We are wrapping up February by exploring Australia. We learned that Australia is the driest continent and that most of the people live along the coasts. Australia is completely surrounded by oceans… and whales! Ms. Jessie taught us all about whales and how some of them don’t have teeth, but have baleen instead. Baleen works like a big filter, and all of the food gets stuck in it!

We also learned all about Australia’s national animal – the kangaroo! We learned how their big muscular tails help them balance and even act like a third leg. We also learned that kangaroos are great swimmers and they are herbivores.

For March’s calendar art, Ms. Julie helped us create Chinese dragons with pieces of paper. We had so much fun picking out our colors for our dragons.

Click the link below to view pictures from the last two weeks:
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1K8GtTYO5itZuM63W4W57awile2BuUsgy?usp=sharing

Important Dates to Remember:
March 2: Read Across America Day – Dress as your favorite book character!
March 4: Spirit Friday – Wear your favorite t-shirt
March 11: NO SCHOOL – Parent-Teacher Conferences

“The senses, being explorers of the world, open the way to knowledge.”
~ Maria Montessori

Love,
The P2 Team

We are starting out this month by studying the oceans. Did you know that there are five different oceans? We’ve learned that each one is different from the others and that different animals live in different oceans. We have also learned that there are different layers of the oceans. Ms. Sadie taught us about the sunlight zone. In this zone we can find dolphins, people, and sea otters. If we dive down deeper we will enter the twilight zone. Ms. Jessie taught us that there is just a little bit of sunlight that reaches this zone. Some animals here are jellyfish, octopus, lantern fish and eels. Next is the midnight zone where we find the ever so creepy angler fish and then the Abyssal Zone where everything moves so slowly. Lastly are the trenches. We’ve been loving learning about all of the different zones and all of the different animals that are found there.

We had such a great time celebrating Valentine’s Day. We decorated cards, colored pictures, and enjoyed a delicious strawberry and whipped cream snack. Yummmm!

A quick reminder to make sure your child has a jacket. The outdoor classroom in the morning is COLD and a sweatshirt or long sleeved shirt does not suffice to keep your child warm. Even though the temperature warms up by the afternoon, it is not warm enough to go without a winter jacket in the morning. Thank you for your help with this!

Please click the link below to view pictures from the last two weeks.
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1pbXiGC5LQn-7SYUsYbzaOcaCiDFxV8p0?usp=sharing

Dates to Remember:
February 21: NO SCHOOL – Presidents’ Day

“It is a fact that anyone who lives with children, anyone who knows how to approach them with love, will always learn new things.”
~ Maria Montessori

Love,
The P2 Team

Here in P2 we have boarded our rocketship and have been exploring space! We started out by learning about the sun and about how important the sun is for life on Earth. We saw how all of the planets orbit the sun and how the closer planets have shorter orbits while planets like Neptune and Uranus take a looooong time to go around the sun. We have learned that even though Mercury is the closest planet to the sun, it’s not the hottest planet because it has an unstable atmosphere. We also learned about all of the volcanoes that exist on Venus, and saw an experiment that showed the layers of the Earth’s atmosphere. We are so lucky to have planet Earth as our home! We’ve also learned about the gas giants and just how HUGE they are!

We have learned about stars and how they are really balls of gas. Sometimes stars make up pictures that we call constellations. These constellations sometimes require us to use our imaginations!

We enjoyed making aboriginal lizard art with q tips for our February calendar art – so much fun!

This month we have been learning about different peacemakers. A peace maker is someone who has made a positive change in the world. Some examples that we’ve talked about include Maria Montessori, Barack Obama, Malala, and Martin Luther King Jr. We’ve had conversations that have discussed how even though we’re all different on the outside, we’re the same inside and how everyone deserves to live together peacefully and with the same opportunities.

Click the link below to view pictures from the last two weeks:
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1_MsHrcp4DU82pNKg6rCXfUGcuINiBS5O?usp=sharing

Dates to Remember:
February 14: Valentine’s Day and Friendship Exchange
February 21: NO SCHOOL (President’s Day)

“The child, making use of all that he finds around him, shapes himself for the future”
Maria Montessori

Love,
The P2 Team

Welcome back! We are so happy to see everyone’s faces again – we missed you all! We hope that everyone had a safe and restful break. In P2 we are ready for the new adventures and experiences that 2022 will bring.

