Bruno Lower El Classroom 1

Can you believe September is almost over? I am always surprised at how quickly time passes in the classroom. We have been working this week on creating a calm, peaceful classroom to allow each student to concentrate during our 3-hour morning work time. We had a group discussion about how to achieve a quiet, peaceful classroom with participation from almost every student. There were some very imaginative ideas on what each student could do to promote a peaceful classroom. Maria Montessori created the learning environment for both the academic and personal growth of the child. We see evidence of growth on a daily basis.

Each week students are working on improving their reading skills in class. Comprehension begins to develop once the student is able to read words on his/her developmental level. More importantly, children should develop a true love of reading. Please read to your child each and every night and have them practice reading to you. “Children are made readers on the laps of their parents” Emilie Buchwald

Lessons given this week included ordinal numbers, the relationship of two lines in geometry, more abbreviations, synonyms, math operations, comparing and adding decimals, time, money, and fractions. Cultural lessons this week included the fourth Montessori lesson: The Coming of Language and Writing. In continuation with our volcano studies, we examined the Ring of Fire. We also had a lesson on the current technology used to explore Space.

“Any child who is self-sufficient, who can tie his shoes, dress or undress himself, reflects in his joy and sense of achievement the image of human dignity which is derived from a sense of independence.” Dr. Maria Montessori

Reminders:

1. Coffee Chat with Ms. Susan, Tuesday, 10/3
2. Fall Break, no school Friday, 10/6, and Monday, 10/9
3. End of the 1st quarter, 10/11
4. Fall Festival, Sunday, 10/15
5. Book Fair, 10/23-10/27
6. Early dismissal for Fall Conferences, 1:00 on Thursday, 10/26 and Friday, 10/27
   No aftercare
7. The Hunt for Milo Gatto play, Friday, October 27

Enjoy your weekend.

Ms. Carolyn & Ms. Genie

Peace education is a major component of the Montessori classroom. Maria Montessori saw the education of young children as the human race’s opportunity to recreate itself in a way that would eliminate war. As with most things, Dr. Montessori did not think that meant children needed to be lectured on the subject, but rather that they needed to be given an opportunity to discover peace for themselves. Adults model peaceful and respectful behavior, and because Montessori classrooms are composed of mixed-age groups, older students serve as role models for younger children. Maria Montessori was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize three times. Lessons promoting peace were included at the very start of the first Montessori schools. At Bruno Montessori, peace education is included in every classroom on campus. September 21 is known as the International Day of Peace. Declared by the United Nations General Assembly, it is a day devoted to strengthening the ideals of peace around the world.  This year we celebrated the International Day of Peace during our morning peace ceremony. Students were able to write their own Peace Pledge stating what they could do to promote peacefulness in their world. It is such an honor as an educator to be able to share the message of peace with your children.

In language, we are studying antonyms. Grammar studies have focused on adjectives, verb tenses and prepositions. In mathematics, students have identified odd and even numbers, compared decimals, worked towards memorization of addition math facts, and continued work with word problems. Fractions, time and money lessons are given each week. The cultural lessons this week included Montessori Great Lesson #3: The Coming of Humans, a look at nebulae and a study on types of volcanoes.

Reminders:

1. Work sent home by Catherine can replace the monthly classroom homework assignments for the time being. Please have your child practice reading each and every night.
2. The Galaxy research is due Friday, September 29th (for those who do not have work from Catherine)

“Within the child lies the fate of the future.” -Dr. Maria Montessori

Have a great weekend.

Ms. Carolyn & Ms. Genie

Even though we had one less day of class this week, we worked hard. Cultural lessons this week included a lesson on black holes, a continuation of land and water forms, and research on an organism from the timeline of life lesson given last week. In a lesson in Geometry, we examined the parts of a line and recorded them in notebooks. In mathematics, students compared numbers, worked on addition facts, and worked with word problems. Phonics lessons were given at every level as well as lessons with fractions, time, and money.

Homework was sent home on Tuesday. Homework is the perfect opportunity to enjoy time with your child while reinforcing the love of learning. In addition to homework, each child should be reading every night. Reading a high-quality story each night to your child is a sure way to help your child reach his/her potential in the classroom. As always let us know if you have any questions.

In January, the Lower Elementary classes will hold a science fair. Please help your child start thinking about a topic of interest. We will be reviewing the process (scientific method) for the science project. We will also have multiple books available for your child to use to select a project. The project will be done at home and may take time depending on the project. Please reach out if you need guidance.

Reminders:

1. PTO movie night is Friday, September 15 at 6:00pm. Free popcorn!
2. Math homework is due Friday, September 15.
3. The book report is due Friday, September 22.
4. The galaxy report is due Friday, September 29.

Have a nice weekend.

