Bruno Lower El Classroom 1

Maria Montessori believed that Cosmic Education helps children become aware of our unity with other humans and with the world around us. The more awareness we have, the more we are connected as people, sharing common goals for our growth and progression. Essentially, human unity in diversity is the goal of Cosmic Education. It is through the understanding of interdependency and connectedness that the Montessori method teaches peace education, a pillar of Cosmic Education. Peace comes from genuine harmony among people.  Unity, peace, and harmony are goals that we have been focusing on in the classroom for the past couple of weeks. The students are learning to work together as a community to bring peaceful work periods back into the classroom. We have had several classroom discussions to share ideas with one another on how best to approach this goal. Please invite your child to share their thoughts with you on how they can do their part to make the classroom more peaceful.

Last week, Ms. Genie introduced the continent of Australia to the students. They are enjoying creating maps and performing research to learn more about this captivating continent. Students are continuing to practice addition and subtraction of fractions and memorizing the multiplication facts, while some are working on converting fractions to decimals and percentages. Language lessons have included work with prefixes and suffixes for all grades. First graders are learning the function of the verb, second graders have been introduced to adverbs, and third graders have been working with reflexive and intensive pronouns. In addition, we discovered some amazing civil rights leaders and athletes during Black History Month.

It has been a busy month with discussions and celebrations of Chinese New Year (Thank you to Kaden’s parents for sharing their knowledge and traditions!), Mardi Gras, Valentine’s Day, and President’s Day!

We’re looking forward to seeing everyone for Parent’s Night next Tuesday, February 27^th, from 5:30 to 6:30!

Ms. Genie and Ms. Stefanie

What a wild week. All two days! It was a fast and furious week with Martin Luther King Jr. Day and two weather days. Mrs. Genie created a wonderful short work plan for us. We gave lessons on triangles by angles, grammar, and more. The kids were able to use microscopes to look at various slides. One contained algae from our own pond. We discuss the powerful work of Dr. King on Thursday. On Friday, the kids presented their science projects. What a blast! All the kids worked so hard. 🙂

January 3rd-January 12th

It has been so wonderful being back in the classroom with the kids! Last week, we wrapped up some lessons that had been given before this break. This past week, we hit the ground running with lots of new lessons. In cultural studies, Mrs. Genie taught a history lesson on various New Year’s Day traditions from around the world. I presented a lesson on microscopes. Next week students will have an opportunity to view the water from our very own Bruno pond. Some students started their research projects on Africa. Don’t forget that on Friday, the children will present their science projects. Hope to see you all there!

The pictures from this week highlight the beauty of the multi-age classroom. In these photos, you will see how working together best supports learning. This builds a sense of community as well as offers an opportunity for our children to become leaders. Leadership instills confidence and helps children solve problems creatively, work in a team, and work collaboratively with others. As we often say, “Teamwork makes the dream work!”

This has been a fun-filled week. Our holiday concert was a success! We had a Christmas presentation by the Pederson family. We had a class party and a fun book exchange. We ended the week with pajama day, playing board games, watching Polar Express, and eating pizza.

We also finished cultural lessons on recycling and important inventors of the 19th and 20th centuries. In geography, each student had the opportunity to research their favorite biome and create a presentation.

Thank you for the many thoughtful gifts. We hope you have a peaceful holiday break.

Warm wishes,

Ms. Carolyn & Ms. Genie

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