INSIDE THIS ISSUE...
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M A R C H
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Page 1 Principal’s Article Page 2 Summer Camp Page 3 Student Showcase & PTO Auction and Movie Page 4-13 Classroom Updates Page 14 M3S Spanish Page 15 Media & Technology Page 16
Music Page 17 Spotlight Kids Thespians Page 18 Presentations Page 19 Field Trips Page 20 Parent Nights Page 21 Internships Page 22 5 Points of Life Page 23 End of the Year Show Page 24 Calendar
QUARTERLY NEWSLETTER FROM MILLHOPPER MONTESSORI SCHOOL
Spread the diaper in the position of the diamond with you at bat. Then fold second base down to home and set the baby on the pitcher's mound. Put first base and third together, bring up home plate and pin the three together. Of course, in case of rain, you gotta call the game and start all over again. ~Jimmy Piersal, on how to diaper a baby, 1968 Here at MMS we have selected March to be the month that gives fathers a chance to be honored and appreciated. One reason is we have a Field Day and pushing the event later in the year means we will cook in the sun. Even March may be iffy. Also, observing Father's Day in June doesn't align with the school year. Even though it is a Fathers' Day event, we deeply recognize that families come in all sizes and are made up of parents, not necessarily containing traditional fathers. So for our event we acknowledge and welcome any parent wanting to attend and participate with their child. A good parent is known to be one who is important to the emotional, material, and physical well-being of his/her children. Grandfathers and other men other than the actual father can also fit this role as well. I grew up without my Father in my life so my Grandfather was a big part of my life along with my Mother. These days, fathers have taken on more of a role in the family other than just a traditional bread winner. New research is showing that actually mothers and fathers play a more similar part in their children's adjustment than dissimilar. Moreover, research is finding that the warmth and sensitivity shown by both fathers and mothers are more important than actual time spent with the children. It has been thought of for a while that male parents specialized in more boisterous and energetic play with their children while females played with their children in calmer ways and have been concerned with nurturing and caring for their children. Fathers are more and more taking on a nurturing role as society changes and male and female stereotypical roles of the past are giving way to a team parenting style. I have personally seen how fathers are playing a more prominent role in their children's schooling in the thirty-eight plus years I have had my school. They attend more parent-teacher conferences, join their children for lunch, drive and chaperone on field trips, volunteer, and drop off and pick up their children from school. Sometimes it is a father who first comes to look at the school to decide whether the school will be a good match for his children. Father's Day is celebrated all over the world, albeit on different dates and in different ways. The common thread is to honor your parent for his or her support and love. In the United States Sonora Dodd, after listening to a Mother's Day sermon, chose a day in June to celebrate and honor fathers. The date chosen by the Mayor was June 19th because that was Sonora's father's birthday. Thus, the first Father's Day was June 19th, 1910 in Spokane, Washington. President Lyndon Johnson recognized Father's Day and set it to be observed the third Sunday in June beginning in 1966. President Richard Nixon made it a permanent national holiday by signing it into law in 1972. However, the first Father's Day card is said to have been one carved out of clay wishing a father good health and long life. This card was made 4000 years ago in Babylon! Enjoy your handmade gifts and your children; they grow up very quickly.
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The new year started in the Little House with an in-depth study of the oceans and some of the creatures found within. The students learned the names of the five oceans as well as their locations on map and globe. The students then learned about the intertidal zone, where land and water meet, between the high and low tide zones. The intertidal zone is rich in nutrients and organisms, but can be quite inhospitable due to daily changes in moisture, temperature, turbulence, and salinity. Sea life such as sea stars, clams, barnacles, mussels, periwinkle snails, and hermit crabs live in the intertidal zone. The students expanded on their new knowledge with a tidal pool activity. The students were introduced to bivalves and crustaceans, discussing and touching scallops, clams, shrimp, and crabs, as well as sea stars and Florida shells. Manipulatives on the shelves during January included ocean creature finger puppets, shell x-ray cards, fish pattern cards, shell finger transfer and utensil transfer works, and many real shells and other items from Florida’s coasts to examine and explore. The students enjoyed shell scrubbing work with giant cockles and Southern quahogs during January, and painted using a real octopus arm. Ms. Christina Miller, from the Upper Elementary class, shared her collection of large shells, and near the end of the month the students were exposed to information on sea turtles, dolphins, and whales.