Ms. Carolyn & Ms. Genie

In honor of Maria Montessori’s birthday (August 31, 1870) we sang “Happy Birthday”, ate cake, learned about her life, and wrote paragraphs. In addition, we discussed the components of the Montessori learning environment and everyone had a chance to tell the class which Montessori material was their favorite. We are thankful for Dr. Maria Montessori. Enjoy this wonderful article from the American Montessori Society. https://amshq.org/Blog/2023-08-31-An-Open-Letter-to-Maria-Montessori-on-Her-153rd-Birthday?utm_source=Full+E-Mail+List&utm_campaign=9642831cc4-2023_8_31_EMAIL+Montessori+Birthday&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_5d8f6b6090-9642831cc4-386021241

In Geometry we studied curved and straight lines and recorded the lesson in the notebooks. In math, we are continuing our focus on addition to calculation missing addends, memorizing math facts, and learning how to solve word problems. Grammar lessons include a study of the noun family. Students are learning to edit sentences looking for capital letters, commas, and punctuation. Cultural lessons included a science lesson on the parts of the sun, a geography lesson on land and water forms, and a history lesson on the timeline of life. We also have time, money, and fraction lessons each week.

Reminders:

1. Monday, September 4 is Labor Day, and school is closed.
2. Thursday, September 7 is school photo day for Lower Elementary classes
3. Friday, September 15 is our Movie Night in the gym sponsored by the PTO
4. Homework for September will be sent home next week.

Happy Labor Day Weekend!

Ms. Carolyn & Ms. Genie

We had a busy week. The new students in the room have adjusted nicely to the flow of our day. Even with a teacher out sick, the class was able to focus during work time and complete a record amount of jobs this week. We had some interesting whole class lessons. A presentation was given on what is a galaxy and the types of galaxies. Students had the opportunity to draw their impressions of four different types of galaxies. An important Montessori lesson on the passage of time was presented. Time from the beginning until the present was represented on a clock. The clock is broken up into Eras. The lesson ended with each student creating their own Clock of Eras. Many other lessons were given to all three age levels in Grammar, Math, Language, Geometry, Fractions, Time, Money, Geography and Writing. In addition to all of these lessons, students also attend a German and Drama class twice a week. Music, Art, and Library are given once a week. Students attend Physical Education classes daily. So you can see your child has a busy week. To set your child up for success make sure they eat a breakfast with protein, arrive at school before our 8:15 morning meeting, and on the drive to school ask them what job they are going to choose to start their day.

I had a parent reach out to me recently to ask about accessing Accelerated Reader and the Typing Club. You must log in to your child’s school-issued Google account. From there find the bookmark bar and locate JBMA Student Bookmarks which is a pulldown. To access Accelerated Reader, open the Rennasaince tab in the pulldown and follow the prompts. Typing Club is listed under the JBMA Student Bookmarks pulldown. Scholastic News is also available under the pulldown. When you select Scholastic News, click “I am a student” and log in with Google Classroom. Every student has been registered for digital access to Scholastic News. We have a hard copy of the monthly issue for each student in class. The digital access is for supplemental videos, games and other educational opportunities. Make sure you check it out!

Reminders:

1. Class pictures are on Thursday, September 7. If you choose to have your child dress up for the picture please send a change of clothes so that he/she will be comfortable the remainder of the day.
2. Tennis lessons begin after school on Wednesday, August 30. To sign up please see the email sent out recently that had a list of all the extracurricular activities. Many will begin in September.
3. Don’t forget to cancel your child’s lunch if they are absent. You can cancel up until 7:30 a.m. on the day of the absence.

“Never help a child with a task at which he feels he can succeed.” Dr. Maria Montessori

We hope you enjoy your weekend.

Ms. Carolyn & Ms. Genie

This week we transitioned into the regular format that we will follow throughout the year. Each day we start with a Morning Meeting that includes a brief peace ceremony, a discussion on expectations, and occasionally a group lesson. After our meeting, we move right into a three-hour work cycle. Each student is given a work plan on Monday. Students choose work from the work plan daily. In addition, students receive multiple teacher-directed lessons. Many students will complete their work plan on or before Friday. Research projects working with a favorite Montessori material, or special teacher-approved projects can take place after the work plan is complete. It is a privilege and honor to witness the focus and dedication that many of the students have toward their education.

We also introduced a class chore chart. Students are assigned important jobs in the classroom for a two-week period. Chores allow each student to develop a sense of ownership and responsibility. Younger students who are new to our class are trained by the third-year role models in the room. Chores can involve running our morning meeting as well as tidying up the room before dismissal. It often feels like a lively beehive in the room when each student is doing his/her part to contribute to our classroom order and tidiness.

Our class pets have arrived! We have two gerbils. After a lengthy class voting session, the class chose the names Tater and Tot. Animal care is included in our class chores and is the start of our Zoology lessons.

