the 1st period over the course of several lessons. So for example, using the color tablets from the Sensorial area, we introduce the child to the primary colors by saying, “This is red.”

During the 2nd Period, we ask the child to recognize and find the object. We ask the child, “Which one is red? Which one is blue? Which one is yellow?” This period is longer than the 1st Period and we keep it interesting by asking them to manipulate the object. We might say, “Hide the blue tablet behind your back. Place the red tablet on your lap.”  We are cognizant of making sure to begin each request or action with the last item we spoke about. So if we ask the child to manipulate the red, blue, and yellow color tablets in that order, the next series of directions would follow the order of yellow, blue, then red.

The last stage, or 3rd Period focuses on recall. We ask the child to identify the material or concept without any assistance. We ask the child, “What is this?”

While the intent of the Three Period Lesson is to isolate and introduce new concepts and materials, we are also helping the children to enrich and expand their vocabulary.

Have a wonderful week!

Michelle & Sonja

Ms. Kayser’s Class: April Showers Bring May Flowers

Posted on by skayser

 

The quote, “April showers bring May flowers” has always been my favorite way of explaining the weather during the early stages of spring. This season it feels like we have had more rain than sunshine, but it is important to remember of the beauty that emerges after the earth drinks up all that rain! As May comes into view, so have the colorful blossoms of flowers and vibrant green buds on the trees. Without those April showers, none of these things would be here for us, which is one way of remaining positive during those dreary, rainy days.

That rain also keeps us inside the classroom longer during our morning work cycle. Sometimes it is hard for the children to sit and concentrate without releasing some energy outside but this past week has been filled with some amazing moments of focus and perseverance. Last weekend, we switched over the classroom and filled its shelves with new topics of study in science and geography. We are now on Australia, our last continent of the school year that we will be studying and in science we are looking at amphibians and reptiles! The children have been so enthralled in their work, some days they forget about going outside and lose themselves in the activities around them. Their ability to work for longer periods of time just goes to show how much they have grown over the course of the year. The children are confident in themselves and excited to continue to learn and grow as individuals.

You could say that these April showers have made our children grow, and soon bloom, as we head into our final full month of the school year, May.

We hope you have a beautiful week, with sunnier days ahead!

Ms. Kayser and Ms. Alli

Mrs. Doyle’s Class: Moving On and Moving Up

Posted on by Michelle Handibode

Transitions, while often exciting, can also be a time of uncertainty and sometimes even nervousness of what is to come. This includes the transition for our children moving from Toddler to Primary and from Primary to Lower Elementary. We are very cognizant of this and put in place small steps to help ensure a sense of continuity and calmness for everyone.

On of those steps, is inviting the children moving up to spend a short time in the environments they will be transitioning to. Our Toddler friends spent some time with the Kindergarten children in a Primary classroom. The older children showed showed them around the room and gave a few small lessons. The environment they visited is not in any way an indication of class placement for next year. Each Primary environment, although different in small ways has the same materials and is a true Montessori classroom. Likewise, our Kindergarten students will be going to spend some time in Lower Elementary. These visits are a quick peek into the new environment, to meet new friends and teachers and to even see  some familiar materials.

It is always heartwarming to see how excited the Kindergarten children are to welcome our Toddler friends. One child said today, “Don’t worry, I was as small as you once and I dropped everything!”

Much to the delight of the children, the butterflies emerged from their chrysalises and we released them into the Zen garden.

Have a peaceful week!

Michelle & Sonja

Ms. Kayser’s Class: Community

Posted on by skayser

“There is a great sense of community within the Montessori classroom, where children of different ages work together in an atmosphere of cooperation rather than competitiveness. There is respect for the environment and for the individuals within it, which comes through experience of freedom within the community”  -Maria Montessori

This quote by Maria Montessori truly encapsulates our week. Although our sense of community is ever growing among our students within our classroom, this week we got to branch out and grow stronger with our school community. We are lucky to have a community service day where the Middle School students come to join our class for an hour. These students come to work alongside our three, four, and five year olds and give guidance with their work. Our young students love this time with their older peers and take so much pride and ownership in the process of working with them.

This week was also special for our Kindergarten students; they got the opportunity to become like their older peers and give guidance to the youngest students in our school, our Toddler friends! Each Kindergarten student got to take a Toddler student under their wing for part of the day and teach them some of the exciting lessons in our classroom. This experience is not only rewarding for the Kindergarten students, it helps the younger friends prepare for their transition to Primary in the fall!

Next week on Wednesday, April 30th, the Kindergarten students will be going to our Lower Elementary classroom to visit with Mrs. Sankey and Ms. Beckett and have a mentoring experience of their own. They will get to sit and work with the first graders and learn some exciting new lessons!

On another very exciting side note, our butterflies emerged from their chrysalises over the weekend and we were able to release them onto our playground. What a wonderful and beautiful experience it was for all the children. Luckily, we also got to spend some extra time in the beautiful sunshine after releasing our butterflies. Spring is such a magnificent season!

All the best,

Ms. Kayser and Ms. Alli

Mrs. Carroll’s Class: Change Ahead!

Posted on by Cindy Carroll

 

Warm weather and long days have finally returned and our class is in bloom with activity. We have enjoyed observing and recording the stages of a butterfly’s life cycle and were excited to send ours off to begin their new journey.

Our Kindergarten students are themselves preparing for a change. In five short weeks our oldest Primary friends will complete their third year with the Primary, and emerge into the Lower Elementary environment. Next Wednesday, April 30, the Kindergarten children will visit our Lower Elementary environment.  This week our Kindergarten students welcomed Toddler students into our environment; and the cycle begins. Developing our Kindergarten students to become mentors is more than simply asking an older student to help a younger one. A true leader is mentored and shown the process of how to lead and help others. When we take the time to cultivate leaders in our Montessori environment, we see that this is another piece of our carefully prepared environment.

Make a wish, take a chance, make a change!

Cindy and Sharlene

Mrs. Doyle’s Class: We’re Going On a Bug Hunt

Posted on by Michelle Handibode

 

Spring is the perfect time to go for a nature walk and bug hunt and that’s exactly what we did yesterday. Going on a nature walk is simple and full of fun and learning. It’s a great way to spend time outdoors. The secret to a great nature walk is time, lots of time to explore and discover. A bug hunt is a really fun way to help incorporate what we are learning about insects inside the classroom and what we would observe in nature.

As we left the school to begin our walk around the perimeter of the school and see what insects we would discover, we were encouraged by one young friend yelling out “Come on entomologists, we have a job to do!” We had no problem finding insects that were hidden under leaves and rocks, however, flying insects were not to be found. The general consensus is that it was just too cold for flying insects to be out. Mrs. Lyga and I strongly agree!

The best thing about a bug hunt? Once the children get in the habit of learning, observing and studying insects, their reaction is less likely to be “aarrghhhh a bug!”

Have a wonderful week!

Michelle & Sonja