A few reminders:

Please label all sweatshirts, jackets, sweaters, water bottles and masks. It makes it much easier for us to keep track of everything.
When packing your child’s lunch and snacks, it’s a good idea to pack some extra snacks. Sometimes packing an intended AM and PM snack isn’t enough. Many friends eat both snacks in the morning because they are so hungry, and then they don’t have a snack in the afternoon. We do not have any snacks available in the classroom so it’s okay to pack extra snacks. Whatever is unopened will come back home.
Please remember to sign your child in and out using Procare everyday!

So far we have been learning about the icy world of Antarctica and the Arctic. Both of these polar regions, while looking vast and empty, are actually home to many living things. We have learned about the penguins that live in Antarctica, as well as the polar bears, seals and foxes that live in the Arctic region. Ms. Julie showed us how icebergs form and we even made snow! We’ve learned all about how ice and snow are formed and we got to feel ice – brr! Ms. Sadie taught us that there are many different kinds of penguins and that some of those penguins, like the Emperor Penguin and the King Penguin, are taller than some of us! We have also listened to all of the different sounds Beluga Whales (known as the canaries of the sea) make. We experienced how blubber keeps you warm in the cold by putting one hand in ice water with a blubber (shortening!) glove on, and one hand without a glove. Our hand with the blubber glove was fine, but our other hand got really cold, really fast! We love learning about all of the different animals in the arctic.

We’ve just started talking about the Solar System and Outer Space. We are super excited to learn more about the big universe.

You can click on the link below to view pictures from the last two weeks.
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1X95fbplGuAzVmnH179v6IDDOGoNHbr9g?usp=sharing

Important Dates to Remember:
January 17th – NO SCHOOL (Martin Luther King Jr. Day)
January 26th – Kindergarten Information Night (for students going into Kindergarten next year)

January 27th – First Grade Information Night (for students going into First Grade next year)


“Let us give the child the whole vision of the universe… for all things are part of the universe and are connected with each other to form one whole unity.” ~Maria Montessori

Love,
The P2 Team

The winter season brings about a certain sense of anticipation and all of our P2 friends are feeling it! This month we talked about the continent of Europe. We learned about all of the different countries in Europe, how they all speak different languages, and use different monetary systems than we do. Ms. Sadie showed us pictures of the beautiful Swiss Alps, windmills in the Netherlands, and the sunny coast of Greece. Even though the places in Europe are very different from Las Vegas/Henderson, we still were able to find many similarities between the two. Ms. Jessie told us about her visit to Switzerland and how she tried Swiss hot chocolate! In Switzerland they use very dark, pure chocolate with only a little bit of milk – BITTER! We also learned about Germany and how they’re known for cars, pretzels, castles, and hearty breads! We’re all inspired to travel to Europe now!

We have also learned about various animals that are found in Europe such as the brown bear, badger, hedgehog, shag, pine marten, lynx, wolf, golden eagle, golden jackal, hare, and wolverine. It’s amazing how different the animals in Europe are from here.

This month, we are learning about trees. Ms. Jessie taught us that a tree has a trunk, branches, roots, seeds, and leaves. We learned that not all trees are the same but that trees can be found almost anywhere. We were fascinated to find out that some trees lose their leaves, but not pine trees, or arbol de pino. Ms. Jessie also showed us how you can see how old a tree is by looking at the rings in the trunk.

December Book Suggestions:
Llama Llama Holiday Drama by Anna Dewdney
Sneezy the Snowman by Maureen Wright
Ruby Finds A Worry by Tom Percival

Click on the link below to view pictures from the last two weeks.
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1T2aZ4l3MwkAVQEsYlyK4Ts8MwbADdSQu?usp=sharing

We hope you all have a wonderful and safe break! We will see you in 2022!

“The things he sees are not just remembered; they form a part of his soul.”
~ Maria Montessori

Love,
The P2 Team