Peek In Our Week === Mr. John’s Class === Week Of January 28, 2019

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Line Time:
This week we learned about Internal Organs.  We learned the brain is the control center of your body that sends and receives.  Our lungs help us breathe, the heart pumps our blood and the stomach begins to digest our food with acid.  The small intestines digest the food and send nutrients to the rest of our body and the large intestines push through the waste that creates our bowel movements (poop). The children were fascinated that our kidneys process the body’s water and the liver filters toxins, that’s why is important to take lots of water, even when you’re not home. The waste water is called urine (pee).  The children learned where the organs are located with the help of our Living Internal Organ T-shirt.  The shirt helped the children find the organs location by velcroing the organs to the spot on the t-shirt. 

 

Cultural Subjects:
Your children can now count to ten in 19 languages (English, Latin, Sign Language, Spanish, German, French, Japanese, Greek, Arabic with the Lebanese Dialect, Italian, Russian, Romanian, Swedish, Tagolog, Hebrew, Korean, Hungarian, Irish, Kiswahili).

 

Peek In Our Classroom:

Between the ages of 3 to 6, the child needs to practice, perfect, and consolidate the body’s movements. For this reason, Dr. Montessori began using the “Walking on the Line” as a Practical Life exercise. This exercise helps the child control his body, develop balance and perfect equilibrium, as well as to strengthen the mind’s control of its body’s movements. The “line” used during this exercise is a continuous and permanent shape in the environment.  During this exercise, you may want to play some soft, steady, and calm music in the background. I use Pachelbel’s Canon D Major which is exactly 5 minutes (well, 4 minutes 57 seconds but who is splitting hairs?). You can notice the “safe hands” and “bubbles” as the students walk the line

 

 

You may already know a bit about the Montessori work period, also known as the work cycle. A Montessori work cycle is an uninterrupted block of time. During this time children are able to explore the prepared environment and engage with materials of their own choosing. Walk into any Montessori classroom and you will see children completely engaged in their work. This is due to the fact that the heart of a Montessori program is the three-hour work cycle. The early childhood environment focuses on concentration, coordination, order, and independence. Therefore, children must be given the time they need to fully submerge themselves in the work in order for these traits to manifest themselves. Everything in a Montessori classroom has and educational purpose. Yes, children do what they like AND like what they do in a Montessori classroom.  Here you notice, a typical scene, (left to right)  some socializing, individual work, putting back materials/cleaning after herself, a teacher giving a lesson, and two friends working together.

 

Next Week:
Line Time- Pollution/Recycling

Letter Of The Week- S s

Rhyming Word Of The Week-bup

Next Language will be- Welsh

Snack will be brought to you by Ever

 

Upcoming Events:

<<<<<<<<  All School Dance February 9, 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm  >>>>>>>

 

((((((((((((  Open House February 24, Sunday 2pm to 4pm  )))))))))))

 

—–Valentine Day Party- Friday February 15th follow the link for the information—–
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090b48a8a92da6f94-mrjohns8

 

***** Bring Your Parent To School ***** follow the link to sing up
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090b48a8a92da6f94-mrjohns9

 

—–Recess attire….  winter coat, hat, gloves or mittens that are waterproof (not cloth or yarn), boots, and snow pants! 

        If the child does not have one or all of these items they may be asked to stay in.

 

Fun, Frolic, and Friends:

    

 

     

 

 

Academic Enrichment === Cuyuhoga Falls Campus === Week Of 1/28/2019

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Lesson:
We learned how to subtract with the 9 tray.  We learned the terms of equation, addend and sum.

Purpose For The 9 Tray:
The Nine Tray is an important lesson in the sequence of the golden bead work.  This presentation allows the child to concretely see the growth of numbers and the progression through the hierarchy from one level to the next. Children are ready for this work when they can identify numbers 1-9 and after they have been introduced to the golden beads and the language of place value: units, tens, hundreds and thousands.

Handwriting:
We practiced cursive… of  q, r, s, t, u.

