Dear Primary Families,
The children have enjoyed the beauty of Autumn during recess and nature walks. We have taken excursions throughout the property to explore and experience nature beyond the confines of the classroom. We have collected leaves and twigs for play, sat and ran through the damp grass and felt the crisp autumn air against our faces.
We have enjoyed bringing a bit of Autumn inside our environment with many new activities and art projects throughout the month - a dirty pumpkin has been scrubbed clean through the efforts of many children; leaves were collected and matched to the Botany Cabinet and Leaf Identification cards; the Life cycle of the pumpkin has been
studied; books about apples, pumpkins, leaves, seeds and animal hibernation have been read and discussed.
We focus a significant amount of our time developing independence. The children are
capable of completing many tasks independently. We are always available to assist the
children when needed, but we allow them the opportunity to try on their own first. We
often use the phrase, “I would like to see you try first.” If a child is struggling to complete
a task it can be beneficial to help her begin and encourage her to finish independently.
In this situation we say, “I start, you finish.” We only step in and help when necessary.
“Never help a child with a task at which he feels he can succeed.”
Maria Montessori
Dr. Maria Montessori believed, “any child who is self-sufficient, who can tie his
shoes, dress or undress himself, reflects in his joy and sense of achievement the
image of human dignity, which is derived from a sense of independence.” Like Maria
Montessori, the MSOE Guides acknowledges the importance of enabling young
children to competently do things for themselves. Four key principles we use to
guide our students to independence include: a prepared environment, individual
instruction using step-by-step lessons, slowing down to allow the children to work at
their pace, and embracing error!
One of the major steps to independence is the ability to undress and dress oneself.
Since the first day of the school year, the children have developed the routine of
hanging their items on their individual hooks and taking off their shoes when
entering the classroom each morning. The recent change in weather has provided
the children with the ability to add the extra step of hanging up a sweater or jacket to
their morning routine. When it is time to go outside, the children are encouraged to
attempt to put their items on themselves and are provided with assistance when
needed. The children can work on fastening Velcro, snaps, and buttons, lacing,
buckling and tying using the dressing frames in the classroom. They are working
towards independence in manipulating these types of fasteners on their own
clothing!
As the days begin to get colder, please remember to send in weather appropriate
clothes. It is also helpful to send in a warm hat and gloves/mittens to be kept in your
child’s bag, just in case. Our morning recess is from roughly 10:45 – 11:30 AM, so the
morning chill is often still in the air.
During the month of November, we will be learning about Veterans Day, Diwali, the
Mayflower, pilgrims and Indigenous people; and talking about family traditions.
Warm Regards,
Michele
