SJES NEWS January 2017
Montessori Education The Lead teachers and I just wrapped up Montessori education classes this month. Thanks to all of you who attended! One of the things we talked about during our Toddler Montessori Class was the main goal of having a child develop a “Cycle of Activity.� This means the child places an underlay or rug to designate where they want to work, chooses a work, focuses and completes the work, cleans up the work, and places it back on the shelf where it belongs (or close to it). They would then roll up there underlay or rug and put it away. When we see child can complete this cycle we know they are ready for the next lessons that will require memorization of a slightly longer sequence. At this early age we also encourage the children to work from left to right and top to bottom, which lays the foundation for later reading and writing.
One of the Montessori topics we discussed in the Primary Education Class was the “Three-period Lesson.” We use this method to introduce the majority of Montessori materials. Let’s use a puzzle map to demonstrate. In introducing the North America map, for instance, the teacher would have the child sitting right beside her, preferably on her right-hand side. She would begin by giving a brief lesson about North America. Then she would ask the child to listen and repeat after her. The teacher would point to the countries and say “Canada, The United States, Mexico,” waiting for the child to repeat her words. The teacher would then say “Show me The United States; show me Mexico; show me Canada.” If the child points correctly we would then ask “What is this one’s name?” for each country. The child could then practice these three counties of the map until they felt they had these memorized and were ready to learn the next names. The child receives a three-period lesson again and again in the Montessori environment! If you were not able to attend our Montessori education classes please feel free to ask questions or come in for a tour. Mrs. Loree
Dear MDO Parents, We hope your holidays were warm and wonderful, and wish you a very Happy 2017! We were delighted with how ready the children were to get back to work after the long winter break! It’s been a busy January. Thirteen of our 36 friends had their birthdays this month. That’s a lot of birthday bread! Thanks to Father Gardner for our many birthday blessings, and for doing a wonderful job of remembering everyone’s names. We have been talking about winter weather, and were so happy for the flurries that we had that one day. We didn’t get to build a snowman, but we’ve had fun gluing and painting them all month. We’ve also been exploring our sense of touch, and learning about the difference between hot and cold.
Our colors of the month were blue and white, and our special shape, the rectangle. We read and talked about how Jesus cares for us, and how He doesn’t want us to worry about anything. We’re also learning a fun new song, The Ants Go Marching. Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom…
MDO
The colder weather is a great opportunity for the children to practice putting on their own coats before we go outside. This is the Montessori way: Kneeling, the child spreads her coat onto the floor with the front open to expose the arm holes. She then moves the coat (or her body) to make sure the label is close to her knees. Then the child puts her arms as far into each arm hole as she can, holds onto the material and then flips the coat up into the air and over her head and behind her back, which is why it’s important that the child hold onto the material inside the arms. The child then pushes her hands to the end of the sleeves and shrugs the coat onto her shoulders. Ta-dah! We usually sing this little song as a reminder:
“Put the tag by your toes and your arms in the holes; flip it over your head and away we go!” DO try this at home!! Thank you so much for your continued support and kind words. As always, please let us know if you have any questions, or if we can help in any way. Love, Ms. Eva, Ms. Mary, and Ms. Pamela
The Two Hour Work Cycle in the Toddler Classroom • Play is pleasurable and children must enjoy the activity or it is not play. • Play is naturally motivated and children will engage in play simply for
the satisfaction it will bring to them. • Play is more important than the process or end result. • Play is spontaneously chosen • Play is engaging physically and/or mentally involved in the activity. • Play is work for a child in the Montessori classroom.
Once a child is used to the routine of his day at school, he/she is moving from one activity to the next with few interruptions. The child works with joy and is able to learn at their own pace. The work chooses the child. When this happens the concentration of the child begins to grow for longer periods of time. There is an amazing hum in the classroom when children are working, focusing on works and the works are self correcting, so the child rarely ask for assistance. I tend to watch and observe the children's growth and enjoyment of their day. Mrs. Anna and Mrs. Andrea
Toddler 1
Toddler 2 January has been a busy month in our class. We started off with Father Gardner's visit, all the children love when he comes in monthly to give birthday blessings.
Connor and Olivia receiving their blessing and prayer. Maria Montessori said, "children become normalized through work." Once the classroom becomes normalized we can observe the children working. We enjoy watching those children who were quiet observers in the beginnings now blossoming into social butterflies. You will see the younger children observing and learning from the older ones and the older children learning through teaching and helping the younger ones. The older children have started working on extended works and more complicated work, they are able to show a deeper concentration for the work. It is so beautiful! Victoria is arranging flowers for the classroom.
