We have been talking about different parts of a plant with our students. We have learned about the seeds, leaves, flowers, stems, and roots. We have also studied the different parts of an apple: the exocarp (skin), endocarp (core), and mesocarp (flesh). Our friends loved learning these big scientific words!

Currently, we are wrapping up September by talking about helpers in our neighborhood. Ms. Jessie taught us some different signs we might see and what they mean. We learned that an octagon has eight sides, and that a stop sign is an octagon. Ms. Sadie taught us about police officers and the different ways they can help us. We also talked about firefighters, mail carriers, doctors, dentists, farmers, and gardeners.

At this young age, communication is such an important skill to learn – both sharing information AND listening. Sometimes we don’t do it often enough. We tend to get so caught up in our favorite television shows, tablets and smartphones that sometimes we forget what it’s like to have an actual conversation. Having conversations during dinner is one of the best ways to come together and share your day. Asking your child “How was your day” or “What did you learn” are large scale questions that children tend to answer with one word – “good” or “nothing”. Keep questions simpler, such as: Who did you eat lunch with today? What made you happy today? What made you feel sad today? Even if you don’t talk about school you can talk about what the weather felt like that day, how dinner tastes to you, and don’t forget to tell your child about your day! Car rides are another easy time to squeeze in some chit chats and sometimes children are apt to tell you more in the car because you’re not face to face.

For our October calendar art, we had fun marble painting with Ms. Julie! We always look forward to our calendar art project with Ms. Julie 🙂

Click the link below to view pictures from the last two weeks. 🙂
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/14UR8VcpSOWR9TM-I1-yfboDdkxSdeEEh?usp=sharing

Dates to Remember:
October 8: NO SCHOOL – parent conferences
October 28: Celebrate America Day – half day
October 29: NO SCHOOL – Nevada Day

“Imagination does not become great until human beings, given the courage and strength, use it to create.”
~ Maria Montessori

Love,
The P2 Team

Chicken, peaches, broccoli, cereal and milk all belong to different food groups. We’ve learned about each group and what foods might be in that group. For protein, we discussed how we can get protein from many different sources, not just meat. We have taken a look at our lunches and figured out what food groups we see! Some of our work this month has included sorting foods into the right food groups, as well as looking at the different names of foods in Spanish.
We’ve learned about the differences between fruits and vegetables; fruits have seeds. Some foods that we were pretty sure were vegetables, like eggplant and bell peppers, turned out to be fruit!

While inside we have learned about our love lights. Ms. Sadie taught us a peace lesson on how every single person is different, but we all have a light inside of us. Sometimes that light is shining bright (like when we’re happy), but sometimes it gets very dim (like when we’re angry). We were taught that taking deep breaths can help our love light to shine bright again. There are love lights for us to pin punch out and tape to our chests if we want to show everyone how bright our love light is shining.

One of the foundations of a Montessori education is independence. We encourage children to do on their own what they are capable of. Children are expected to put their work away where they found it when finished, as well as clean up after themselves after lunch or snack. This may look like throwing out a granola bar wrapper, or it might look like sweeping underneath their table. You can continue to foster independence at home by having your child bring their plate over to the sink or dishwasher after a meal. Children can also put away their toys or books. Include your child in different activities around the house such as vacuuming, sweeping, wiping off countertops, and feeding pets. Children thrive when they are given responsibility and it helps to nurture their sense of independence!

Pictures from the last two weeks can be found here:
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1eFcEqUpxRA-BbJtY8c0iSaSgcEB40K9h?usp=sharing

Dates to remember:
October 8 – NO SCHOOL – Parent Conferences (link will be sent on Monday 9/22 to sign up!)

Joy, feeling one’s own value, being appreciated and loved by others, feeling useful and capable of production are all factors of enormous value for the human soul.
Maria Montessori
Love,
The P2 Team