Winter School Days

We were so happy to get back to work after the winter break and intercession. In fact, we were so busy we forgot to take any pictures until halfway through January! Oops!

Stamp Game Addition

Working on the parts of a Stem

Practicing grace & courtesy combined with language skills while writing Thank-You cards

We started the process of story writing and editing.

Checkerboard multiplication of large numbers... a step toward abstraction

More Botany... parts of a leaf

Learning about money

Addition stripboard is a wonderful staple of the Montessori curriculum. Children first use it in Primary, and for years and years to follow as they create mental representations of concrete mathematical operations. The more they use this and other similar materials, the stronger their foundation becomes. Reliance on the materials is positive rather than negative, and they always make the move to abstraction on their own timetable, when they are ready (not when we, as the adult, would like them to).

The squaring and cubing material is another example of a material that can be seen from Primary classrooms through elementary and sometimes beyond.

"Research" on a topic of interest is often considered the "workhorse" of a Montessori elementary classroom. It can span the entire curriculum and is built upon a multi-step process that builds countless academic skills, executive function skills, social skills, confidence, and creativity! Research is a wonderful opportunity for younger students to learn from older children and a fantastic opportunity for more experienced students to cement their knowledge through teaching. The students pictured here are in the information gathering stage of their work.

Completed research involves presenting, or as the children love to say, "Presentating" to their class, followed by displaying their model and answering questions.

Ellie and Elsie researched the Solar System.

Sanaya and Ava researched Peacocks.

As a mindfulness practice, our whole school has been passing a vase from class to class, enjoying the contents, filling it with different items and then passing it on. Upper El gifted LE with a treasure trove a bookmarks with different quotes. LE students chose the one that spoke to them.

Less experienced readers get help from others in order to read things they aren't yet able to. There were some fantastic quotes on our bookmarks. Thanks, UE!

Bambina wasn't feeling well in January, but Ms. Carly's mom's dog, Dixie, was a WONDERFUL visitor.

We had multiple Sun Celebrations!

We also got the sad news (the first in a series, sadly) that Ms. Belkis was leaving our school after many, many years. This was the show of hands of all the current LE students who had the benefit of Ms. Belkis' love and guidance over the years. I actually choked up at all the hands. Claira's face in the foreground is because she sadly did not get to be in the classroom with her.

Just a lovely shot of our cozy and beautiful snack area.

How is it Valentine's Day ALREADY?!?