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Virtual Family Night for Early Childhood Students - Snow Theme
Tonight - January 26 at 6:30 p.m.
Join Paula and Trish for an evening of snowy fun (while staying inside your warm home)!
We will read the book Snowballs by Lois Ehlert and make a virtual snowman together. Finally, we will make a "real" snowman with paper at home. Please have three white paper circles or white paper, a glue stick, crayons or markers, and one colorful piece of construction paper ready!
Visit Bloomz to RSVP and access the Zoom link!
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Morning Drop-off Reminders - The Importance of Being On Time
Get your child's day off to a good start by arriving on time for school each morning!
By arriving on time, you are helping your child make a smoother transition to the school day - it can be a bit unsettling for a child to arrive after their classmates have begun work or morning meeting.
The drop-off schedule can be found below:
Extended Day before-care for Primary, Elementary and Middle School - Great Room Door - 7-8:40 a.m.
Toddlers (including before-care) - Toddler Playground - 7-9 a.m. (the regular school day starts at 9)
Middle School (grades 7 & 8) - Side Door - 7:50-8:05 a.m.*
Elementary (grades 1-6) - Side Door - 8:20-8:35 a.m.*
Primary (ages 3-6) - Front Door (Main Entrance) - 8:30-8:45 a.m. (school starts at 8:45)
Please note that staff are assigned to conduct screenings and escort students to class during the designated drop-off hours but will not be immediately available for screenings during late drop-offs due to other responsibilities. If you are arriving late, please remain in your vehicle with your child and call 302-475-0555. A staff member will come to assist you as soon as they are available. Thank you for your patience.
* School starts at 8:30 a.m. for elementary students and 8 a.m. for middle school. While the door remains open for a few extra minutes after these times, students may be marked tardy if they are not in their classrooms by these times.
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Masking Reminders - Important Information Regarding Isolation/Quarantine Length
The CDC and DPH have stressed the importance of wearing masks to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and have emphasized the need for well-fitting, protective masks for all ages. Masks continue to be required for students in the Primary Program and older and strongly encouraged for all students ages 2 and older. We are currently requiring masks indoors and outdoors.
We STRONGLY encourage students to wear surgical, KN95 or multi-layer cloth masks. If wearing a one-layer cloth mask, we strongly recommend pairing it with a surgical mask. Bandanas, masks with vents and other types of face coverings will not be permitted.
Important:
The CDC's new guidelines for quarantine/isolation length are contingent upon your child being able to consistently wear a masks properly throughout the school day. In other words, if your child has to be reminded regularly to adjust their mask to cover the nose and mouth and/or has ongoing difficulties observing physical distancing guidance, your child will be required to isolate or quarantine for the full 10 days after testing positive or being exposed to a positive case. Please take some time to make sure the masks you provide for your children fit properly and ensure that they fully cover the nose and mouth without gaps on the side.
Thank you for helping to keep all of us healthy!
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COVID-19 Testing Update: Next Results Due Tuesday, February 1
On-Site Testing with Quidel
If you haven't already registered your child for on-site testing, we highly recommend that you do so! It is currently extremely difficult to schedule off-site testing due to test shortages! Sign up here
Next Testing Deadline - Tuesday, February 1 - Please read the information below carefully:
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On-site: Quidel will be on-site for testing on February 2. All registered students will be tested on that day. Results will be sent to parents that afternoon and must be forwarded to covidresults@wmsde.org. WMS does not automatically receive copies of each child's results on the day of testing. These results must be forwarded by 4:30 p.m. in order for your child to attend school on Wednesday, February 2.
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Families that choose NOT to participate in Quidel testing must test off-site each week and submit results to covidresults@wmsde.org by NOON each Tuesday. If you are submitting a screenshot, please include the date tested.
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If your child misses testing due to an absence or lateness to school, your child must get tested off-site to attend school on Wednesday. Solv Health offers a directory of locations that provide rapid and PCR tests daily. Please plan to arrive on time on testing days - testing begins immediately after drop-off.
- Please Note: If your child will not allow Quidel staff to conduct the test on a particular week, you will be called and asked to pick up your child to be tested elsewhere in order to adhere to our testing deadline.
