Our Space

Week of October 22, 2018

As we continue to improve our skill on how to be proactive, we will read and act out the story of Pete the Cat and His White Shoes and More Than Anything.  In geography, we will read Me on the Map and learn about the land forms of gulfs and peninsulas. In biology, we will look at the colors of leaves and explore why and how the change colors. We will also learn more about the different types of spiders. We will continue measurement with length in math and have fun with art and music at the end of the week.

Have a wonderful week,

Ms. Martha & Ms. Valerie

Parents,

Please send in LOTS of leaves tomorrow (Wednesday) for our leaf party. It won’t be nearly as fun without them.

Thanks,

Ms. Martha

Blog- Week of October 15, 2018

Hello Parents,

This will be a very short week for the children. Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday are all early release days because of Parent Teacher Conferences (PTC). AM students will be in school 8:30-10:30 and PM students will be in school 11:00-1:00. Thursday and Friday there will be no school because of Fall Break. If you have not had a chance to sign up for PTC please do so. I am looking forward to meeting with each of you. The link is-  https://www.trackitforward.com/site/389525/events

This week we will read Roberto The Insect Architect as we continue lessons on being proactive. Our study of maps will include cardinal directions and the compass rose. As we continue our study of land forms, we will learn about cape and bay. And then on Wednesday we will have our leaf party. If you have bags of leaves you would like to donate, we would love to have them.

Looking ahead: Monday, October 22 is picture day. The students will still need to be in dress code for pictures.

Thank you all for your support and willingness to help out in so many ways. We could not do what we do without you.

Fondly,

Ms. Martha

Ms. Valerie

Blog- Week of October 8, 2018

Hello Parents,

I am glad to be back with the children. I was out last Thursday and Friday because I had Mohs surgery on my face to remove some skin cancer. Everything went well, and they were able to get all the cancer. I look a bit “beat up”, but I feel just fine. I will be out this Thursday and Friday as well because of some Montessori training that I need to attend. However, the children are in good hands during my absence, thanks to Ms. Valerie, Ms. Kimber, and Ms. Dixie.

This month we will begin lessons and stories to illustrate the concept to “Be Proactive”, one of the seven habits taken from Sean Covey’s book The 7 Habits of Happy Kids. The book we will read and discuss this week is titled Ruby’s Wish. For Geography we will learn about a map key and symbols. We will also begin our studies on landforms. For this week, we will learn about lakes and islands. In Biology, we will learn the parts of a spider and explore some different leaf shapes. We will continue our study of measurement with length and on Friday, October 12 we will have our first fieldtrip to Oaklawn Park.

Looking Ahead and Things to do

If you have not signed and returned your child’s fieldtrip permission slip, please do so ASAP. We welcome many chaperones for our trip to help manage the large group, so please email me if you would like to join us this Friday to Oaklawn Park.

Friday, October 12^th is also the Fall Festival for the school.  This is the time to dress up and celebrate Halloween as we will not be having a separate classroom party on Halloween.  They are still in need for volunteers to make the event a success. You can sign up on the following link- https://www.trackitforward.com/site/389525/events
Next week we will have our first Parent Teacher Conferences (PTC) on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. This is for parents and teachers only. You can sign up for a time through this link-

https://www.trackitforward.com/site/389525/events

One last thing, here is the information about the Original Works that will be going home this week-

Thank you for your support and have a great week!

Ms. Martha and Ms. Valerie

Blog- Week of October 1, 2018

Hello parents,

This week we will finish up our peace lessons but will continue practicing what we have learned. Monday, we will reinforce to the children the four basic emotions of happy, sad, afraid and mad and how each emotion affects their bodies, minds and spirits; and learn activities they can use to calm themselves when they are upset. Tuesday, we will have a story to illustrate how fear can alienate people while love unites them. Wednesday, our peace lesson will show a concrete representation of the interconnection and interdependence of the Earth’s elements and life forms to increase the children’s awareness of the importance of caring for the Earth. And Thursday, we will finish our peace lessons by making a web of love as we send our love by passing a yarn ball to each person in the circle while still holding on our section of yarn.

Throughout the month, we will be working on learning how to be proactive. We will read several books to illustrate different characters being proactive and then at the end of the month each class will review the stories and think about the characteristics of someone being proactive and then use those examples to write our own “Mission Statement”.

In geography the children will be introduced to the continent map as we show concretely how map makers took the representation of the earth (the globe) and made it flat. For biology we will start our study on vertebrates and invertebrates. We will begin learning about measurements with length for math and will learn about secondary colors in our art study.

Looking ahead for our leaf party on October 17^th, we will need leaves, lots of them. If you have leaves to donate, please bring some in. Have a great week!

