SJES NEWS May 2018
Welcome to the 2018 St. James Episcopal School Kindergarten graduation ceremony! Boy is this an exciting but heartbreaking day! It’s so challenging to say goodbye. You each should be so proud of everything you’ve accomplished during your time here at St. James. You have done a tremendous job leading the younger children. We thank each of you for your leadership and for the gifts you shared with all of us. As I was preparing for your graduation, I spent a lot of time looking back at the pictures of the majority of you when you were toddlers here at St. James. We have loved our time with you. We will always remember what was special and good about you. We will remember the way that you traveled through the Montessori materials, and will use that knowledge to help children that learn in similar ways. We will even sometimes see little pieces of you in the children who will join us in the future, but no one will ever replace you in our hearts and minds. You are a true St. James Kindergartener who’s about to set off on a great adventure. Let’s pretend you’re packing a little suitcase of a few things you’ve learned here at St. James. Some of the things that I hope you would put in your suitcase are: • Your awareness of God’s great love for you and that you can always use prayer to help you in any situation. • Your powerful words. Your words will always help you tell wonderful stories, express your feelings, and even work things out with your friends. They will always be one of your strongest tools. • Your empathy. Empathy means that you try to put yourself in someone else’s shoes to understand how they feel. I’ve seen each of you practicing this. • Your friendship skills! Did you know that you need four hugs a day to be truly happy? Friends are great for hugs. • Your sense of what is fair because you will grow up to make things happen in this world. • Your courage: may you always have the courage to stand up for yourself and for others.
• Your ability to choose a challenging work and give it your very best. Make sure you don’t choose the easiest way...choose the way that will bring you more knowledge and joy. • Independence - You know to ask for help when you need it and but remain independent whenever you can be! • The power of listening - especially to your parents because they really do know what’s best for you. Your suitcase is overflowing…you are ready to go. We will always remember you in our prayers and hope that you’ll come for visits to share all that you have learned since you’ve left us. Happy graduation day! Mrs. Loree
Dear Parents, Hurray for May! We’ve been very busy in the classroom with all things spring – learning about birds, flowers, gardens and more. We’ve reviewed our numbers, colors and shapes, and the children are feeling confident about the coming school year! We’ve read and reviewed Bible stories, sung all of our favorite songs and even played some “musical chairs.” Head of School Day was an all-day pajama party that included a petting zoo and extra recess time. As always, the end-ofschool picnic allowed us to all get together one last time before we part ways for the summer. As some of you may know, this is Ms. Mary’s last year with us. She is retiring to spend more time with her family, and to catch up on her rest! She will miss everyone and everything about St. James, and will be dropping in for visits whenever she can. Lastly, we cannot thank you enough for sharing your children with us, and supporting us every step of the way. The three of us felt so loved during Teacher Appreciation Week, thanks to all of the beautiful cards, flowers, gifts and treats. We appreciate you right back! Have a safe and happy summer! May God be with you, wherever you go and whatever you do. We look forward to seeing you in August and hearing about all of your adventures! Much love, Ms. Mary, Ms. Eva and Ms. Pam
MDO
Toddler 1 Parents, This year was such a fun and exciting school year. All of the children matured and grew right before our eyes. I see future leaders in all the children moving up to Primary. We learned colors, shapes, numbers and letter sounds, and most importantly became more independent. I want to thank all the parents for such a wonderful year. Ms. Andrea and I have a special place in our hearts for each and every child. The month of May was a whirlwind, but we still managed to enjoy April showers turning into May flowers. In art we had flowers, frogs, butterflies and a lot of purple. Have a wonderful summer! Mrs. Anna and Mrs. Andrea
Toddler 1
We can’t express our gratitude for the love and appreciation over teacher appreciation week. We love working with the beautiful children at St. James and are honored with the opportunity to nurture them and watch them grow. May is always full of excitement, special events, hard work, and laughter. We had a fun end of year picnic, pajama day, and petting zoo. The children thought it was so fun to be in their pajamas at school. We are so proud of our class – almost everyone Is leaving for the summer potty trained! That is a huge accomplishment in the toddler community. It is bittersweet to see the children growing up and moving on, and we will cherish the memories of our year together. We wish everyone a safe and wonderful summer break. We look forward to seeing our returning toddlers and catching a glimpse of our graduating toddlers in the primary halls. Relax, have fun, and we will see you in August. Much love, April, Lilly and Annabel
Toddler 2
It’s not goodbye, it’s see you later! The birds are chirping, the sun is shining! Summer is here! It has been a great year in the Toddler 3 classroom. The children have grown so much physically and individually this year. Seasonal art activities, circle time songs, dancing, and story time were a few highlights from this year! The petting zoo was also one of the children’s favorite things about the whole year! They were so sweet and gentle with the animals, you would be proud! We are so proud of all the students and what they have accomplished. We will miss them all so much this summer! We are excited to see returning students and welcome new students to the classroom next fall.