Off-site testing options:
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CLASSROOM NEWS - As Seen on Bloomz |
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Coding in the Toddler Program
Paula Sharpe, STEAM Education Coordinator
In December, our Toddler students learned to code in the Maker (STEAM) Studio. First, we did “unplugged coding” activities with students. I "coded" students to walk around the classroom. They really enjoyed this activity. They learned to follow directions, move forward, backwards, turn and count. Next, I read a story, copied pictures from the book and placed them on a large coding grid. I introduced a paper version of the Bee-Bot to the students. I asked students to follow my “coding instructions” to find pictures on the grid. Finally, I introduced the real Bee-Bot robot! Students used the robot to code to certain pictures on the grid. Some students really enjoyed using the robot, some were a bit hesitant, and others just wanted to push the buttons! We are continuing our coding activities this month. Coding allows the students to follow multi-step instructions, focus, concentrate, understand cause and effect and improves counting skills.
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Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Montessori Peace Curriculum
Erin Winner, Primary (3-6) Lead Teacher
This month, we have talked a lot about Martin Luther King, Jr. We read the book Martin's Big Words by Doreen Rappaport and discussed how Dr. King peacefully fought for equality, freedom and justice for all people. He gave speeches that inspired countless people, demonstrating how "big words" can bring about great change. The children quickly caught on to the idea of big words, and we connected that to kindness. Our Morning Message questions focused on these topics and, as you can see from their answers, really got the class thinking about the power of words.
We also talked about how Martin Luther King, Jr. was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964 and what an incredible honor that is. While many people throughout history led with force or violence, Dr. King showed the world how peace could move mountains. The children were very excited to create their own peace medals in the classroom. What was different about this project was that it was made to be given away. Some people made a medal for a classmate for "being a good friend" or "always making people laugh." Others made it for their parents, to recognize all that they do. While it can be hard to put effort into something that you know will be given away, the joy felt by the receiver of each medal easily made up for it.
Peace Education is an important part of the Montessori curriculum. This includes lessons in grace and courtesy, conflict resolution, and explaining the interconnectedness of all living things. By teaching children to view the world from different perspectives, we are supporting them to grow into more open-minded and compassionate human beings.
"Establishing lasting peace is the work of education; all politics can do is keep us out of war." - Maria Montessori
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Lower Elementary (6-9) Program |
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S.W.E.A.T. Creatures
Melissa Sugzdinis, Lower Elementary (6-9) Lead Teacher
On Friday, we explored what all living things need: S.W.E.A.T.!
Every living thing needs shelter, water, an energy source, air, and a safe temperature range. We discussed how different plants and animals get S.W.E.A.T. and then designed our own S.W.E.A.T. creatures, sharing where it lives and how it eats, breathes and survives in its habitat.
Some children chose creatures that were recognizable such as snakes and spiders, while others got very creative with made-up creatures that lived on Mars and beyond!
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Class Traits
Allie Colflesh, Upper Elementary (9-12) Lead Teacher
The 9-12 students are learning about genetics as part of the Cultural Curriculum. Last week, we gathered information about our class traits. We learned who has (or does not have) dimples, freckles, cleft chins, hair above the knuckles, unattached earlobes, a widow's peak and can roll their tongue. All of these traits are dominant, and the opposite are recessive. The students were also asked to talk to their families about traits, along with the traits of their grandparents and even GREAT grandparents!
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Middle School (7th & 8th Grades) |
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Studying Earth's Atmosphere
Mandy Balanetsky, Middle School Lead Teacher
We have started a new science unit focused on Earth’s atmosphere. Students were tasked with scaling down the layers of the atmosphere to represent them on graph paper. They discovered that the exosphere is massive and would take up over 122 additional pieces of graph paper!
They then represented the layers on the classroom wall and calculated where each layer would start and end if it were to be represented on our nine-foot-high classroom wall.
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The Wednesday Weekly shares WMS news and events that are relevant to the families in our community.
Please send submissions to wednesday-weekly@wmsde.org by 4:30 p.m. on the Friday prior to the issue in which you wish to include your information. Content may be edited for length and style and may be held for a future issue due to space constraints.
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WILMINGTON MONTESSORI SCHOOL
WWW.WMSDE.ORG
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