Alegria Montessori School
Discover the joy of Montessori!
March 2016
Sara's Notes Coolest Montessori observations in the past month - in the upper elementary class they are studying
chemistry. They are making an amazing timeline of when different elements were discovered (check out
the 2nd floor near on the EDP room side). The really cool part - the children were arguing over who was
going to research which elements! Not only was the task accomplished but a passion was sparked! Love
that an interest in chemistry is being fostered!
Other cool Montessori moment - as many of you know we promote conflict resolution skills with the
children practicing how to solve their own problems, with teacher assistance as needed and lots of practice.
This month, instead of a child going to a teacher for assistance, a child requested a meeting with another
child who she knew had been having a similar problem. The teachers and parents worked out a time when
the children could meet and the one child asked the other about her situation, how she had handled it, and
what had happened. Talk about a tears in your eyes Montessori moment. To top it off, it was an older
child asking a younger child for assistance. LOVE IT!!
Enrollment: Summer camp enrollment is due now. Enrollment forms were emailed last week. If you are
on the wait list for next year and need a summer form, please email and I will forward the forms to you.
Thank you for enrolling and for your referrals. We will only have 10-12 children per week in the 2’s room
and the elementary room, only 20 in the 3-6 room.
Dinner and Silent Auction! April 1, 7:00 - 9:00 pm. An email went out last night with the link to ticket
ordering. We hope to have a big crowd. It’s lot of fun socializing and for the first 25 people to request
childcare, you don’t have to worry about a babysitter! We are still in need of donations, if you have a
business, hobby or service you would like to donate, please contact sally at [email protected] or Sara.
Items and gift certificates may be dropped off in the office. If you need the ticket link sent again, please
email Sara.
Dr. Seuss/ Pajama Day, March 18: One of the best days of the year! We get to wear our PJs to school!
Everyone comes in PJs, makes crazy Dr. Seuss snacks, reads Dr. Seuss books and makes silly Dr. Seuss
crafts! Then we send everyone home to you for Spring Break! What could be better!
Spring Festival, March 19: The Spring festival will be held on Saturday, March 19, if you are able to
attend, please do! The children have a lot of fun searching for Easter eggs and making crafts. This is always
adorable, and the egg hunts are divided by age, so even the youngest hunters can find some treasures. We
could use donations of non candy items that fit into plastic eggs. Please bring stickers, balls, and ideas you
may have into the office. We will be stuffing the eggs next weekend. Thank you! Also if you can help
with the brunch it would be greatly appreciated, juice, fruit, bagels, cream cheese, muffins, etc. Please let
me know of any donations and bring any items in by Thurs March 17.
Spring Break (March 21 - 25): If your child is in EDP and will need care during Spring Break, please
email me by March 11 letting me know what days care will be needed. EDP hours will be M-F 8:30 – 4:30.
Important dates:
Mar 11 - Deadline to sign up for Spring Break
Mar 18 - Dr. Seuss/Pajama Day! Come in your PJs and bring a Dr. Seuss book!
March 19 – Easter Egg Hunt and Brunch 9:30 – 11 am
Mar 21 - 25 - Mon thru Fri – No classes/EDP only. Spring Break!
April 1 - Silent Auction and Dinner! 7:00 - 9:00 pm at the St. Petersburg Country
Club
Ones Notes - Tanya and Jenni
I can't believe it is already March! Please make sure to let Sara know your summer needs and plans for
school as soon as possible, if you haven't already. The summer program fills up quickly! The ones campus
will not be open for the summer, but there will be summer camp available in the twos room.
I will be attending the American Montessori Society conference from March 9-13 (Thursday and Friday),
so you will see Umekua (from our elementary program and substituting) in our classroom on the 9th and
10th. I hope to come back with lots of new ideas for our toddler classes! Jenni will be here as usual (thank
you Jenni!).
Our Spring Egg Hunt at the main campus will be held on March 19th, so please join us if you can! There is
nothing cuter than a bunch of toddlers in a flat field “finding” eggs!
The Alegria Lakewood campus will be closed for Spring Break from March 21-25!
Our yearly auction and fundraising dinner will be happening soon! April 1st is right around the corner.
This is a great chance to come out and socialize with other Alegria parents and bid on some amazing
prizes, including some special artwork made by the ones class. Please take a moment to buy your tickets!
Toddler Notes – Carrie and Soha
Hello Toddler families! February was full of so much color! We were painting, matching, sorting, naming,
mixing, and even coordinating our food preparation to our colors all month. The children really enjoyed
mixing things such as play-dough, colored water, and paint and discovering the secret to the primary colors.
We also put out color gradation work which the children loved!
This month’s theme is spring in the garden. This time of year is our favorite! We will be planting in a
special box which will contain scented plants for our toddlers to care for and smell as they grow. Any
donation of plants from our parents will be greatly appreciated. Learning the names and parts of flowers
and matching seeds to its plant will all be apart of our language lessons this month. Practical life focus will
be caring for the outdoor environment and learning how to properly use various garden tools. We will also
be learning about the lifecycle of a butterfly and watching the process!
March 18th will Pajama Day/Dr Seuss Day! Please wear your silliest pajamas to school and bring a Dr.
Seuss book (labeled with your child’s name) to read in class! Alegria will be closed for Spring Break (EDP
available to those who signed up with Sara) the 21st through the 25th.
Toddler Notes - Finley and Alessandra
Hi Alegria toddlers and families! We really enjoyed our heart filled February along with the explorations of
colors. Thank you all for your amazing Valentines shared with friends and teachers.
