Greetings! Cooler weather is here and the rains have been coming too. This has been great, seeing as how we are currently studying all sorts of cycles and systems related to water and weather. All students are participating in the Work of Water lessons; some will delve deeper than others this year, yet all will be involved in some way. This upcoming week we even have an in-house assembly for the 4th years on weather. So exciting!
The 5th years also have an assembly this week by the Rocky Mountain Power group. They will be bringing items home with them to share with their families; look for that.
All students have now had at least one conference; each has a current work chart to progress through. I’d like to share some reminders: Each child has access to Utah Compose and is asked to write what they can (improving of course with each attempt) on the assigned weekly prompt. They begin in class on Wednesdays and it is due on Sunday night/Monday morning. Some students now have a novel which they are using for literature study, word studies, grammar studies and sentence construction studies. This is their own book which they are to write in and perform their work within. If you wish to donate $5 to the purchase of their books, it would be much appreciated. Other students will be receiving short novels as well, as time moves forward and they have shown their conscientious work ethics (completing the grammar boxes, word study boxes, and so forth prepares them for this greater work.)
As for the other software interests, these are up to the student’s and each one’s personal interest and time. I expect students to invest at least an hour per week engaged in a math activity on either IXL or Kahn Academy. Kahn Academy has videos to assist in the student’s understanding; therefore, if your child needs extra assurance in math, I would veer him or her towards this program. It will require your assistance in setting up an account. DuoLingo also would require your assistance in setting up an account; yet, this program is one which all the children are very excited about. In class, they are allowed only 20 minutes per week. Thus, allowing them to do ten minutes a day at home will surely help them progress more rapidly and retain better. Studying other languages typically helps in understanding one’s own language better.
In sum, ten minutes a day in language learning, one hour per week in math exploration, and whatever time necessary in preparing one written response to a prompt on Utah Compose are the software program expectations. These all have the potential to be done in class too, if the child manages his or her time adequately. Sometimes that’s a challenge when we have so many wonderful lessons occurring!
Speaking of lessons, we have many occurring: prime versus composite numbers, migration studies, abstraction of square roots, squaring, mastery of math facts, exposure to diverse dance genres, and much more. This past week we had some beautiful moments where children asked questions and sought answers of their own accord (about WWII, Vietnam, and even Christopher Columbus.) This is what Montessori education seeks to promote: spark the interest and let the child explore. And while, yes, some pieces of education are the responsibility of all to know (reading, writing and arithmetic), the cosmos is ours to explore… I look forward to the sparks continuing to fly!
REMINDERS: Field trip forms for fourth years are due! (Donations of $7-10 are being accepted)
DEAR AMERICA PROJECTS DUE OCTOBER 2nd! Reading Responses are due Monday, October 2nd. Students’ presentations will begin on Thursday, October 5th. A schedule will be posted in the classroom on Monday for children to know when to dress up.
ALL STUDENTS NOW KNOW THE PARAMETERS OF OUR CLASSROOM STRUCTURE; A NOTE WILL BE SENT TO PARENTS WHEN A CHILD IS NOT MEETING THAT EXPECTATION-I HOPE TO WORK WITH EACH PARENT AS A TEAM TO PROMOTE THE CHILDREN’S GROWTH IN LEARNING TIME MANAGEMENT, SELF-CARE, CARE OF THEIR ENVIRONMENT, AND ORGANIZATIONAL AND SOCIAL SKILLS. THANK YOU!