And of course we had to finish our school year with a wonderful water day! Children had so much fun and we loved watching them enjoy this beautiful day.

Our playground was set up in different stations so children could choose what they wanted to do. There was water ball basketball, fishing, boats, bubble making (of course),  finger painting, water paint roller, truck washing and a super fun splash pad that brought so much joy and laughter to your children. After having a great morning in the sun, the children were surprised to find an ice cream truck at our school soccer field! They were so excited! Closing the morning with a yummy ice cream was just the best!

 

Looking through school pictures, I cannot stop the overwhelming feeling of thankfulness! I know we have said it before, but we need to say it one more time: Thank you for entrusting us with your little ones and walking next to us to give them the best experience each day!

We give them back to you pounds heavier, inches taller, months wiser, more independent, confident and mature than they were back in September. They did themselves a great job unfolding and growing each day and we feel honored to have witnessed it. They, for sure, will continue to be part of our lives. Even though some of them will be moving up a level, remember that we will always be interested in your children and their destiny-wherever they go, whatever they do and whoever they become.

They are truly precious to us!

Enjoy the contrast pictures of the first weeks and the last weeks of school of your child in our Toddler program!

Have a great summer!

Love,

Mrs. Hood and Ms. Maria

Is it true? How’s it possible!? Are we really a week away from ending our school year? It seems like it was  yesterday when we were welcoming the toddlers into our school! Your children have been working as busy bees from day one and they have challenged themselves in every way. We couldn’t be more proud to see how much each one of them has accomplished in different areas, one of them being great social-emotional development.  It’s incredible to see the type of friendships that have been born between them and how socialization has started to be very important to them. This is a great sign of growth!

At the beginning of the school year it is usual to see a lot of  toddlers parallel playing… children are aware of other little human beings around them but they are not interested in really connecting with them. They might look into each other’s eyes but as their thinking is still so concrete they actually just seem interested in the “little ball” with the nice color that moves so it’s logical they decide to explore it. This is what we normally call: poking each other’s eyes. It’s also common to see a toddler curiously trying to explore another child’s face with their index  finger and the other toddler thinking he is just receiving something to taste. Yeap! We call that one finger biting! Ouch!

Thankfully the connection has developed and as they have matured, it’s now common to see the children waiting for their friends at the door, inviting each other to play together, having logical conversations, joking and making each other laugh, hugging and verbally expressing their affection for each other. Amigos are the best!

As we enjoy the last couple of days together as a little family, we spent quality time outdoors this week singing, walking, running, building, digging, chasing each other, laying in the sun, talking, exploring nature and of course, naming worms. We also explored peas for food tasting!

We can’t wait for all the fun planned for next week. On Wednesday 6/8 is our Toddler’s Water Day and we will be having our Crossing the Bridge ceremony on Friday 6/10. Please refer to the email sent with all the instructions.

We wish you a beautiful weekend,

Mrs. Hood and Ms Maria

Maria Montessori believed that nothing comes into the mind except through the senses. During the early years, as children develop their senses, their attention is directed toward the environment. The purpose of the Sensorial activities is to help the child in their efforts to sort out the many varied impressions given by the senses. These activities are specifically planned to help the child develop discrimination, order, and to broaden and refine the senses. These experiences also help prepare them to be a logical, aware, and perceptive person.

As we continue our studies on birds, this week the children received a lesson on the birds’ calls and songs. Children are learning to identify each bird sound through a fun work where the children press a button, hear the bird and have to match the picture card with the sound. As every work in our environment has a control of error built within it, the child has the opportunity to self correct by matching the color dot behind the card to the color of the button, helping the child to match the sound to the correct bird. As children practice this work they will learn to identify the birds just by listening and they won’t need to look at the back of the card anymore to be successful. To say that this has been a big favorite work is an understatement! It has been precious observing the children taking the time to listen carefully and observe the details of the birds’ pictures.

Children also worked on an art project creating their own binoculars so, as the great ornithologists that they are, they could spot birds in the playground and learn to identify them. How proud they seem every time they spot a bird!

Another popular work this week has been a water work, mixing colors. This is a multi-step work your children seemed to love, again bringing longer periods of concentration and great sensory stimuli.

As we celebrated together another birthday this week, we wanted to thank you once again for trusting us with your little ones. To be able to assist them, watch them grow and bloom has been a blessing we don’t take for granted.

Enjoy a little peek into our work cycle:

Mrs. Hood and Ms. Maria

The time we all were waiting for finally arrived!  Our beautiful butterflies emerged, took time to strengthen their wings and enjoyed the well prepared environment your little ones created for them. Children enjoyed watching the butterflies walking around and using their long tongues to taste the fruits we provided for them. When the time came, we gathered together in the butterfly garden and opened the glass doors! We could almost sense the butterflies’ excitement as they felt the sun and the wind and immediately started to flap their wings. One of them flew high as soon we opened the doors, while the other four seemed a little more shy. I grabbed a little stick and offered it to them. After a couple of seconds the butterflies decided to fly, bringing smiles and laughter to your children while fulfilling their purpose as butterflies.

This activity always brings so many emotions for us as guides! In just a couple of weeks our school year will be over and as we reflect on the butterflies flying away, we realize that as with those tiny caterpillars,  we have observed and enjoyed every change in the lives of your children during this year! They have grown so much! It has brought so much joy to our lives just to step back and observe how independent, confident, and capable your children have become.  Like the butterflies brought so much joy to your children, your little ones have brought so much joy to us and we are so incredibly thankful to you for trusting us with them. Soon it will be time to open the “glass doors” and watch them fly and we are so sure each one of them is going to spread their wings and fly high!

On another note, we started our studies on birds this week and children have had a great time taking some time to listen to the birds outside and learning to recognize them by name. Cardinal, blue jay, robin, woodpecker, oriole, indigo bunting, warbler, house sparrow and goldfinch are some of the names you will hear often in our environment. Children got to observe, feel and smell the type of food birds eat and also learn some names like sunflowers seeds, millet, corn and wheat. They also helped to prepare our bird feeder.

This week some of our older toddlers got to visit a primary classroom and worked with some of the kindergartners and teachers. We explored cherries for food tasting, celebrated a  fantastic three year old birthday and got a fresh new member in our FWM community! Big congratulations to the Mica family on their new precious addition!

We hope you all enjoy the weather this weekend,

Stay cool and see you next week,

Mrs. Hood and Ms. Maria

Reminder: As the weather is getting warmer, please remember to apply sunscreen to your child before school arrival.