Bruno Lower El Classroom 1

We enjoyed the Saint Nicholaus presentation from Ms. Carmen this week. She was very kind to fill the boots left in the hall. The school holiday store was professionally run by the middle school and was a hit with all.

Homework for December is to work on your Science Fair project. Presentations will be given by students on January 19. Almost everyone turned in the description of your project and they all look very interesting. Our hope is that your child’s curiosity is spiked by this experience. A detailed sheet of requirements for the project will be sent home before our holiday break.

Reminders:

Tuesday, December 12                 Holiday Programs 7:00 p.m. Be there by 6:30

Wednesday, Dec 13                       Auditions for spring musical, Lion King     3:00 p.m.

Thursday,  Dec 14                          Auditions for spring musical, Lion King      3:00 p.m.

Thursday, Dec 14 Class holiday party and book exchange

(don’t forget to send a new wrapped book)

Friday, December 15                     Pajamas, movie, and board games

Early Dismissal   1:00

Hope you have a restful weekend.

Ms. Carolyn & Ms. Genie

We are approaching the busiest time of the year for an elementary age student. To help them cope with the excitement and overstimulation, retain a schedule as close to normal as possible. Try to stick to the same bedtimes and mealtimes. This will help your child not only get enough sleep but also give them the security and confidence of a predictable, safe routine when things become overly busy. A consistent routine is one of many factors that contribute to academic success.

We had a lovely concert from the Altamont student orchestra this week. It was both informative and entertaining. We are very appreciative of the rich arts experiences offered here at Bruno Montessori.

Reminders:

1. Please have your child bring in a clean boot by December 5 to participate in Ms. Carmen’s German lesson on St. Nicholaus.

2. Please send in money for the school store by December 5th. We will be going as a class at 8:30 on Tuesday, December 5th.

3. The Holiday Program is December 12 at 7:00 pm. Have your child at school by 6:30 dressed in a white shirt with black pants or a skirt. They may wear a hat, scarf, and mittens of their choice.

4. Tryouts for the Lion King are December 13th and 14th. More information to come.

Have a peaceful weekend.

Ms. Carolyn & Ms. Genie

At the beginning of the year a tree of gratitude was presented. Each week students have the chance to fill out a leaf stating what they are currently grateful for and hang the leaf on the gratitude tree. At this point in the year, students have had a multitude of opportunities to think about, demonstrate, and write what they are thankful for. Gratitude is a crucial part of the Grace and Courtesy lessons in the Montessori learning environment. We end each day by expressing our individual gratitude for something that happened at school that day. We have class meetings and acknowledge what we are grateful for. The students are encouraged to thank others for their kindness. I love November because it is a month of gratitude. “Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues but the parent of all the others.” — Cicero

We had a week of hard work. Lots of lessons and follow-up work were happening throughout the room. All levels began a study of homographs. First year students are studying adjectives. Second years are working with verbs and third years are working with adverbs. In mathematics, addition and number lines are the focus for first year students. Most second years are working with multiplication. Third years are exploring multiplication of decimals. Fractions, money and time lessons are given each week and are dependent upon the level of each child. Each student was given a creative writing assignment on gratitude. In cultural lessons, a review of light, sound, and electricity was given. A sudy of the rainforest biome was presented. We are continuing our look at pioneers with a focus on the jobs men and women performed as pioneers.

We hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday.

Ms. Carolyn & Ms. Genie

Our week started with a fascinating presentation on electricity from Adeline’s mom, Brooke Williams, an electrical engineer. She discussed electrons, circuits, and important safety tips around electricity. Both teachers and students learned a lot about electricity and had fun in the process.

We had an informative and enjoyable presentation from students, Ms. Tejal and Mrs. Soni on Diwali. Thank you to everyone for all their hard work and the yummy snacks.

We also thoroughly enjoyed our field trip to the McWane Center. The electricity presentation was incredibly well done. It was also a nice review of what we learned about electricity.

Thank you to everyone who made our day so fun. We all had a great time.