So long, farewell, to you my friend, Goodbye, for now, until we meet again. It’s been great to pray and sing together, But now it’s time to say goodbye. So long, farewell to you my friend. Goodbye, for now, until we meet again. Love, Toddler 3 Team
Toddler 3
Dear Toddler 4 Parents, This year has flown by so quickly! Can you believe it’s already the end of May and the end of the school year? The month of May has been such a busy, yet exciting time. The children have learned many things, made wonderful friends, and have created lasting memories. The second-year students have been introduced to several primary works to aid in their transition for the next school year. Our classroom Sound Book is continuously being incorporated during circle time as well as an individual work that the children may choose. The teachers will repeat each letter with the sound, and eventually the children are able to repeat the correct letter Oliver and Penelope are sharing and sound as a group. The their About Me books! younger children learn from the older children and will sometimes receive lessons from their Davis is free-drawing on the chalk older peers. Repetition board. is the foundation of many aspects of learning. Daily repetition in the Montessori environment allows the child to practice, master, and retain the material.
Toddler 4
James is enjoying the ocean themed kinetic sand work!
“To have learned something for the child is only a point of departure. When he has learned the meaning of an exercise, then he begins to enjoy repeating it, and he does repeat it an infinite number of times, with the most evident satisfaction.” –Maria Montessori
Eleanor is proud of her beautiful art work!
A group of friends are hard at work building sand castles together.
Ms. Anna and I would like to thank all of our parents for sharing and allowing us to teach your precious children. It has been a pleasure watching them grow into strong independent Montessorians! As the end of the year approaches, we wish our second-year students all the best and for a smooth transition into Primary. We are excited to see our first-year students grow into strong second year leaders. Abby, Gray, and John Tucker are feeding animals during the petting zoo on Pajama Day!)
We wish you all the very best, and have a safe and wonderful summer break! Ms. Ashley and Ms. Anna
Congratulations
s Class of 2018!
May in Primary 1 Boy, oh boy have we had fun this month! We played outside a lot, chose all our favorite works, finished up some major projects, and had about 100 birthday celebrations! Thank you for giving us the great honor of working with your children. They are precious to us and we have so enjoyed our time with them.
To Hays, Hannah and Charlie‌we couldn’t be more proud of you. We will share fond memories of each of you in our classroom for years to come. Please visit us next year to let us know how you are doing! Have a wonderful summer! Love, Mrs. Loree, Ms. Jaymie, Ms. Rina and Ms. Devon
Primary 1
1
Primary 2, Another school year has come to a close. We have learned, made friends, had disagreements, had fun, had a few tears, had a lot of laughs, and made a lot of memories. We have truly enjoyed teaching your children. We have learned that if we relax and enjoy them we can learn so much from the students. When exposed to lessons children learn so much by themselves. They have the ability to absorb information so quickly. We will miss the students that are leaving this classroom. We wish you the best of luck forever and always. May God Bless You and be with you in all that you do. We look forward to seeing all of the returning students in August.