 

Cultural Subjects:
Your children can now count to ten in 20 languages (English, Latin, Sign Language, Spanish, German, French, Japanese, Greek, Arabic with the Lebanese Dialect, Italian, Russian, Romanian, Swedish, Tagolog,  Hebrew, Korean, Hungarian, Irish, Kiswahili, Welsh, Dutch/Flemmish).

 

Next Week:
Lesson- Division

Sight Words Of The Week- other  some

Synonym Of The Week- Bad:  incorrect, awful, unsatisfactory, faulty, defective

The next language will be- Dutch/Flemmish

 

Take A Peek Into Our Week/Ms.Kate/February 2, 2019

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What a short week we had! I hope everyone enjoyed being inside and staying warm and cozy! The few short days that we were here was all about Martin Luther King Jr. We had fun learning about what he did for our country through books, crafts, and discussions.

Our friend is working on our Introduction to the decimal system. With this work the child is introduced to the numerals of the decimal system. The child will also become familiar with the names and relative size of the categories. 
When working on the knobless cylinders the child is able to observe and compare the different series with each other. They are also getting a clear understanding for the different dimensions and their interplay. 
Picture to picture matching is one of the most important pre-reading skills.It helps children develop vocabulary skills and visual discrimination a completely abstract way. 
When working on color box three the child is learning to grade the colors from darkest to lightest. They are also orienting themselves in a world of color!  

REMINDERS:

Book share is always on Friday!

Our Dance is next week!! Don’t forget to buy your tickets!

 

Academic Enrichment | Week of January 28th | Tallmadge

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Telling Time: The past week the kindergarten students have been learning how to tell time to the hour and half past.

Cursive Handwriting: The students practiced writing the lowercase cursive words did, tag, sit, rag, cat, just.

Wax Museum Project: Using the books the students got from the library they had to research the person they are studying and their family members.

A peek into next week: Telling Time (to the hour and half past)

A Peek at Our Week | Ms. Courtney’s Classroom | Week of January 28th

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Zoo Animals:

The students learned that a zoo is a place where all types of animals are displayed for the public to see. Especially animals that they would never get the chance to observe otherwise. We also talked about how zoos try hard to keep animals in enclosures that replicate their natural habitat because, the animals seem to do much better when they are in their natural environment. We discovered that zoos create educational programs and tours in order to provide an educational opportunity for everyone. A lot of them even have  petting zoos where adults and children are allowed a close-up look of the animals and their babies. We learned about tigers, lions, monkeys, elephants, giraffes, penguins, bears etc.

Work Time

Trinomial cube: This child is learning how to build the trinomial cube, while also getting an introduction into algebra and preparation for the formula a3+3a2b+3a2c+6abc+b3+3ab2+3b2c+3ac2+3bc2+c3.
Africa Map: This child is learning the names of the countries and where they are located on a map.
Color Box 4: This child is grading different colors from darkest to lightest, while also refining his sense of sight.
Metal Insets: This child is tracing the metal insets developing her eye hand coordination and fine motor movements. She is also learning how to control a pencil (pincer grip, pressure and steadiness).
Puzzle Words: This child is completing the words by moving and rotating different letters to fit in the correct order.
Sound Cylinders: This child is matching sounds, while also refining her auditory sense.

Guest Reader

Reminder

February 9 | All School Dance | Fundraiser | 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm

February 15 | Valentine’s Day Party

February 18 | President’s Day | NO SCHOOL

A peek into next week: Farm Animals

A Peak Into Science

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Welcome to the first month of science in 2019! Mr. John worked with us on some very exciting new science experiments.

At the beginning of each science experiment, Mr. John has us come up with our own hypothesis. A hypothesis is an educated guess. Mr. John always tells us that it never matters if our hypothesis is right or wrong, because scientists sometimes are wrong too. We can be just like scientists and learn what works and what doesn’t work.

Don’t forget to check your student’s science paper in their folder every Thursday to see what their hypothesis was for that week’s experiment!

