Thank you Kapok families for all the support with the various events this past month. Our bake sale was a huge success, as well as our silent auction basket.
We started February talking about happiness and friendship. During this month we will revisit and concentrate on social grace and courtesy, exploring the concept of love and friendship in depth. We will study kindness and ways to make others (and ourselves) feel cared for and loved.
Later in the month we will have our Primary friendship exchange. In lieu of Valentine’s Day, our primary classrooms will be celebrating with a friendship craft exchange. Each child will be assigned a student from a different classroom as an opportunity to explore different friendships. The crafts will be made at school. This event is full of smiles and sweetness but unfortunately parents are not invited. I promise to take plenty of pictures.
We will also have an event for the whole family, our annual Love and Play. This year the event will take place on February 10th. Join us for a day of games and fun.
Our rescheduled Primary Education night will be on February 28th at 5:30 (we offer childcare for this event).
Join me on Sunday February 18th for our second Positive discipline workshop of the year. This workshop is free and open to the public. February is a very busy month, please check the school calendar often.
In a moment of gratitude, I would like to thank you for all the trust that you put on us when leaving your precious children off under our care. We love and appreciate every minute that we have with your children. There is no better gift than seeing their amazing souls shine, develop and flourish.
A word about being On time….
Imagine that you have just entered a special event. Everyone is already there and has begun to eat their meals, having already had time to hang their coats, get a drink, find their table and get to know the people next to you before the special guest speaks. You have arrived late and have not had time to do any of this and the special guest is already speaking!. How do you feel?
Translating the above scenario to the experience of a 2½-6 year old child, your feeling is not that far from what the child experiences when he arrives to school after the day has already begun. Often children who are tardy do not know that they are late to school until they reach the doorway. There is almost always a moment where the late child stands almost paralyzed in the doorway and sometimes they even start to cry. It has just dawned on them that they are late. Add the fact that fun curriculum group lessons are presented first thing in the morning, they know they have also missed that.
One of the things that sets Montessori apart from other educational methods is the emphasis on the child’s freedom within a prepared environment (the classroom). The Montessori teacher is there to invite the children to explore the material. In order to allow for this exploration, an uninterrupted work period of at least 3 hours is required. The purpose of this block of time is to allow children to select materials freely, and to become absorbed in their work. The children are also hesitant to choose challenging work if they are not expecting to have enough time to complete it.
It is so important to set up a consistent routine at home so that one is able to get from place to place on time. Children at this age are looking to us to know how they should be as human beings. If we set up the precedence that it is acceptable to walk in late to school, plays, baseball practice, ballet or a violin lesson, the children begin to develop a habit of being under stress and arriving late.
So, what might happen if you arrived at the party early with time to settle in, put your coat away and greet your friends? You have enough time to get a drink and find your seat before the meal even begins. How do you feel? Are you more settled? Are you feeling more at peace or even excited about the upcoming events for the evening? Children are the same. They begin their day with more joy and peace when they have enough time to adjust and transition into the environment.
Love and Peace
Ms. Sara and Ms. Karina
