Monthly Newsletter
May 3, 2010
Dear Parents,
As always, we were busy in April. We hope everyone enjoyed The Science Fair as much as we did! The children were great!! We hope that it was a good opportunity for parents to get a better idea of this year’s curriculum. Additionally, it was a good synthesis of this year’s science curriculum for both classes.
All of our plans for the gardens are not going too well. The children have been eager to garden, but the weather is just not cooperating with us. As soon as things dry out, we’ll begin digging and planting. A sign up sheet will be out soon for parents still interested in volunteering time to help the children outdoors. Meanwhile we are enjoying all our plants that continue to arrive. Caring for them has been the children’s job, and they are enjoying it. Having the plants to care for also gives us a chance to really observe and examine the many types of flowers and veggie plants up close.
The Science Fair activities will be available to the children for the next few days. Then we will be moving on to our final continent study of the year: Africa. We are also working on making gifts for our mothers.
This is the time of year when teachers begin to anticipate missing the children that will be leaving soon. It is very rewarding to see how capable and confident they have become. We know area kindergartens are getting a wonderful group!!! We will miss them, but know they will enjoy their next adventure. (Teachers always enjoy visits from ‘alumni’….!) For years we went for roller-skating and pizza on the last day of school. Several years ago at the party parents asked if they could organize a picnic with games for the last day instead. Parents enjoy seeing the children interact together and we always have a wonderful time. We would like to do the same thing again this year. In the past, graduating children organized (with parent help) the games for the returning children and everyone participated in a potluck lunch. All departing children will be asked to contribute to the picnic by hosting a booth, game, or activity for all to enjoy on picnic day. More information to follow. You will be hearing from someone on the Picnic Committee soon...... Mark your calendar for Wednesday, June 9th!!! June 8th is “Autograph Day”: ‘Graduating’ children only, please. More details later.
Summer Sessions are still open. Send in your deposits now if you want to enroll your child. We would very much like to see all returning children enrolled in at least one week of Summer school. We would like to avoid enrolling new children in any of the sessions as some do not settle in as well without their first school experience being the September orientation week. Three months of summer is a long break for children!!! Several parents have asked for Summer School enrollment forms. They are available at school.
Please check if you have any books you or your child have borrowed from the school’s lending libraries and return them. If you are looking for an interesting book, check the shelves. There is a good assortment of books on Montessori, discipline, philosophy, and related subjects. Also, please look around to see if your child still has a book they have checked out of the library and have them return it. Garden School books are easy to identify as they have a colored tape strip across the bottom of the spine and a library pocket inside the back cover.
If EVERYONE could please check their child’s bookshelf to see if you have any Garden School books, we may be able to save some parents from having to replace a lost book. (If your child has lost a book and you need to replace it, a good source is ABE Books. You can order the book on line for a few dollars.)
The last Book Order of the year will be out next week.
Conferences - Thursday and Friday, May 27 and 28. There will be no regular school those 2 days. More information and sign-ups will be out later.
Monday, May 31 – Memorial Day-no school
Garden Montessori School, Preschool, Danville, Ca.