Students painting with an octopus arm February was a fun month as students strengthened their fine-motor and gross-motor skills by working with carpentry tools. A variety of hand tools were presented and used in the classroom and select power tools were also demonstrated by Ms. Crystal. Students spent time learning directionality through experimentation, as left and right when working with tools provides visually different results. Many new vocabulary words were learned that dealt with tool specificity and parts of tools. PAGE
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Ms. Crystal and students working with carpentry tools March, as always, is garden planting and care month in the Little House. The students planted flowers and herbs on Tuesday, March 1st and will spend the rest of March and into the beginning of April caring for the plants in the garden, and creating food and art items that are garden inspired. The students mulched the garden and will water the garden each week with small watering cans. They will be taught about the stages of plant development from seed to flower and will learn the parts of the plant and the parts of the flower. Students will use a mortar and pestle with herbs and will bake herb biscuits and try a mint tisane. March is always full of wonderful moments as children really connect with and investigate nature.
Garden planting
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We are headed into the last part of this school year. We have seen a lot of students achieve normalization in the classroom. Maria Montessori’s quote in the book, The Absorbent Mind, states, “Spontaneous discipline, continuous and happy work, social sentiments of help and sympathy for others…” The child who is normalized displays:
Love of order Love of work Spontaneous concentration Attachment to reality Love of silence and of working along Power to act from real choice Independence and initiative Spontaneous self-discipline Joy
Loving school together
Trinomial Cube Our class has been having so much fun learning and creating together. During the month of January we studied transportation, land forms and all about winter. We learned about many different ways people travel from place to place and made push pin vehicles to glue on a road. We also focused on what people do in winter, what animals do in winter, and what plants do in winter. Finally, we learned about land forms. We experimented by putting water in our land form structures to create a peninsula, strait, isthmus, cape, island and bay. Our artist of the month was Paul Klee. Our students enjoyed creating figures out of shapes and then painting the shapes to bring their art to life just like Paul Klee! The parents enjoyed seeing their child’s art during Parent Night. PAGE
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A student’s interpretation of Paul Klee’s art
Fathers and Daughters at Parent Night
Addition
Odd and Even Numbers
During the month of February we studied the solar system. The students we very enthusiastic about learning the planets in our solar system and creating a puff ball solar system of their own. We have also been push pinning astronauts and space ships. To celebrate Valentine’s Day our students had a blast making heart-shaped personal pizzas and banana strawberry smoothies. They also painted a beautiful bouquet of flowers by using a celery stalk as a flower stamp to give to parents and loved ones for Valentine’s Day.
Solar System Puzzle
Flower bouquets with celery paint printing Giant Solar System Map March is packed with learning activities. The students will experiment with things that sink and float for their scientific activity. We will have the Lifecycle of the Butterfly in our classroom. We will have Living and Non-living activities to study. The students should be able to experience the entire lifecycle of the butterfly. Seeing a butterfly come out of the chrysalis, flap its wings to dry, and then releasing it into the world is a wonderful experience! This is a great way to learn about how to care for nature. Our artist for the month is Eric Carle. We will learn about his life and about how he did his art for his book, The Very Hungry Caterpillar! The students will also create their own art out of tissue paper like Eric Carle did in many of his books. PAGE
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Happy Spring everyone! It’s hard to believe that we are already three months into 2016. As always, we have been very busy. We began the year with a unit study on animal classification. The children learned that classification is a way of organizing things into groups by their similarities. They found that one way to find those similarities is by making observations. We brainstormed together and realized that everything in the universe is either a living thing or a non-living thing. We divided the Universe into these two groups and then we noticed that the living things could be divided again between plants and animals. The children learned that these two large groups are called kingdoms. We also took the opportunity of studying the animal kingdom to learn about the topic of doing research. We discussed where and how to find new information about something we wish to know more about. We used the internet, books and magazines from home and the library, to find facts about a favorite animal to share with the class. Then, each child put together a visual aid to show as he or she shared the findings with the class. It was a wonderful success and a joy to see the children share their projects.
