MAY 2010 NEWSLETTER
Greetings and welcome to the wonderful month of May! There was an exciting close to the month of April as the children gathered on Earth Day to celebrate our newest addition to FCD: The Children’s Garden: Vegetables, Herbs, Flowers, and a large Compost Bin. We want to thank our families for the many “plant” donations to get this garden started. Our Kindergartners worked with Ms. Kathleen and Ms. Ashley on the initial planting, and now each classroom has an assigned day to observe and care for the garden. Each classroom has a composting container, catching scraps from snack and lunch to deposit into the garden bin. Next week each class will decorate a stepping stone for this area and we can then enjoy watching everything grow! This year we have been really into mainstream recycling, and the children have been very good about carrying the recycles to the bin for weekly collection.
Appreciation Week, May 3rd – 7th at FCD, is in full bloom: Monday we honor our Parents with a Grab n’ Go Breakfast,
Tuesday we provide complimentary lunch for students, Wednesday is the famous Parent Potluck Lunch for Staff, Thursday is Wear Your Favorite T-Shirt Day, while Friday closes the week with a big Make Your Own Ice Cream Cone!
The staff at FCD joins with me in expressing our thanks to each family…..and you are like family!
Mother’s Day brings little handmade treasures to your door, made with much love and care. There are many end of the year activities planned and you can catch all of this information in your child’s weekly folder and on the easel in the foyer.
Recently a survey went home asking for suggestions for parent education workshops for next year. (Even if your child is moving on to elementary or to another setting, we welcome, your input, too). We would like to be able to offer these classes each month throughout the year, hoping to accommodate various days of the week schedules, and a choice of times with morning or evening options. We hope that all surveys can be in by May 7th for calendar planning. Thanks!
Our May Family Picnic is scheduled for Friday, May 14th @ 6PM at FCD – bring the whole family and enjoy fried chicken and all the donated side dishes and desserts. See you there!
Our Summer Under the Red Roof Program is nearly full. Thank you for your support of this! Our teachers are looking forward to the change in things: from Pirates to Princesses, to Chefs, to Circus Masters! A detailed letter will be going home to these participants later this month. Ms. Antoinette will be heading up the camp and all staff are from the school year program.
Cooking with Ms. Liz and Ms. Kathleen on Thursday afternoons has been an enjoyable experience for our Primary classes. This month they cooked from Australia: they are so cute to watch with their little aprons and utensils, spread around the kitchen table, anticipating the tasty treat they have prepared from scratch. Another experience, which has been a real crowd pleaser, has been the Toddler Tales Storytime, which Ms. Ashley and Ms. Kathleen have initiated this year. It is offered twice a month on Thursday mornings to the Frederick Community and we have welcomed many new friends to our school…a few have even joined up! I speak for Mr. Chris and myself that we are blessed with a talented and dedicated staff. Thank and visit us at www.frederickcountryday.com for continued information.
Ms. Louise, Director
As we plan the calendar of the 2010 – 2011 school year, one area that we would like to improve is in the area of Montessori Parent Education. Not only do we want to offer workshops on Montessori theory and practices, but also target other areas of interest, whether it be child development, nutrition, discipline, peace, yoga, transitions,etc. I have asked the staff to come up with topics of interest. They very enthusiastically responded and I am including some of their ideas. What we would like for you to do is to give these ideas some thought as well, and to either check off those that may be of interest to you. (This is just a partial list…) In addition, I have left room for you to also add your input. We really want to tailor our yearlong workshops to meet your needs and interests.
For planning purposes I ask that you be kind enough to return your reponse by Friday, May 14th to your classroom teacher(s).
Math Night – include Sensorial___
Language Night – include Social Studies____
Montessori Kindergarten Curriculum___
Music: Songs/Movement in the Montessori Classroom___
Setting Up a Montessori Environment in the Home___
The Importance of the Three Year Cycle in Montessori___
Nutrition – Snacks and Healthy Food Choices___
Volunteer Tips: Use of Montessori Materials for the Novice___
Peace Education in the Montessori Classroom___
Positive Discipline Strategies___
Moving up to the Primary from the Pre-Primary___
Traditional vs. Montessori Settings___
Understanding/Discussion of Learning Differences___
Ideas for Outdoor Play___
Toilet Training Exchange___
Parent Tip Night: Sharing Ideas for Family Time/Places to Go/Crafts/Cooking___
Spanish/Yoga Experiences___
Understanding the Genius Behind Maria Montessori___
Teaching the Value of Money___
Tell Me About the Montessori Sensitive Periods___
Your Child’s Yearlong Portfolio___
YOUR IDEAS:_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
NAME_______________________________
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