Mrs. Doyle’s Class: Hibernate, Migrate, or Adapt?

Posted on by Michelle Handibode

We hope that everyone had a chance to relax over the course of the winter break.  The generosity shown to us in everyone’s gifts and cards was so very touching. We are most grateful for all of your support. The relationship between home and school is extremely important at this stage of a child’s school experience. We are beyond blessed to have so many wonderful parents who make it easy to foster positive relationships with our families.

This week, we are learning that winter can be very harsh for animals. The weather and lack of food can make their survival difficult. To help ensure their survival, animals will hibernate, migrate, or adapt to their surroundings.  Some animals hibernate for the winter by going into a deep sleep. Their body’s temperature drops, their heartbeat and breathing slow down, and they use very little energy. Animals that migrate travel to other places where the weather is warmer and they will be able to find food. Animals that adapt remain and stay active in their environment. They adapt to the changing weather and their behavior and bodies may change too.

So, as the cold weather is becoming more frequent, how many of us are thinking about hibernating or migrating?

Have a warm and happy week!
Michelle & Sonja

Ms. Kayser’s Class: A New Chapter

Posted on by skayser

The new year stands before us, like a chapter in a book, waiting to be written. – Melody Beattie

The holiday season came and went in a hurry and the new year has officially begun. The students came back into the classroom with such a beautiful enthusiasm, it took our breath away!

This new year has already been filled with exciting new changes! We have a new student in our classroom, Gregory, who has already made such a wonderful impact on us and our students. We are so happy to have him with us and look forward to spending the rest of the year learning beside him.

The other new addition to our classroom came in the form of a four legged friend! We are now the proud owners of a crested gecko! The children are beyond thrilled to have a new pet to take care of alongside Honey, our betta fish. The beautiful terrarium that our gecko calls home is a tranquil place for the children to explore up close. If you have time, please stop by to say hello! The children are so proud to share our new friend with anyone who comes to visit. We did a vote this week on the name of gecko and the children have ultimately decided on Sunny (Sunshine)!

On a side note, Ms. Alli and I would like to say thank you for all the thoughtful and heartwarming Christmas gifts we received before break. We are so thankful to be a part of such a loving community, and share these special moments with you all. Our gift every day is being able to teach your children, so although the gifts were appreciated, we are already spoiled!

Ms. Kayser and Ms. Alli

Ms. Kayser’s Class: The Season of Celebrations

Posted on by skayser

“The best and most beautiful things cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart” -Helen Keller

If we could view the world through the eyes of the children, our lives would be filled with so much joy and happiness. This fact is more apparent now, during the holiday season, than any other time of the year. The holidays are such a special time for us all, and sometimes it is hard to sit back and really immerse ourselves in the wonder of it all. The children have taken us back to the days where the magic of the holidays trumped everything else that was happening in our lives. Although this month is short, and there are so many events and celebrations going on in the school, we have really been able to enjoy this special time together learning about all the holiday traditions celebrated around the world.

We began our month celebrating St. Nicholas’ Day. We discussed how in other parts of the world, people celebrate different holidays during the year and this one in particular was one that is celebrated in Western Europe. We sat around our circle and shared the story of St. Nicholas and the children excitedly placed a pair of boots outside our classroom in the hopes that we would be visited by the Saint himself! I still cannot describe the beauty of how their faces lit up to the sight of the boots filled with greens and candy canes outside our classroom the following day. Moments like that are what make the hustle and bustle of the holiday season so worth it.

The next holiday we got to experience was Hanukkah. Thank you to Seth and Gia Feltman for coming in and bringing beautiful artifacts to share with the children. We sat together and learned about how Hanukkah is celebrated and then got to share a meal of latkes and applesauce. Yum!

The festivities continued this week with our Christmas celebration. Thank you to all the parents who helped provide the cookies, supplies and help for the cookie decorating! The celebration began with the story Ten Christmas Wishes. As I read the final quote from the book, I couldn’t help but stop to look around at all the beautiful children of our class. “Ten Christmas stars are shining bright, the last one is for you, So close your eyes and make a wish, May all your dreams come true!” These children are such a gift to us and our wish is for them to continue to be the kind, special individuals we have grown to love so much.

Happy Holidays,

Ms. Kayser and Ms. Alli

Mrs. Doyle’s Class: Classroom Holiday Celebrations

Posted on by Michelle Handibode

In the Montessori environment, celebrating holidays is an important component of our philosophy.  The children are introduced to the traditions and rituals of celebrations around the world. There is a  gentle focus on how  each holiday is distinct and yet there are similarities as well. Helping the children to learn about different holidays highlights the Montessori principals of peace and inclusion. Of course, we also use our globe and maps to locate where in the world these celebrations are taking place!

On Tuesday, Gia and Seth Feltman spent time in our classroom sharing the story of Hanukkah and providing delicious Latkes and applesauce.  It is always amazing to watch children approach new food with hesitancy and before you know it, ask for more!

On Thursday, Trevor Macomber came to spend some time with the children and read Twas The Night Before Christmas. Everyone then had a chance to decorate their own sugar cookie.  Thank you to all of our parents for their time and help and also all of the behind the scenes help in providing snack and supplies to the class.