We started working on our garden this week. We pulled weeds that had grown over the summer and prepared the bed for planting. Next gardening session we will discuss which Fall plants to grow

Reminders:

1. Don’t forget to sign up for the Chess Club if interested.
2. Auditions for the school performance are next week: Monday, August 21, and Tuesday, August 22 (see the email that was sent out on Monday for more information.

“What the hand does the mind remembers.” Maria Montessori

Have a wonderful weekend.

Ms. Carolyn & Ms. Genie

We had an absolutely fantastic, productive, and fun first week back at Bruno Montessori Lower Elementary Class 1. There were lots of smiles all week. They jumped right into a full schedule with German, Art, Drama, Music, Library, and Physical Education. Our work time was filled with several getting-to-know-you activities. We created a class web while brainstorming the rules we mutually agreed to follow in our classroom. Students were able to write about themselves. We had a class scavenger hunt to locate the areas in the class for math, language, geometry, fractions, money, time, and cultural lessons. Everyone enjoyed the alphabet nature walk around campus on the first day. We had many Grace and Courtesy lessons: how to successfully eat lunch in the classroom, recess rules, and the importance of using words and actions to make others feel “warm and fuzzy inside”. A classic Montessori Lesson titled “The Coming of the Universe” was presented. We introduced our new Gratitude Tree. Once a week students will write something they are thankful for on a leaf and hang it on the tree. We also introduced the weekly work plans we will be using throughout the year. There were several brief work times that allowed students to select a job from their work plan. Next week we will transition into a full work time each morning where students will be called for lessons as well as have the opportunity to select jobs from their work plan. In preparation for that, we have had discussions during our morning meeting on the need to concentrate. I shared this quote from Dr. Maria Montessori with the class: “Concentration is the key that opens up to the child the latent treasures within him.” We are all looking forward to the 2023 – 2024 school year. We hope you have a wonderfully peaceful weekend with your family.

Warmly,

Ms. Carolyn & Ms. Genie

It is hard to believe it’s the end of the 2022/2023 school year in Lower Elementary Class 1. We had an incredible year of learning, friendships, fun, and field trips.

This week we finished up the last of our science collection presentations. We had a successful Field Day. Students enjoyed the board games, movie, class party, and picnic. It was the best end-of-the-year week that I can remember. Thank you to all who helped make it a success.

We hope each student immerses themselves in interesting, vocabulary-rich books that open a whole new world of reading. Have a wonderful summer. See you next year!

Ms. Carolyn & Ms. Genie

Each day this week we had an afternoon of presentations on the year-long science collection. The topics were unique to each student. A wealth of information was presented. Many excellent questions and comments were posed to the presenters. We all enjoyed each and every presentation. I hope your child had fun preparing and presenting the presentations.

We ended our science studies this week by dissecting an owl pellet and researching types of owls. Almost every group of students started the dissection by stating how disgusted they were with the look of the pellet. Within a few minutes, the comments changed to “Wow!”, “Amazing! ” and even “I am going to be a Paleontologist!” Many students wanted to dissect another pellet. I told them that Amazon sells owl pellet dissection kits for around $7.

Next week is going to be a busy week. We wanted to let you know the following:
Monday is Field Day. Your child should dress appropriately. Don’t forget the sunscreen. Lunch will be provided so cancel your lunch if you purchased a school lunch. Also please send in a prewashed white T-shirt for us to use on Tuesday. If you purchased a field day T-shirt for your child you may use that T-shirt.

Tuesday is our tye dye day. Each student will bring home their tye-dyed T-shirt to be rinsed until the color does not run off. Then the T-shirt should be washed and dried so that your child can wear it on Wednesday if they like.

Wednesday is board game day and our class party. Lunch will be provided so cancel your school lunch order.

Thursday is our last day of school. We will be having a picnic. Your school lunch is fine for the picnic if you ordered one. Please have your child dress appropriately and don’t forget the sunscreen. Dismissal is at 1:00. There is no aftercare.

Have a wonderfully restful weekend.

Ms. Carolyn & Ms. Genie

We are certainly feeling appreciated this week! Flowers, candy, cards, and gift cards bring a smile every time. Thank you all so much. The classroom is full of all the beautiful flowers you sent in for us.

This week I will be offering owl pellet dissection to small groups of Lower Elementary students. Students will observe all safety procedures during the dissection. The activity is not required so students will have other options besides the dissection. As always, feel free to reach out to us with any questions.

A few reminders for upcoming events:

• Monday, May 15 is the day the science presentations are due.
• Monday, May 22 is Field Day
• Wednesday May 24 is our class party
• Thursday May 25 is our last day 1:00 dismissal

Have a wonderful Mother’s Day weekend.

Ms. Carolyn & Ms. Genie