Monday, March 14

 Hi parents,

We had a great day today! 

In the morning, we welcomed our new student teacher, Mrs. Fernandez, to the classroom. She prepared a fun presentation to help the students get to know her. They had lots of great questions and were excited to share!

Aside from that, it was a pretty typical Montessori Monday. We did journal writing, practiced spelling words,  and worked with Montessori math materials. Our Montessori 'big idea' of the week is "Peace Talks".

A peace talk is a conflict resolution strategy that students can use independently to solve problems peacefully and respectfully. I'm sure you've all seen arguments before in which neither party will stop arguing long enough for the other party to share - it can be frustrating and often even make the conflict worse! 

The Peace Talk formula is designed to address this issue. Students will go to the peace corner to talk in a quiet environment free from interruptions. They will use a rock, flower, or pinecone to indicate whose turn it is to speak. Each student will share how they are feeling before passing the turn to the next student. They will then use this same approach to find a solution. Hopefully having this skill will help students resolve more problems on their own at school, and maybe even at home!

Tomorrow is Class Picture Day! Due to covid we have not been able to take class pictures inside for the last couple of years - if you are still feeling uncomfortable about this, please send me an email to let me know! For students who feel more comfortable wearing masks, the current plan is for them to take their masks down for the picture, and then put them back up afterwards. Please let me know if you'd like your child to wear their mask for the picture too.

Have a nice night,

Zac