Toddler
Glorious Spring weather is upon us! All of the local gardens are rapidly growing back and bursting with colour and our toddlers are showing rapid growth and development simultaneously. My grandmother had a theory that children grew more rapidly in the Spring and Summer and I am now thinking she might be right about that. We are witnessing an explosion of language and communication, and a drive for independence skills in the Toddler community this Spring.
There are many new toilet learning toddlers enthusiastically working hard to figure out how their bodies work, so I will be hosting a parent education session on toilet learning and Casa readiness to help prepare the children who will be moving on to our wonderful Casa communities next September.
Safe in the Sun: Now that we are experiencing warmer weather please send your toddler with these items each day:
- A water bottle to be used outside at recess.
- A sun hat — we will do our best to inspire a habit of wearing hats outside in sunny weather.
- Sunscreen — we will assume that they are wearing sunscreen when they come to school in the morning and will reapply it for afternoon recess.
Toilet Learning and Casa Readiness: May 24 at 5:00 p.m.
Parent-Teacher conferences: June 3
Ms. Gervais.
Casa North
We are so excited to welcome you for Show & Share next week. Casa North has missed the hustle & bustle of our outside community!
Montessori relies so heavily on the connection between our classroom and the greater world. It will be fantastic to have parents demonstrating how they move & act in the space, sharing in our classroom successes, and being able to “corroborate” (in a way) that the components of our classroom are recognizable & practical to those from the outside world. How wonderful it will be for the students to see that their moms & dads hold trays with two hands, and tuck in their chairs, too; that they recognize our plants, flowers, kitchen items, and books by name, too; that they recognize Sweeping, Polishing, and other materials by name, too; ultimately, that you relate to our space like we do! How exciting for our students to make the connection that the things we do at school prepare them for life beyond the classroom!
For Show & Share in Casa North, your child will choose a few activities (the morning of) that they would like to show you and those choices will be added to their list. They can refer to their list with your guidance and show you their chosen activities. The lists will also help to ensure there is as little overlap of materials as possible.
Our team would like to encourage parents to please observe your child’s engagement with the materials with as little physical or verbal interference as possible.
Trust the process! Even if your child is using the materials in a way that seems odd to you, it can still provide a key to who they are while working. You may see your child spill things, drop things, forget things, etc. — and that is okay! That is part of the experience! We have prepared them for the little mishaps that take place along the way, and always show them patience while waiting to see if they can arrive at the solution themselves. We truly invite you to step back & observe how your child shares their favourite items with you, however that may look or sound, because we know it will show you what points of interest and what value they have held onto when choosing this work for themselves.
So, sit back, watch, ask questions, fight the urge to interfere or step in, and give your child the space to present to you how they deem fit. They are inviting you into their world, and we know you will be blown away by their growth and confidence!
Reminders:
- Please provide sunscreen for your child, labelled, which will remain at school until the end of June.
- Please continue to send both a used mask bag and a new mask bag, labelled, each day, and at least three clean masks for use per day. Masks are only required to be worn indoors.
- Please send a new cooler, seasonally appropriate change of clothes to keep in your child’s cubby bins. Please label everything.
Looking forward to showing & sharing with you all.
Best,
Ms. O’Sullivan
If you still need to do so, please click here to sign up for Show & Share.
Casa South
Greetings from Casa South,
We’re looking forward to welcoming our parents into the classroom for Show & Share next week!
Your children will each have some materials and work selected and set up to show you. Show & Share is your child’s chance to show you how they work and what they work with. They will present their Montessori material work to you, demonstrate how they put it away, and then give you their tour of their classroom, pointing out other things they like to do and items and areas of the classroom they find interesting (but will be leaving those items on the shelves).
While your children are presenting to you, please just observe what they show you without asking questions or seeking to correct their work. They’re teaching you. You can certainly ask as many questions as you can think of when they are giving you their tour of the classroom.
Reminders:
- Please provide sunscreen for your child, labelled, which will remain at school until the end of June.
- Please continue to send both a used mask bag and a new mask bag, labelled, each day, and at least three clean masks for use per day. Masks are only required to be worn indoors.
- Please send a new cooler, seasonally appropriate change of clothes to keep in your child’s cubby bins. Please label everything.
See you at the gate,
Ms. Robinson.
If you still need to do so, please click here to sign up for Show & Share.
Elementary
The students were delighted to participate in an impromptu outing in our neighbourhood today. Part of the Elementary program is the flexibility to respond to current events and novel opportunities in our community. This morning, we were surprised to discover that our bearded dragon, Zeus, had produced a clutch of eggs! During the pandemic, Zeus has been residing at Marissa’s house. The children have missed her presence in our classroom and ask about her often. This afternoon, the children enjoyed an outdoor visit with Zeus, and learning about reptile reproduction. You never know what exciting event will occur during the day at Lyonsgate Elementary!
Thank you to all the parents who attended our Parent Education event yesterday. We look forward to having more of these workshops with you in the fall.
Wishing you a beautiful warm weekend ahead!
Michelle and Marissa.
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