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In February we changed gears. Our unit study focus was on simple machines. The children learned that a simple machine has few or no moving parts and is used to help people do work. They learned that “work” in science is using a force to move something over a distance. They also learned that a force is either a push or a pull. We had a wonderful time building and using the 6 kinds of simple machines, and in the end, used them together to make some very complex machines.
On another note, Ms. Erinlynn Sattler had her last day as a teacher in our classroom on February 17th. Ms. Bailey Erickson, who is one of our Elementary/Middle School After-School Program Teachers, stepped in for the remainder of this school year. Bailey is studying Plant Genetics at the University of Florida, and is Plant Learning Tree Certified. We are happy to have her in the class. During the second week of March, the Kindergarten students completed the Iowa Test of Basic Skills (ITBS). We view test-taking as a “life skill”, and we have found that this week of testing introduces children to a test-taking environment without the academic pressure commonly associated with testing. We also use the testing as an opportunity to teach children about the importance of a good night’s sleep and a balanced breakfast, and how that can contribute to having a successful day in a working environment. Now in March and April we are set to begin our garden unit. We will be making more observations as we delve into the plant kingdom ready to make new discoveries!
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Happy spring to everyone! We hope the winter wasn’t too hard on you. In our class we are now in the process of getting ready for our annual Spelling and Geography Bees. We look forward to seeing how many rounds our students can go this year. Best of luck to all students! Our Science studies have taken us through invertebrates and vertebrate families. To further this, the students had a cooperative project to create a poster board with facts , information and pictures of some of the species in the group they chose. The final step was to present this information to the other members of the class.
In Geography, besides the Bee, we have been working on a large project called Imaginary Island. Each student created his/her own island and drew an outline map. Students were then responsible for telling us what animals and plants lived on the island as well as naming cities, land and water forms and products produced. This is a great extension to our studies and allows each student to have autonomous control over a creative project. We look forward to seeing these on display at Student Showcase.
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Our Social Studies topics have covered many aspects in mapping skills, as well as, researching and learning about some famous African-Americans and Famous Women in History.
We have been fortunate to have several special presentations on blood components, handwashing, and the Mars Rover. Thanks to all those that have been able to spend time educating us.
Mars Rover presentation
And a big thank you to seventh grader, Ethan G., for interning in our classroom during the first week of March. We enjoyed having you as an additional “teacher�.
Ethan helping in the classroom
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6th grade earth Science To Infinity and Beyond! Well, at least to the edge of the known universe. That’s what the sixth grade Earth Science class has been studying. We just completed a unit on our solar system, stars, galaxies and the universe. We put our knowledge to the test when we visited the Museum of Science and History in Jacksonville. The museum had an impressive collection of Hubble space telescope photographs displaying spiral and elliptical galaxies, star clusters, white dwarfs, red giants, and nebula. We also enjoyed the historical timeline that outlined individuals who furthered space exploration from Ptolemy to Elon Musk, the CEO of Space X. We culminated our unit on space with a trip to the Kika Silva Pla Planetarium at Santa Fe College for a presentation about the ancient Mayan civilization’s contribution to astronomy, and a thrilling simulation of roller coaster rides on various planet surfaces. We especially enjoyed the video clip of a total solar eclipse as seen from an airplane that the director of the planetarium, James Albruy, shared with us.
7th and 8th grade life science The seventh and eighth grade Life Science class is wrapping up an extensive unit on invertebrate and vertebrate animals, including skeletal and muscle structures, nervous systems, movement, growth and development, and reproduction. As we have moved through our studies, the class took part in a series of dissection labs; including earthworms, grasshoppers, crawfish and frogs. Our dissection labs allow students to learn about the internal structures of animals. It helps them learn how the tissues and organs are interrelated. Lastly, it gives students an appreciation of the complexity of organisms in a hands-on learning environment.