 

Air Pressure

“Stuck Like Glue”

Question of the week: What will happen if we light a piece of paper on fire inside a glass, turn it upside down, and place it on a plate?

Materials needed to complete this activity at home:

  • Paper towels
  • A plate
  • A piece of paper (the size of a sticky note)
  • A lighter
  • A glass cup

Our data: When Mr. John lifted the glass, the plate was stuck to it and also lifted.

But why did the plate get stuck to the glass? SCIENCE!

When the piece of paper inside of the overturned jar is lit, the air inside the jar heated, causing it to expand. When the flaming paper is extinguished, the air inside the jar cools and contracts, leaving a void of air within the jar. We created an imperfect vacuum!

 

Absorption

“To take something in”

Question of the week: What will happen if we pour water in a container containing paper towels and another container containing Sodium Polyacrylate (the stuff in diapers)? Which will hold more water, paper towels or Sodium Polyacrylate?

Materials needed:

  • 2 containers
  • paper towels
  • Sodium Polyacrylate (a diaper)
  • A pitcher full of water

Our data: When Mr. John poured water into the container with the paper towels, the paper towels absorbed some water, and some of the water spilled out of the container. When Mr. John poured water into the container with the Sodium Polyacrylate, it absorbed all of the water, and none of the water spilled out of the container.

 

But why did the Sodium Polyacrylate hold more water than the paper towels? SCIENCE

The Sodium Polyacrylate holds more water than the paper towels, therefore it is more absorbent.

 

Surface Tension

“A property of a liquid keeping an object from going into the luquid”

Question of the week: What will happen if we put a crumpled piece of paper in a glass of plain water and a crumpled piece of paper in a glass with dish soap?

Materials needed:

  • Water
  • Soap
  • 2 containers
  • paper

Our data: When Mr. John dropped a crumpled piece of paper into the glass with plain water, it floated. When Mr. John dropped the crumpled piece of paper in the glass with dish soap and water, it sank.

But why did the piece of paper float in the glass with plain water and sink in the glass with dish soap and water? SCIENCE

Water molecules are strongly attracted to each other and this gives water a high surface tension. The surface of water is strong enough to hold up light-weight objects such as paper. Dish soap mixes with water molecules, lowers the surface tension, the hydrogen bonds are weakened or destroyed and the paper sinks. The paper in the glass floats because the hydrogen bonds are intact.

 

Buoyancy

“A force in a liquid pushing against an object in the liquid”

Question of the week: What will happen if we put a peeled orange and an unpeeled orange in water?

Materials needed:

  • An orange
  • A peeled orange
  • A container
  • Water

 

Our data: When Mr. John dropped the oranges in the water, the orange with the peel on floated and the orange without the peel sank.

 

But why did the unpeeled orange float and the peeled orange sink? SCIENCE

The unpeeled orange may be heavier, BUT there is air trapped by the peel making the orange float. The peeled orange has no air so it sinks.

We had so much fun in science this month! Thank you, Mr. John!

A Peek at Our Week | Ms. Courtney’s Classroom | Week of January 21st

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Martin Luther King Jr.

The students learned how Martin Luther King  Jr. wanted to make the world a better place. We talked about how people were being treated unfairly based on their color and he stood up for them. We discussed how he wanted to change the law in a peaceful way, because he had a dream to have people of all colors get along and work together. We also talked about why it is important to try and make the world a better place for everyone and ways that we can accomplish that.

Work Time

Dishwashing: These children are using many motor skills while also remembering the order and sequence of each action to successfully wash dishes, which naturally leads to the development of concentration.
Trinomial cube: This child is learning how to build the trinomial cube, while also getting an introduction into algebra and preparation for the formula a3+3a2b+3a2c+6abc+b3+3ab2+3b2c+3ac2+3bc2+c3.
Spooning: This child is further developing his focus, concentration, visual and fine motor skills by spooning ornaments from one bowl to another.