George is discovering which side to put the puzzle piece in. After multiple tries he figured out how it was done.
Sienna is working on her pre writing skills.
Connor and Olivia building their language skills by looking at books.
Anne Marie is using an extended version of the knobbed cylinders. We are so blessed to be able to watch these children observe and discover new things everyday. We are half way through the school year and still so much to learn. Toddler 2 Team, April, Lily and Anabel
Toddler 3 has been working hard on perfecting our work cycle and the sequence of the works on the shelf. We have switched out the works on our "three shelf" to more challenging works and brought some of the works down to the children's level so they can start to experimenting with early primary sensorial works. They have really enjoyed this and are working hard on their fine motor skills! Olivia uses her fine motor skills to put large and small pegs on the peg board.
Alexandra practices her scissor cutting skills with long cutting strips.
The children have expressed much interest in painting recently! Scissor cutting is also a skill we are focusing on. Many children in our class will be moving to primary next school year and this is one of the skills they will need to acquire entering primary. Art has always been popular in the classroom! The children love to see the new artwork each day.
Toddler 3
Language and socialization is vital at this age. We are continuously switching out works on the language shelf as well as practicing our sound book in circle time. Toddler 3 has really enjoyed listening to and looking at books lately; during class they like to sit in a small group and read stories to each other while they look at the pictures. Some children ask a teacher to read to them. Including the flannel board with these stories has been a fun way of learning! Best wishes, Ms. Coral, Mrs. Amy, Ms. Brenda, Ms. Brittany
Avery proudly builds the broad stair vertically.
Ella grades by size with the pink tower.
Luke concentrates as he pours water for flower arranging.
Dear T4 families, The children continue to work on refining fine motor skills as well as completing their work cycle. Toddler 4 has taken on some wonderful works this month and has had so much fun learning and experimenting with the kinetic sand, cutting with scissors, drawing on the chalkboard, and engaging our senses with the scent jars.
Toddler 4
The children are continuing to learn about the primary colors red, yellow, and blue, and are also learning about secondary colors green, purple, and orange. The children enjoy singing about these colors daily and we also sing them in Spanish!
Our practical life independent food works are still a morning staple and favorite! Several students make this work priority first thing in the morning. Apple coring, orange juice squeezing, and banana slicing. Yum!!! We are working hard with potty learning as we get our second year toddlers ready for Primary!
Left page: Oliver cutting with scissors; Palmer experimenting with the chalk board.
All our best, Mrs. Amanda and Ms. Ashley
Right page: Gray shape sorting and working on color recognition; Davis has mastered apple coring.
PARTY
Dear Primary 1 Families, Happy 2017! This year seems to be flying by. We hope everyone had a beautiful holiday with their family and friends. Ms. Anna and I were happy to see all of our young friends back at school. This month we have been talking about our world from the expanse of the universe and inward to our own miraculous bodies. The children had a lot of fun manipulating the planets on our space mat as well as learning about each planet. We brought our sights back to Earth by working on land forms. This month we focused on island and lake. The children get to pour blue water into the forms so that they can really see the forms take shape. Calla, one of our kindergarten students, thought to combine a game we play in class called “I like you friend” with a poem she brought from home and re-wrote called “Hug Of War.” We drew cards and took turns with our randomly drawn partner to share something we appreciate about the other person. Then we hug and say, “I like you friend” and roll on the rug! We had a blast, and it was sweet to hear what each one shared.
As we bring how we look at the world around us even closer to home, we had an informative discussion on our skeletal system, digestive system and our hearts. The children each got to hear their own heartbeat through our class stethoscope. Our kindergarten class has started writing in their story tablets and practicing proper handwriting, as have the second years. We are focusing on remembering to go from left to right and top to bottom. We have also been doing a lot of work with the moveable alphabet and the math chains. The moveable alphabet allows the children to sound words out and the build them with the wooden letters, which teaches them to blend and “write� the words. The short and long chains teach skip counting and multiplication as well as squares and cubes of numbers. 2017 is off to a great start and I'm excited to see the children blossom as we move toward spring! Ms. Amaris Ms. Anna
Primary 1
Hello Primary 2 parents, We hope everyone has been having an awesome month and finally getting back into your daily routine. It is now the fourth week of January, as we are also getting back into our daily work cycle. Primary two has had the pleasure of being able to exceed in many new practical life works this month. One of the many popular works we had was using tongs to pull out small animals of Antarctica from a large bowl filled with ice cubes. The children are always very engaged when they choose this work. We’ve observed that play-doh is another popular work. It is a great activty to help with focus and fine motor skills, but of course amusing all at the same time! The second and third year students help make our very own play-doh in the afternoon. The students are always very proud to announce that they cooperated on making the play-doh for their fellow classmates. Our first year students have been progressing with their recognition of sounds and numbers. A few of them have also shown interest in tracing their name at the light box. The second and third years have been happily moving along as well. They are writing short stories, and using the movable alphabet frequently. They really enjoy making maps of the many countries in the world as well.