Enjoy Life. Enjoy your children. Enjoy the summertime. Much love, Mrs. Barrineau and Ms. Sheila
Primary 2
Primary 3 parents, Words cannot describe how great this school year has been. Mrs. Anna and I are so grateful that we had such a fun and sweet group of kids this year. Thank you for all you have done to make this school year so special! We will miss each child that is moving on from St. James, and we are so glad you were here this year with us. The memories we have made will last a lifetime, and each of your children have made such an impact on our lives. We are looking forward to another great school year in August can’t wait to see our returning kids along with some new faces. We hope all of you have an amazing summer! With love, Mrs. Eloise & Mrs. Anna
Primary 3
Dear Primary 4 families, I am astonished at how fast this year has flown by. Being my first year as a lead Montessori teacher, every day has been an adventure and a learning experience. I wouldn’t trade a minute of it. I have learned just as much from your children as they have learned from me. We have laughed, sang, practiced silence, enjoyed music, worked together and learned how to be not only a classroom, but a school family. There has been a definite shift, a growing interest in bigger and more complex things in the classroom. The first years are starting to write their names and trace numbers and letters. The second years are writing stories, adding and counting bead chains. The Kindergarteners are adding four digit numbers, subtracting and writing stories (with correct spacing and punctuation), and spelling! All of them can sit and work with minimal help from me. They all seem to understand that next school year will require more from them. Along with entering the age of showing more of an interest in the academic, the younger children are curious about the Math and Language work they are seeing the older children accomplish. This is the ultimate goal of a Montessori teacher, for the children to work as if I were not there. This gives me the chance to sit back and observe what I may have missed before. Am I challenging them enough? Are they ready for something new? It is also an opportunity to observe the social aspect of the room. Spring seems to put all of the children in a more social stage. I have observed a lot of new friendships between the children of different ages. They are learning to branch out and find others who share their interests.
Primary 4
The final maps are being finished, their unfinished work folders are starting to empty, and our hearts are starting to dread the end of the year. The ones who are leaving are talking about the excitement of a new school- whether they get to bring desserts in their lunch and if they have free dress every day. They are also dreading the final days in the classroom with their friends before things change. Every year brings change in the classroom, but that never makes it any easier. At the end of the year, they are still our students, our learners, our friends.
We hope you all have a safe and fun summer break! Sincerely, Ms. Bianca Ms. Brenda Mrs. Amy
I cannot believe it is the end of May already. The school year has flown by! It has been so much fun, and such a pleasure to work with the children. Their creativity continues to amaze me. This month the second-level students made silly pasta sculptures out of clay, pipe cleaners, and dyed pasta. They were able to construct any kind of base they wanted out of their clay. Then, they chose pipe cleaners to stick into their base. Then they took pasta and threaded or twisted it around their pipe cleaners. The results were amazing - nothing short of what you would see in a Dr. Seuss book! The children had such a fun time with the project. There was lots of laughing and “look at this!”
After the silly pasta sculptures, the seceond-levels made Kindness Rocks. I gave them each a rock, and asked them to paint it with something that makes them happy. Some children painted animals, some painted rainbows, some painted fun colors. When the rocks were dry, I hid them in the garden. I asked two classes to come out into the garden at at time and seach for a rock. When they found a rock, they needed to turn it over, and then present it to the owner. It was so much fun! I hope the children’s rocks end up in your garden, or maybe they would be willing to share some kindness with a stranger. They could place their rock in a park or playground for someone else to find.
The Kindergartners worked so hard this past month on their self-portraits. The big thing we focused on was the proper placement of features on the head. It is actually very hard to get the placement right! We also worked on how to draw eyes and a mouth, and how to add a neck and shoulders. After lots and lots of practice, the children were given a piece of water color paper and asked to sketch out their face. Once the pencil lines were drawn, they were able to paint their features with watercolor paint. I absolutely love how they turned out - especially their hair! They did an amazing job.
Thank you to everyone who came out for the Kindergarten Showcase! The children worked so hard on their PowerPoint presentations, and I hope you enjoyed watching them present. The children’s flash drives contain their PowerPoint presentation, as well as some of the other things we worked on in Technology this year. I hope you enjoy! I hope everyone has a wonderful and safe summer! Love, Ms. Hanna
Art & Technology
In the Children’s
Garden
Another year has flown by and somehow we are in May again. The days are long and the years are short. I have enjoyed this year tremendously. There has been such growth since August, tears have been replaced with smiles. In the last couple of weeks I have noticed the second year toddlers are looking like primary students. Not only do the second toddler students look like primary students, they act like a primary student. They have grown and are becoming leaders. The primary students continue to be a continuous burst of energy and that is what makes ASC such a fun place to be in the afternoon. Happy May! It has been a wonderful year and I thank you for allowing me to watch your children “after hours.” I have loved getting to know them and share in their day. Have a safe and wonderful summer and can’t wait to see all of you in the fall! Lisa Wilson & The ASC Staff
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