Ms. Martha and Ms. Valerie

Blog post for week of September 24, 2018

Hello Parents,

Just a reminder that Monday, September 24, will be an early release day for Professional Development. Morning students will come 8:30-10:30 and afternoon students will come 11:00-1:00.

Peace:

After studying each of the five senses so closely, we will continue our peace lessons and focus on the mind and our emotions. We will first talk about positive and negative aspects of the mind and help the children differentiate between Positive Mind and Negative Mind and empower them to identify with their love lights as affirmed by Positive Mind. Then, we will learn how both Positive Mind and Negative Mind like to influence their choices, but that we each have the power to choose. When we make positive choices our love lights will shine. We will also talk about the powers of imagination and concentration and give them experiences in using the power of concentration. Next, we will learn more about identifying and expressing our feelings and how our emotions affect the body, mind, and spirit. Finally, we will give the children an opportunity to express, observe, and look for physical cues to another child’s emotional state, while giving them words to express empathy for another’s feelings.

In Geography, our study of the different land forms will begin this week. We will first introduce the concept of lake and island. And as we continue learning about plants and animals, we will learn more about care of animals as one of our responsibilities. We will also finish up our study on magnets. In art, we will study Piet Mondrian and continue to learn about the primary colors.

Have a great week,

Ms. Martha and Ms. Valerie

Blog- Week of September 17, 2018

Hello parents,

We will continue our study of the five senses this week. Each day we will focus on one of our senses and explore more deeply how each one sends messages to the brain, which then sends the message through the spinal cord to the nerves, which then tells the different parts of our body how to respond. This is how we explain it to the children and then say, “Isn’t that amazing?” Our bodies truly are remarkable, and it is fun to watch the children use their senses to make, well, sense out of the world around them. Dr. Montessori says, “Sensorial materials are the means by which we help children of this age. This material aids the education of the senses. The material lends itself to activity and movement. At the same time it calls forth the superior mental power of the child. It calls forth the child’s concentration, deep attention, and also his reasoning power.”

Our study on magnets will continue; as well as a review of the lesson we had on “The Globe” to learn more about land, air, and water. We will also be learning how to care for plants, and will have another music lesson at the end of the week, along with working on team building activities and how to give and receive compliments.

Have a great week!

Ms. Martha and Ms. Valerie

Week of September 10, 2018

Parents,

This week as we continue our peace lessons, we will focus on the body; particularly, the lungs for breath awareness, muscle awareness, and how the brain sends messages to the body through the nerves in the spinal cord. We will also begin learning about our mind and have an introductory lesson on our five senses and how they help deliver messages to the brain and mind. And then, next week we will look closer at each of the five senses.

We will begin our study on the globe, but we will first learn about “Concept of Representation” to help the children understand that an object or a picture stands for the real object being presented. We will also learn the differences between plants and animals, as well as continue to experiment with magnets. In art, we will learn about the primary colors and do art activities relating to those colors.

Please be aware that Thursday evening is back to school night for parents only from 6 to 8 pm. You may find more information about back to school night on the school blog. Thank you for your support.

Have a wonderful week!

Ms. Martha & Ms. Valerie

Parents,

As we continue our lessons on peace this week, the next three lessons will mainly focus on encouraging the children to be kind and thoughtful and to recognize the kind and thoughtful acts of others; how to make peaceful choices; and how to resolve conflict peacefully. Our last peace lesson this week will help the children understand the four aspects of themselves: body, mind, emotions and spirit (inner self) and will be the foundation for the next 12 lessons.

We will also begin lessons on living and non-living objects in biology; and in physical science, we will experiment with magnets. At the end of the week, we will enjoy some basic music lessons.

This week we will have a lesson to introduce the children on how to get themselves a snack. Up until this point, we have had group snack and worked on grace and courtesy (manners). From this point on, we will generally have individual snack. The children will all have the opportunity every day to partake of snack if they choose. The snacks are provided by you, the family. If you have not had the chance to sign up, here is the link:  https://www.trackitforward.com/site/389525/events  We appreciate the donations that come in; however, because of our school’s wellness policy, we can only serve healthy snacks. We typically like to offer two food items each day in small portions such as two apple slices and ¼ cup of goldfish, or a cheese stick and 4-5 wheat thins, etc. Fruits, vegetables, whole grains, proteins, and dairy products are all great snack choices. Please check the ingredients on any processed food, if the first two ingredients contain sugar, they are not appropriate for school snack. Also, we cannot accept any homemade snacks in order to comply with the state and local food safety and sanitation regulations.

This week, we will be watching to see if the children can walk down to class on their own. We will send them in small groups if they need the extra support. Please give encouragement if they are unsure if they can walk to class on their own.  We are their to support them as well. We want to thank you so much for your support and willingness to help when needed. We enjoy your children and their eagerness to learn.

Ms. Martha and Ms. Valerie