Primary 2
We have also welcomed a new floater to our classroom! Her name is Ms. Brenda. Most of the time she works one on one with our first years students, moving them forward with their sounds and number recognition. It has been terrific past few months. Our students have been working their way into many new activities and socializing very well. Our classroom is united and always eager to work together and create new friendships. We love watching them grow together, almost as if they were a small community. We hope you enjoy the rest of January. We are always excited to see what the next month will bring! Stay tuned. Thank you Primary 2 parents! Mrs. Barrineau and Ms. Sheila
Primary 3 parents, Welcome to February! We have had a busy last month in class and the children have been making great progress both academically and socially. In January we introduced some new work in the class and the children showed a lot of interest in learning new skills. Sewing was introduced along with color mixing and Asia continent studies. The children loved exploring new lessons and the teens number work has been very popular with our 1st and 2nd year students.
“Love is more than the electricity which lightens our darkness, more than the etheric waves that transmit our voices across space, more than any of the energies that man has discovered and learned to use. Of all things love is the most potent. All that men can do with their discoveries depends on the conscience of him who uses them. But this energy of love is given us so that each shall have it in himself.� -Maria Montessori
In February we will explore the continent of Europe and talk about the different cultures that occupy that area. More advanced concepts are ready to be introduced to the children and we will be having more small group lessons to explore how our world around us works. Our first year students will continue to sit in on lessons and work on developing fine motor strength to begin writing. Our second years will be working on their reading skills and phonics so that they can start the Bob Books. Our Kindergarden students will be learning about different ways to graph and measure. Love and peace are elements that are deeply involved in the Montessori philosophy. This month we will celebrate Valentine's Day and celebrate the ways we can love one another. With love, Mrs. Eloise & Ms. Jaymie
Primary 3
Primary 4 Happy New Year! We hope everyone enjoyed a wonderful and magical holiday season! The children seemed so anxious and excited to get back to school and get back into the swing of things. Ms. Bianca and I are enjoying being back on a familiar schedule after the hustle and bustle of the winter break as well. It has been quite delightful for us to get back into the classroom with the children. We barely recognized those baby faces from the fall season as many of the children sprouted up over those two Emerson works with beautiful weeks felt models of the Solar System. of break! And with the physical growth, we have also noticed a growth in the children’s learning interests. The children have been eager for bigger lessons in math and language and around the classroom you will quite frequently see addition using the addition strip board, the 45 layout with the Golden Bead materials, initial sound object matching, and spelling of all kinds! We have also included a fun Solar System study and have taken a deep dive into the space theme this month.
Avery and Anna Kate match objects in space nomenclature cards.
We started out our space unit by learning about the solar system. We learned about the Milky Way Galaxy, our Sun, and all the planets that orbit the sun. We discovered fun facts about all the planets (Mars is the red one; Jupiter has a huge swirling storm in its red spot) and learned about objects you can find in space (satellites, astronauts, asteroids, and more!).
We used our beautiful wooden Cosmic Nesting Boxes to learn all about the concept of different types of spaces contained by larger spaces (St. James, is in Dallas, which is in Texas‌but all is part of the Milky Way Galaxy). The children have soaked in all of the knowledge about our Solar System and are enjoying putting their knowledge to use in the classroom with all of our materials. Primary 4 has also experienced some new social dynamics in the classroom. We noticed after coming back from the break that many of the children Cosmic Nesting Box group lesson. were happy to be back with their friends. We also noticed that many new friendships began to form as the children began to branch out from what was comfortable to them to make time for new friendship Keaton and Liam explore our experiences. The Montessori Continent Globe. classroom allows the children freedom to interact with each other while helping encourage the understanding of empathy for others as children are allowed to properly discuss and work out their problems in a calm and respectful manner. What a great concept to begin perfecting at such an early age! Noelle draws and labels the planets after matching Solar System nomenclature cards.
2017 has had an out of this world start and we cannot wait to see everything the children accomplish during this semester.