Reminder:

If you order lunches every day, please cancel your lunch on Thursday, Nov. 9, and send a sack lunch with your child. We will be eating at the McWane Science Center on that day. Thank you!

Have a wonderful weekend.

Ms. Carolyn & Ms. Genie

It was a busy week. We attended the Hunt for Milo Gatto performance on Wednesday. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed it. The book fair was a huge success. Many students were excited to buy special books and take them home. They are developing a lifelong love of reading.

Cultural lessons this week included experiments with light, a look at the Tundra and the Inuit culture, and a continuation of the study of the needs of humans. All three levels continued their parts of speech and homograph lessons. In mathematics, first-year students are continuing their work with addition. second-year students are working with multiplication. Third-year students are multiplying decimals. All students work each week on improving their reading and reading comprehension skills.

Reminders:

1. The Halloween Parade is on October 31 and begins at 9:30. Parents are welcome. Please make sure your child writes a paragraph that explains the significance of their costume.
2. We are going to the Birmingham Children’s Theater on Friday, November 3. Please turn in your permission slip and money as soon as possible.
3. Parent Information Seminar on November 7 at 6:00 p.m.
4. Field trip to McWane Science Center on November 9. (more information to come)
5. No school on November 10 for Veterans Day.

Have a wonderful weekend.

Ms. Carolyn & Ms. Genie

It was unanimous that the Fall Festival was a big hit with everyone. Thank you to all the families who donated their time and food items. An especially big thank you to Gisela Westerkamp for coordinating the entire event.

Each morning during our morning meeting we discuss a variety of topics relating to how well our work time is going. Lately, our focus has been on the art of concentration. The ability to concentrate and focus is at the core of satisfying and successful experiences in many aspects of life. As adults, we need to attend to what we’re doing, whether it be the details of a science topic we’re explaining at a meeting or the art of active listening to the people we engage with every day. This ability has many new challenges in the times we live in. Children must be equipped with the ability to concentrate and Montessori education does so much to address this need. The ability to focus on the present moment and attend to one’s work is challenging given the busy lives children lead, as well as the distraction of so many pinging and buzzing devices. We strive to keep our work period free from interruptions and quiet in order to promote the development of concentration. Notice times your child is concentrating at home. If possible, keep the interruptions to a minimum.

Lessons this week included work with homophones, the commutative property of addition, parts of an angle, types of sentences, and work with fractions, time, and money. Cultural lessons were presented on the needs of humans, climate zones, and the components of sound.

The math homework for October was due last Friday, October 13. The tree research is due this Friday, October 20. The writing assignment is due Friday, October 27.

Reminders:

1. Early Dismissal October 26 – 27 for conferences. No aftercare.
2. Hunt for Milo Gatto, our school drama production is Friday, October 27 at 6:30.
3. Halloween Parade October 31 at 9:30.
4. Parent Information Seminar November 7 at 6:00 p.m.

We hope you enjoy your weekend.

Ms. Carolyn & Ms. Genie

It was good to be back after a refreshing four-day weekend. Many of the students were eager to get back to work.

Now that our first quarter is coming to an end, we are reviewing the material covered in the first quarter. Reviews were given in math, grammar, word studies, time, money, and cultural lessons. In particular, many students have made our volcano study come alive with the creation of research posters. A favorite follow-up is to present the research poster to the class and entertain questions and comments from the group.

In science, a presentation was given on the Scientific Method. After discussing the components of the method, we looked at the following website: https://spaceplace.nasa.gov/science-fair/en/ NASA created a child-friendly explanation of science fair projects. We ended the presentation by having each student select something they are interested in from our school science fair books. Each student brought home a copy of their topic. This was done to help each family start thinking about the Science Fair in January. As always, feel free to reach out with any questions.

Reminders

1. Fall Festival Sunday, October 15
2. Early Dismissal October 26-27 for parent conferences
3. School Play Friday, October 27
4. Halloween Parade October 31

Have a great weekend!

Ms. Carolyn & Ms. Genie

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