Just a gentle reminder that we do go outside most days.  Please make sure to send in hats and gloves for your child.

Wishing everyone peace and love during this holiday season.

Mrs. Doyle & Mrs. Lyga

Mrs. Carroll’s Class: A Season for Celebration

Posted on by Cindy Carroll

‘Tis’ the season for celebrations!  A time to honor the many beautiful and wondrous ways that people observe the diverse collection of holidays from around the world. All of these occasions are a wonderful way to reinforce the idea that people around the world have distinctive yet similar celebrations.

This week the children celebrated the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah. They were completely engaged by the story of ancient Jewish people’s triumph over their enemies. Thank you Leah Mayor (Newman) for your compassionate Hanukkah storytelling, and delicious latkes.

Our Christmas celebration began with a brief discussion on the story of Christmas, from a historical and cultural perspective.  This was followed by our Santa celebration and Lisa Manca’s enthusiastic reading of The Night Before Christmas.  No true Christmas celebration would be complete with out a brightly colored, incredibly sweet Christmas cookie. Thank you Francine Wheeler for the delicious sugar cookies. We had fun icing and then decorating our holiday treats.

Learning about the holidays of different cultures embraces the Montessori principals of inclusion and peace and helps students understand that celebrations have had a great significance to people throughout time and across all cultures. Rituals and celebrations are a large part of human history. They have to do with your culture, your time and place in history. So let’s take a look at creating rituals in our own families, specifically towards the end of the year, the festive season.

Your children will be bringing home a very special gift for you this week. Please enjoy this token of love and gratitude. We had a great time creating these gifts and know you will appreciate your children’s creative efforts.

A gentle reminder. Please send your children into school with warm winter attire.

May your holidays be merry and filled with moments you’ll always remember.

Cindy & Sharlene

Ms. Kayser’s Class: Winter Wonderland

Posted on by skayser

The classroom has been transformed into a winter wonderland! The students walked in Monday morning to discover that the holidays had taken over. It is always so exciting for everyone when new works appear on the shelves. It brings so much joy to both us and the children as their curiosity guides them to re-explore all the shelves.

In geography we have traveled across the globe to Antarctica. The children have really enjoyed learning about this cold continent and how different it is from North America. As the month progresses, we will be learning all about the scarce number of animals and plants that are able to live in the harsh climate of this continent and explore how they survive!

Outside of the classroom, this week brought us a special visitor: Aris, Officer Felicia, and Officer Matt! Aris is a two year old German Shepherd from Slovakia who is training to be a part of the K-9 Unit in the Newtown Police Department. Officer Felicia spent time on Tuesday to talk to the children about how Aris and the rest of the department are working hard every day to keep us all safe! We even got to learn some of the German language they use to train Aris and watch as he listened to commands. The children were ecstatic to watch Aris work.

Thank you Officer Felicia, Officer Matt, and Aris, as well as the rest of the Newtown Police Department, for going out every day to protect us and our community.

Ms. Kayser and Ms. Alli

Mrs. Doyle’s Class: Special Visitors

Posted on by Michelle Handibode

This week we had two special visitors.  On Tuesday, Officer Felicia, Officer Matt, and Aris from the Newtown Police Department spent some time teaching us how they all work together to keep us safe.  Aris is a two year old German Shepherd who is still in training and part of the Newtown K-9 unit.  He comes all the way from Slovakia. The children loved hearing that his favorite food is ice cream and that he lives at home with Officer Felicia.

On Wednesday, we learned who St. Nicholas was. St. Nicholas was a Bishop who inherited a lot of money from his family.  He was also a very gentle, kind man who lived by the virtues of personal generosity, charity towards those in need, and taking care of the young and the most vulnerable.  We learned that  St. Nicholas loved to perform random acts of kindness for those in need. Many people around the world celebrate St. Nicholas Day by leaving a pair of boots outside their door.  So, we left them outside our classroom door.  To our amazement, the boots were beautifully decorated and filled with candy canes the next morning.

Wishing you a warm and wonderful week!

Mrs. Doyle & Mrs. Lyga

Mrs. Carroll’s Class: Canine, Color, and Compassion

Posted on by Cindy Carroll

Officers Felicia and Matt from the Newtown Police Department K-9 Unit visited this Tuesday with their canine, Aris. The officers shared with the children how canines are used to support the police department in keeping us all safe. Aris kept us all captivated by both his beauty and allegiance to his trainers.

In Art, the children learned about the Northern Lights, complimenting this months’ study of Antarctica.  The students were able to create their own  “dancing light” drawings by layering various colorful lines using chalk pastel. Miss Jen encouraged the children to blend the colors with their fingers to create a glowing effect to represent the glow of the Northern Lights. Enjoy!

The class celebrated Saint Nicholas Day on December 6th.  St. Nicholas is known for his generosity to those in need, his love for children, and his concern for sailors and ships.  On the eve of  St. Nicholas Day children traditionally leave boots outside of their doors in hopes that he will leave a small treat in them. We were thrilled that St. Nicholas visited Fraser Woods School and left a tasty gift, a boot full of candy canes. His life mission remains a continued model for compassion.

Until next week,

Cindy & Sharlene