Ms. Sarah and Ms. Bianca
It’s a new year! Welcome to 2017! I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas break. We have gotten off to a great start this month. Both art classes are enjoying making “snowy friends” projects. The second level students made polar bears, which look like they are playing peek-a-boo! The students started off by painting the shape of the polar bear’s head with white paint. Then we made a special puffy paint out of glue and shaving cream. It feels as if you are painting with clouds! When the puffy paint is dry, it stays fluffy and gives the painting a great texture. This is how the children made their bears look fuzzy. Then they painted the eyes, nose, and mouth with black paint. Finally, they made white snowflakes using the end of the paintbrush. The paintings are adorable! Take a look at them in the library hallway!
The Kindergartners are making penguins this month. It is a multi-step project, with a mix of different materials. They are using watercolor paper and paint, charcoal paper and charcoal, and acrylic paint. They started with the background first, which used watercolor paper and paint. We learned the word gradient – an increase or decrease in color from one point to another - and what it means when painting a background.
Art & Technology
The students were given four different colors of watercolor paint to use. They started at the bottom of the page with the lightest color and worked their way up to the top of the page with the darkest color. Along the way, they mixed colors to create three new colors. This made the gradient background seamless. The results are absolutely beautiful! The students said it looks like sunset in Antarctica, and I think they might be right! Next, they drew their penguin with pencil on their charcoal paper. Then they used charcoal to fill in and shade their penguin. Then, we will cut out their penguin and glue it onto the background. We will add acrylic paint for the snow and a shadow under the penguin’s feet. In technology, we have begun our unit on Lego robotics. The Kindergartners are having a great time - we have some master Lego builders! The students follow the instructions in the Lego book to build the robot. Once it is built we look at what pieces have been used and hypothesize about what the robot will do when we plug it in. Then, we plug it into the computer and make it move! This is the most exciting part! Once we see what happens to the robot, we stop and look at the pieces again. We talk about the gears that were used, and why it is moving a certain way. I have the students walk me through the design of the robot and explain the engineering behind it. It is absolutely amazing how much they learn! Thank you, Ms. Hanna
We Love Earthworms! We learned so many interesting things about the earthworm this month! We learned the parts of the earthworm and conducted experiments to help us discover the fundamental needs of an earthworm. We found that earthworms prefer moist over dry, veggies and fruit over meat and dairy, and dark over light.
The children enjoyed doing the experiments themselves as well as holding/investigating the earthworm! I love showing children how peaceful and essential many of God’s insects are.
On a side note, I submitted this lesson at the American Montessori Society convention a few years ago. Montessorian Aimee Fagan attended and put it out into the universe where it still lives today! http://www.montessoriworksblog.com/2014/05/05/fundamental-needs-worms-montessori-science-work/
Gardening
Happy Winter Gardening! Mrs. Loree
The After School Staff is happy to be back and spending time with your children. We are having crazy weather and it is hard to predict what it will be like! Please always send a coat or jacket. We like to have outside time as often as possible but we don’t want them to be cold. If we are not able to go outside we will use the Parish Hall as our playground so that children can have a large space to move around and play. Potty training is in full force with the toddlers. If your child is potty training and in ASC, please make sure that we have extra clothes. Typically if your child is in the beginning stages of potty training, they will come to ASC in diapers or a pull up. We will still encourage using the potty chair and as they progress and they are using the potty on a more regular basis, we will keep them in their cotton underwear. As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to call me. Lisa Wilson
ASC
And a voice from heaven said
" This is my Son, whom I love, with him I am well pleased."
Matthew 3:17
Welcome to 2017! I hope your holiday was joyful, peaceful and filled with God's love! We began this month looking back at Advent and talking about Epiphany, the revelation or revealing of Jesus as God’s son. We heard the story of the Magi, or three kings, who followed a very special star God placed in the sky to show where to find the Messiah, to announce “the new King of Heaven and Earth”! We learned that the kings brought gifts; gold to represent royalty, frankincense to represent divine birth, and myrrh to represent Jesus humanity. We learned the next week of how Jesus grew in stature and wisdom, in favor with God and man. Jesus went to the river to be baptized by John. The heavens opened and a dove descended while God’s voice from above proclaimed “This is my son who I love, in him I am well pleased.” We talked of how we can follow Jesus’ example, do the Father’s will, and hopefully some day hear similar words! We moved from there to Jesus calling his disciples or “helpers.” He called fishermen, farmers, and townspeople to help him share the love of God, teach the people how to live and pray, and to love each other. We learned a new song that helps us remember the names of the first 12 disciples, and learned that we can be disciples today if we follow Jesus and tell of God’s love to others. It is a great big job in a great big world, and we can be helpers too! Praise God from whom all blessings flow, Ms. Amaris
Chapel