Welcome to March!

How exciting to receive all of that snow- I know my boys were thrilled!  Hopefully you got to enjoy some time playing with your child in the lovely weather, building a snowman or even a fort!  As the weather starts to vary this time of year (warm/cold, rain/sun/snow), it is important for your child to continue to come prepared for outdoor play.  Our playground will remain wet for some time, and chances are we will be in snow pants until it becomes dry enough for us to be outside without them.

Looking back on the month of February, I would like to extend a very special thanks to Jeanne Loh for coming in and celebrating Chinese New Year with us.  Jeanne shared a beautiful story about the Chinese zodiac animals and how they came to be the animals selected to represent the different years.  She also taught us how to say the names of the zodiac animals in Cantonese.  We talked about the different traditions that families have when celebrating the New Year and she gave each of the children a red envelope with money inside (!) for prosperity in the New Year.

Just a few days after Jeanne’s visit, we celebrated Valentine’s Day.  All of the children had decorated their bags and were so excited to receive valentines from each other. How proud the older children were to be able to assist the younger ones with passing out their valentines.  Each older child had a younger child with them, the older making sure that the younger ones were placing only 1 card in each bag, and reading the names on the bags as they moved from area to area.   As I observed the partners walking around the room together, I noted the patience and care of the older child. Independently they expressed such sensitivity to the degree of help that their younger companion needed.

This is one of the most wonderful aspects of the Montessori learning environment for the young child.  I thought about the community life of our classroom and how the older child is such an important component in its development.  Montessori writes that children “do not help one another as we do…They respect one another’s efforts, and give help only when necessary…They respect intuitively the essential need of childhood which is not to be helped unnecessarily.”

They know what the younger child needs because they have been there, and they teach through the example they provide.  I cannot help but feel proud for these children and what they are experiencing.  Over the course of their 3 year cycle they have developed a true sense of ownership towards their environment and a responsibility for their community.

As we approach the time of year where decisions are made regarding a child’s placement in school, consider this important component of community life and what a role it plays for your own child.  The kindergartener, in their 3rd, or maybe 4th year in the environment, finds that  they are the true teachers in the community and take such pride in the knowledge that they can pass on to their peers.

Conference time is quickly approaching and many of you have already signed up to meet with me about your child’s progress and work.  If you haven’t signed up, please do so at Ivolunteer. It’s always such a pleasure to meet with all of you and spend some time sharing stories about what your child is doing in the classroom.  Conference days are March 10th and 11th.

As we look past the month of March, we are already starting to look to our biggest event of the year – International Night. Our community will be celebrating and portraying the continent of Europe this year. As we get closer, any ideas you might have, any decorations or cultural items that we could borrow, or any time you have to help with preparations for the event will be greatly appreciated!!

Thanks for reading!

Trish

Image Credit: Tarot House