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Middle School Language Arts On January 29th middle school students presented the Seventh Shakespeare Festival to parents and students at the Thomas Center. Three of Shakespeare's plays were highlighted for the festival. Sixth graders brought Hamlet's dramatic final scene to life set in a modern business. Seventh graders gleefully portrayed the in-fighting of King Lear as 90210-style high school. Eighth grade students combined Shakespeare with Sondheim by melding scenes from As You Like It with music from Into the Woods. Sixth graders also brought to life significant figures from Elizabethan England in living biographies set at the Queen's Palace. The Shakespeare Festival is produced every two years. Middle school students study Shakespeare every year in language arts, but join creative forces with Ms. Sylvia every other year to put on this show. For many students, it is a highlight. Often, while preparing, students will remember visiting the Thomas Center in years past when they got to see the show. It's a special experience to finally write and perform skits for the younger students. Second through fifth grade students were in attendance.
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¡Hola a todos! The students have been learning about different topics like school schedules, daily routines and clothing. They learned new songs in Spanish that are related these topics. In the second quarter, the sixth graders studied Mis amigos y yo. They learned the vocabulary to describe themselves and others. Then they studied the verb "ser" and how to use it for describing people. Also, they studied Mexico/Somos Estudiantes and Vamos a la Escue. In these units they learned how to talk about daily schedules, how to ask and tell the time, say what classes they have and how they do things, describe classes and classroom objects, say where things are located and talk about how they feel. They learned about prepositions and how to describe the location of classroom objects. As part of this grammar lesson, they learned the lyrics of the song “¿Dónde está mi tarea?”. It was a fun way to learn the prepositions. In order to make the school schedule topic more appealing to students, they had to do a project about their own schedule and they had to describe each of the classes. They presented the project to their classmates and described their classes in Spanish. In grammar, they have learned how to conjugate “ar” verbs, the verb “estar” and the verb “ir”. In the upcoming weeks, they will start Unidad 3 about Puerto Rico/Mi Comida Favorita. They will learn about foods and beverages and how to say what foods they like and dislike. The seventh graders studied Unidad 3, lección 2, Puerto Rico/En mi Familia. They learned the vocabulary about family, how to ask and tell ages and how to express possession and give dates. In grammar, they learned about possessive adjectives. As part of this lesson, students did a family tree project. They presented their families to the class and talked about the relationship among family members. Later in the quarter, they began Unidad 4, España/Vamos de Compras. They have been learning how to talk about clothes, ones that you want to buy, and describe what you wear in different seasons. As part of this unit, they had to do a project about the clothes that you use in a specific Latin American country on a specific time of the year. They will be presenting their projects to their classmates this week. The eighth graders studied Unidad 6, lección 2, República Dominicana/La Salud. In this unit they reviewed vocabulary about parts of the body and how to talk about staying healthy. They also studied the preterite of “ar”, “car”, “gar” and “zar” verbs. Also, they learned how to conjugate the verb “gustar”. After this unit they started Unidad 7, Argentina/Una Semana Fenomenal. During the last few weeks they have been learning to talk about technology, to tell what they did. As part of this lesson, students had to do a project about La Tecnología. They presented the project to the class and explained what technology the use the most. ¡Felices vacaciones de primavera!, Sra. Karina Newman
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Come join us for the Spring Scholastic Book Fair, which will be held during the week of Monday, May 16th through Friday May 20th. This is just in time to purchase students’ Summer Reading books! Proceeds from the Book Fair will go toward books for the school, possibly even the books that teachers request. Any additional profit will go in to “Scholastic Dollars”, which MMS can use in the future. Don’t forget to sign up soon to volunteer for set up, working the cash register and breakdown. Thank you all for your support.
Millhopper Montessori Technology teaches real-world skills to be utilized in various platforms. Students learn by doing. Lessons are given in whole groups, then students show what they learn to each other. They learn, collaborate, teach and explore together. In Technology students have been taking their skills to the next level, Kindergarteners started using ABCMouse to enhance their learning in various areas. They each have their own accounts. This allows me to see their progress and allows them to work at their own pace. First through fifth graders have their own Studyladder accounts, as well as their own Edutyping Accounts. Additionally, first graders have heightened their studies on The Human Body by exploring various activities on Millhoppertech and viewing lessons in Scholastic Study Jams. Second graders have been learning to work more independently in Studyladder and Edutyping, and third graders have being learning to create brochures in MS Publisher. Fourth graders have been learning to research, cite and write in their own words. This has been a collaborative project with Florida History and Composition classes. They used their research skills to create a brochure in LucidPress, part of the Google Apps for Education Apps. Fifth graders have created brochures and posters in LucidPress and have started a unit on Video Production. In this unit they will learn how to use the camcorders at school and learn to edit in Power Director. It has been all about coding for the Middle School. They have been working in Coding.org and will be doing a collaborative project with their Language Arts class, by creating a world in Alice from their creative writing stories. All fifth through eighth graders also maintain a portfolio website, where they add their digital work from the year.