Guest Reader

Reminder

February 9 | All School Dance | Fundraiser | 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm

February 15 | Valentine’s Day Party

February 18 | President’s Day | NO SCHOOL

A peek into next week: Zoo Animals

A Peek into Music Class | January

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Take a peek into what our music class has been learning…

We had new friends join music this session!
Let’s hear those beautiful voices!

 

Fun with rhythm sticks.

This session, Ms. Lisa introduced a really fun method to teach the class the sounds that different instruments make using story pages. Each character that the children meet in the story have their own sound or music. The class loved this musical method of storytelling!

The class listened to the sounds for each instrument in the story.

 

 

Here comes the big bad wolf!

 

Singing along with Ms. Lisa and adding movements to the song.

I can’t wait to see what fun instruments we will get to use and what music and movements we will learn next session!

A Peek Into Reading Group

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For Reading Group these last two weeks, we read a poem together about a child who likes to climb trees. The kindergartners learned about how poems have rhythm, so while I read we clapped to the beat of the poem.

The group participated in activities such as drawing what the child saw while she was up in the tree, writting their own poem, and writting down what question they would ask a character from previous stories.

A Peek Into Next Week

– The students will be reading a story about a rich lazy man.

– The students will be learning the vocabulary words: wealthy, valuable, and admire.

– The students will be participating in evaluative activities.

A Peek at Our Week | Elementary | Week of January 21

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This week our “Peek” was written by a few of our students! These students read our previous blogs, took pictures around the room, and filled in a blog template. The students did some editing together, and with a teacher, so what you will read below is their final product. There are still some misspelled words in their final product, but in a Montessori classroom we focus on the process, instead of the end result. Dr. Montessori believed when we put all of the emphasis on the final product, we devalue everything leading up to that point. This can discourage repetition which will make mastery of a skill difficult. The purpose of the students writing the blog is to provide you with a glimpse into the room through their eyes, to provide them with practice of real world skills, and to give them a deeper understanding of the materials in the room. We hope you enjoy their work!

“A Peek at Our Dissection Field Trip” by the Upper Elementary Students

Maddex

My favrit part is the dissecting lab. The hart was interesting with the different valves.

I pumpt pig lungs up with air.

Tyler

Two weeks ago we went to the Natural History Museam. I really liked the dissection of the heart.

Maddex and I cut a sheep heart. We learned the aorta connects to the atriums.

Camilla

We went to the Natural History Museam a couple weeks ago. We dissected a sheep heart, we went to different exhibits, and overall we had a lot of fun. We saw a model of the Australopithecene, Lucy. We also learned about our birth stones. That field trip was a fun and educational time for us four classmates to become better friends.

We had a lot of fun dissecting the sheep heart. We didn’t only learn about the heart, but plenty of other things about other things.

Ainsley

Two weeks ago, Maddex, Camilla, Tyler, and I went to the Cleveland Museam of History. It was so fun.

Camilla and I are observing the parts of the hart before we cut it open.

“A Peek at Next Week” by Ms. Ashley

Next week, the Lower Elementary students will practice multiplying with the snake game, will learn about direct objects in a sentence, will talking about inventions that prevent weather damage, and will read food labels. Upper Elementary students will reduce fractions to their lowest terms, use the negative snake game, talk about adverbials, distinguish between fact and opinion, and create-a-city. For our Wax Museum research, the Lower Elementary students will learn about the hardships of the person they are researching. Our Upper Elementary students will examine the character traits of their chosen person.

REMINDERS:

  • I will be out of the classroom Tuesday, January 29, to observe at the Cuyahoga Falls Campus. Please contact Ms. Marlee or Ms. Brandy if you need anything that day.
  • Saturday, February 9 – School Dance FUNdraiser
  • Tuesday, February 12 – Cleveland Orchestra Field Trip. This is a bus field trip. Students will be back to eat lunch at school so you do not need to worry about packing disposable items.
  • Monday, February 18 – NO SCHOOL – Presidents’ Day