Hello Lyonsgate Families,
This is the last week of school before the winter holiday. Thursday, Dec. 22 is the last day of school and we return on Monday, January 9, 2023. Please remember to submit registration forms for the 2023.2024 school year by Tuesday, Dec. 20 (see the Dec. 5 email “Registration for 2023.2024 School Year at Lyonsgate Montessori” for the form link).
The image at the top, and in the gallery below, are Ms. Covics’ seasonal snack creations for the students. Wow!
Thank you! for all of your donations to our toy drive and to the Elementary students’ Shoebox Project initiative:
See below for some seasonal updates from your children’s Montessori classrooms.
As the holiday preparations are taking place, don’t forget to include your toddler in all of the wonders of the season. This is a wonderful time to work together as a family to create something tasty and memorable. Try baking something with your little one. It is a wonderful sensory experience. It builds language, fine motor skills, gross motor skills, math skills, and confidence. The finished product might be imperfect, but it will be perfectly imperfect and your toddler will be so proud of their accomplishment.
Tips for Baking with Toddlers:
1) Include them! Toddlers desperately want to be part of the giant science experiment happening in the kitchen.
2) Prepare the environment and prepare yourself. Toddlers are process-focused but adults tend to be more product-focused.
3) Choose a recipe that is familiar or simple and decide ahead of time which parts of the process your toddler will participate in.
4) A stool or learning tower to bring them up to counter height, and child sized utensils, are helpful.
5) Pre-measure all of the ingredients.
6) Be mindful not to take over and finish the job in a hurry.
7) If the idea of baking with your child is stressful, you could offer them a lump of dough to roll out and sprinkle with sugar.
Including your toddler in any sort of food preparation is a great way to form lasting memories and help them gain valuable life skills. Enjoy each other and celebrate the present moment!
Ms. Gervais, Mme Craigie, and Mr. Davis.
Bonjour!
We have been busy with many French preparations for the holiday season. The students are working with photographs of winter animals and are matching them to their habitats:
L’ours dans la grotte
Le loup dans la montagne
L’écureuil dans le nid
Le pingouin dans le iceberg
Le lapin dans le terrier
Le narvol dans l’eau glacée
Each student has coloured in their own “souris verte” to use when singing. We are excited to share our Winter Concert video with you (via Seesaw).
Vocabulary is getting stronger! Everyone is very interested in French books right now. Some of our favourites are:
“La souris qui rugit”
“Les écureuils qui se querellent”
“Archie, le paresseux hyperactif”
“Tellement sauvage”
“Le loup, le canard et la souris”
“L’autobus” (they love the little girl & all the animals on the bus!)
Wishing you and your family a restful, joyful holiday! Bonnes fêtes!
Best,
Mme. Murati
Hello! Bonjour!
Here we are on our last days before the winter break! It has been wonderful observing the children enjoying the festive activities and singing some new songs.
On behalf of your Casa South teachers, we would like to wish you all an amazing, relaxing, and healthy holiday! We look forward to seeing you in the new year!
Warm regards,
Ms Robinson, Ms Dewey and Mme Perazzo.
What a wonderful first term it has been! We are thrilled to have been able to re-integrate the pandemic cohorts and return to an authentic Montessori elementary environment, where our students can collaborate and build friendships with a variety of peers. The classroom has been abuzz with anticipation of the winter break and the opportunity to enjoy festivities with family and friends. Over the last week, the students rose to the challenge of meeting their deadlines, whether to complete their academic work for the term or to finalize their charitable donations for the Shoebox Project.
Everyone was excited to put their popsicle stick bridges through testing for smoothness of the surface, the amount of load they could bear, and to identify weak points in their structures. Many of our budding engineers experienced the thrill of success, with some bridges supporting a load of more than 15 kg! Others observed problems with their deck or trusses and were inspired to return to the drawing board to revise their plans. A lot of fun was had through our exploration of forces!
Thanks to the generosity of our Lyonsgate families, as well as local businesses, the children were able to create twenty gift boxes for unhoused women in Hamilton to brighten their holiday season! They had a great time soliciting donations, categorizing the goods, working in teams to pack each gift box, write a special note of greeting, and wrap the presents. Their discussions included recognition and appreciation for all that they have, and they demonstrated pride in their ability to contribute to those members of our community who have been less fortunate. We thank you all for supporting them in this important work.
This week, students will be filming some special performances to be shared with you via SeeSaw as we begin our winter break. We will also be baking and decorating gingerbread people, and celebrating the end of term with a class party on Thursday, December 22. The party will include board games, crafting, and the option to watch a short film, and the students will have a special community lunch that day with pizza being delivered after outdoor time! Students do not need to bring lunch on the last day of school, but should still bring their water bottle.
Thank you for sharing your children with us over these past four months. It is a pleasure to spend our days learning and working together, and we are excited for all the wonderful adventures awaiting us in the new year.
Wishing you and yours a wonderful winter break!
Warmly,
Marissa, Michelle, Anne, Damien, Caitlin, and Kim.