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Thank you to all of our students for a wonderful Holiday Sing-Along and Winter Program in December. The students worked so hard and shined bright for their performance. Since then, all of the students from Ms. Crystal Sorrow’s class through Kindergarten have been working on classifying instruments into their specific families (brass, woodwind, string, percussion). Ms. Crystal Sorrow’s class can identify all of the brass instruments (trumpet, French horn, trombone and tuba) and can put them in order of pitch from highest to lowest. Ms. Cristina Eckstein’s and Ms. Martha Dolan’s classes are identifying brass instruments and also putting them in highest to lowest order. These students are starting to recognize these instruments just by their sounds. Ms. Renee Brohamer’s and Ms. Liz Falls’ classes have taken our brass instruments to the next level, and now play games by listening to brass instruments and identifying them for points. These students just recently started on woodwind instruments and telling the difference between mouthpieces and reeds. Every couple of weeks all of the classes take a break from identifying and listening to instruments by becoming our own percussion instruments and making rhythms as a class outside! First through Eighth grades are in full swing with the End of the Year show, The Lion King. Third through Eighth grades prepared for their auditions by memorizing lines, singing songs and learning choreography. Ms. Liz Bublitz and Ms. Sylvia Aslanian were so overwhelmed by the amount of students and talent that came to audition. Casting was NOT easy! Since then, every class has started learning their own parts and songs, along with watching some informational videos about the music with actual actors from the show. First through Third grade have been assigned their animal characters and have started exploring ways to portray them in real life. Ms. Liz Bublitz is so excited to start singing and dancing along with everyone to Lion King songs!
Ms. Christina Eckstein’s Preschool class making music outside with wooden sticks PAGE
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4th and 5th grade class learning choreography for the End of the Year Show
www.thespotlightkidsperformingarts.com
On February 5th, Spotlight Kids Thespians Troup 88928 traveled to the world’s largest International Junior Thespian State competition. Several awards were won! Check out the results: Monologue: Homeroom -the Musical Lindsey Excellent Solo Musical: Another World Lacey Excellent Large Group Musical: One Short Day Sofia, Robyn, Lacey, Venumadhava, Ethan, Aidan, Maxx, Ginger, Anna, Anu, Nicole, Analia, Sarah, Rissa Excellent Costume Design: Macbeth Rissa Excellent Improv Team 1: Ross & Anu Superior Best Of Show Improv Team 2: Nikolai & Analia Superior Pantomime : The Veteran Superior Duet Acting: Importance of Being Earnest Aidan & Sarah Superior Duet Musical: Marry the Man Today Sarah & Nicole Superior Solo Musical: Knowing When to Leave Anu Superior Small Group Musical: Brooklyn's Here Nikolai, Ethan, Maxx, Aidan, Ross Superior PAGE
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PreK/K through 3rd Grade Health Presentations On February 19th, Nutrition students from the University of Florida Food Science and Human Nutrition Department visited MMS. They explained the importance and the correct procedures of hand washing to our Preschool/Kindergarten through 3rd grade classes. The stories and interactive games provided great instructions and reminders for our students. Thank you to our MMS PTO parents, especially Lisa Merlo-Greene , for organizing this event as part of Health and Safety month!
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4th through 8th Grade Field Trips On February 3rd, the 4th grade students visited the Florida Museum of Natural History for their 4th grade Florida History class.
On February 25th,, all of the 4th through 8th grade students journeyed to the Museum of Science and History in Jacksonville and to the Jacksonville Zoo. It was a day full of exploration and discoveries! And thank you to MMS PTO for co-sponsoring the charter bus to travel there.
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Early Childhood Parent Nights Throughout the first two weeks of February, the Beginners class through Kindergarten classes had their Spring Parent Nights. This was an opportunity for parents to come see their children demonstrate their most recent work. Teachers also presented lessons so parents could get an idea of what a typical work cycle looks like. This is always an entertaining and informative night, as students get to show off their hard work and parents can appreciate their children’s and teachers’ efforts.
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7th and 8th Grade Internships Middle school internships were completed during the first week of March. The seventh grade students completed their internships in one of the MMS Preschool, PreK/Kindergarten or Lower Elementary classrooms. The eighth grade students completed their internships in a community business of their choice. Seventh grade interns were responsible for various classroom assignments, such as reading to students, or having students read to them, helping with math questions, or overseeing seasonal craft projects. Classroom teachers appreciated the help during the hurried holiday season and interning student experienced the role of “teacher” for the week. The eighth grade students chose some very interesting sites to complete their internships. These sites were: Paracosm, Healthy Step Pediatrics, Law Office of Jennifer Kirkhart Curcio, Sweet Paws Bakery, 39 th Limited Partnerships, A Child’s Academy, West End Animal Hospital, Expressions Learning Academy, The Gainesville Sun, and Giggle Magazine. All of the employers were very positive with their evaluations of the middle school students, especially pointing out the students’ high level of responsibility and their desire to help where ever needed. Many employers also commented that the time length of the internship project, one week, gave the students a better opportunity to experience the different aspects of a business environment. Overall, internships were very successful. All of the middle school students made positive contributions to their internship sites and, in return, gained a sense of what will be expected of them when they enter the working environment.
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On February 21st, a gorgeous Saturday morning, 102 MMS students participated in the 5 Points of Life Kids Marathon. For many of them, it was their final mile to complete a full marathon (26.2 miles) throughout the course of the school year. For some, it was running another mile to work toward that goal. MMS won the percentage prize of $750 because we had 70% of our eligible students participating. Four times Millhopper Montessori has earned the prize for highest percentage of participation, and one year we had more total participants than any of the other larger public schools. Congratulations to all of our students, and thank you to Coach Cam Parker for organizing and participating in such a successful event!
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March 2016 Monday, March 21 Friday, March 25
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Spring Holidays
April 2016 Monday, April 4 Thursday, April 7
Physical Fitness Testing 1st-8th Grades
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Monday, April 4 Thursday, April 7
PTO Silent Auction *Ends Thursday @ 7:15 PM*
Thursday, April 7
Little House Family Picnic
Thursday, April 7
Elementary/Middle School Student Showcase 4:30-6:30 PM
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Thursday, April 7
PTO Movie on the Lawn Dinner & Entertainment @ 6:00 PM PTO Silent Auction ends @ 7:15 PM Disney’s “Lion King” Movie on the Lawn @ 7:30 PM
Friday, April 8
No School – Student Holiday/Teacher Work Day
Wednesday, April 20Friday, April 22
5th Grade Camp Crystal Trip
Monday, April 25
Vocal Ensemble Spring Sing & Ice Cream Social MMS Big Room @4:00 PM
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May 2016 Monday, May 2
Middle School Mother’s Day Tea 1:00 PM
Tuesday, May 3
Ms. Erin Sorel’s Mother’s Day Tea 1:00 PM
Wednesday, May 4
Preschool & Preschool/Kindergarten Parent Appreciation Breakfast @ MMS Big Room
Thursday, May 5
Ms. Christina Miller’s Mother’s Day Tea 1:00 PM
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Friday, May 6
Mr. Richard Aslanian’s Mother’s Day Tea 1:00 PM
Monday, May 9Friday, May 13
Safety Patrol Appreciation Week
Thursday, May 12
PTO Meeting
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Monday, May 16Friday, May 20
Scholastic Book Fair
Monday, May 16Friday, May 20
Teacher Appreciation Week
Friday, May 20
Beginners, Preschool, Preschool/Kindergarten Splash Day
Thursday, May 26
Safety Patrol Pinning Ceremony 9:15 AM
Thursday, May 26Friday, May 27
Middle School End of the Year Trip (location TBA)
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Monday, May 30 PAGE
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No School – Memorial Day Holiday