We are so excited to mark the start of Spring with the month of March. March’s curriculum will be
“Spring in the Garden.” We will learn the life cycle of the Monarch butterfly, name different types of
birds, match seeds to their plants, plant seeds, and more. We will also have a continuous theme of green
this month for Saint Patrick’s Day and decorate eggs to end March’s fun.
Dates to remember, March 18th will be Pajama Day and Dr. Seuss Day in honor of Dr. Seuss’s March
birthday. We will be out of school the 21st through the 25th for Spring Break as well. Throughout the
month continue to check in with us concerning your child’s toileting needs and remember to check the
clothes bin outside our front door if your child attends naptime and/or EDP.
3-6 Notes - All
As we move into the month of March we will be wrapping up our cultural studies unit of Australia by
talking about all the biomes of Australia, as well as the indigenous Australians. Children will have the
opportunity to learn about their society, language, and culture/art. In science, the children will continue
learning about the animal kingdom by focusing on the characteristics and different types of mammals.
Children will continue the botany unit by planting and gardening on the front playground. There will be
more of a focus on herbs and spices this month.
3-6 Notes - Nicki, Katie and Susana
We had a wonderful month of February learning all about the animals from the tropical forest and
grassland regions of Australia. As we move into the month of March the children will be learning more
about the animals and vegetation from all Australian biomes.
In our zoology unit children will continue learning about the animal classes as we move into mammals and
their characteristics. We will relate this to Australia by talking about mammals that are native to Australia, as
well as marsupials and the only two mammals in the world that lay eggs! (platypus and echidna)
In February the children were fortunate enough to observe caterpillars make their chrysalises and turn into
butterflies. It was a wonderful learning experience for the children to observe the life cycle of a butterfly.
The children were so fascinated with the painted ladies we released in our garden that many choose to do
research on different types of butterflies. The facts they discovered were very interesting!
In botany the children will be learning about herbs and spices as we bring some into our environment from
the playground. They will have the opportunity to identify these herbs through smell and taste, as well as
learn ways to incorporate them into our food.
We will be celebrating Dr. Seuss's birthday on Friday, March 18. The children will have the opportunity to
do art projects and read Dr. Seuss books. Your child is welcome to bring in their favorite Dr. Suess book to
share with their friends. Please make sure their name is written inside as many children will bring the same
book. It will be a fun day!
3-6 - Samantha and Rachel
Happy March! This month, it's all about birds. The children will expand their knowledge of birds that
inhabit Australia's many different ecosystems. We will discus habitats, diet, nesting and life cycles.
The children will be working on our class project for the Alegria Montessori fundraiser this month.
We will celebrate Dr. Seuss’ birthday Friday, March 18. On Friday the children may wear PJs to school or
their finest Seuss attire. Any time during the week, your child may bring in their favorite Dr. Seuss book in
to school to read. Please make sure your child's book is labeled with their name.
3-6 Notes - Miko and Kat
In a Montessori classroom, freedom of choice allows children the opportunity to try out new activities in a
safe environment. They can easily see their mistakes with the control of error in each lesson and learn
from their mistakes. The children can repeat an activity as many times as they want until they feel satisfied.
Maria Montessori discovered that certain traits during sensitive periods in child's life are universal and so
are the needs of children during that time. All children can learn and thrive in a stimulating prepared
environment for that sensitive period. The Montessori prepared environment meets the needs of curious
young minds where they can explore new learning by taking risks and even failing in a protective, safe
environment. There are many purposeful activities available for children to explore. The principle is the
same ― and that is “learn by doing.” The child is driven by their inner needs and work to satisfy them, and
the children find out what appeals to them and do the work as long as they please.
We planted some flowers in our flower pots last month and eagerly await their blooming. The children
excitedly water and check on their growth daily. This month we will be studying the importance of insects,
annelids, and birds in the garden.
Lower Elementary – Carolina and Michaella
In the lower elementary class, the children were very excited about their field trip to the Tampa Aquarium.
Thank you so much to the parents who volunteered to drive and be chaperones. The children had fun and
learned interesting information about animals in Madagascar. Some children participated in a game about
coral reefs and marine animals. Everybody had a blast!
This month we continued learning about Africa. Our main focus was the mountains biome. Next month
we are going to learn about the desert. The children enjoyed Valentine's Day and had fun doing activities
related to this holiday. In order to honor President's Day, children learned about Abraham Lincoln’s and
George Washington’s lives. On March 2, we celebrated Dr. Seuss Day by reading books and making silly
rhymes.
Upper Elementary - Jen and Analia
We had several fun events in the month of February that were highlights for our Upper El students. Our
field trip to the Engineering Expo in Tampa was fun and educational, and the students thoroughly enjoyed
watching demonstrations, listening to presentations, and engaging with scientists and engineers on topics
such as robotics, rocketry, chemistry, hydrology, and civil engineering. We also received a visit from some
Japanese students from ELS at Eckerd College and shared an enjoyable afternoon of cultural exchange.
Our students partnered with them on science and art activities and our visitors shared traditional Japanese
pastimes such as origami, and toys and games commonly played in Japan. Thank you to all the parents,
from both campuses, that came out for our elementary math night. It's always exciting to share and
demonstrate the brilliance behind the design and implementation of Montessori math materials.
Our 4th year students participated in a mock impressionistic archeological dig this month as part of their
history studies. Our field team of student paleo-anthropologists unearthed, measured, photographed, and
charted over a dozen artifacts which were then catalogued, sketched, and researched by students on the lab
team. It was a fun, educational way for the students to demonstrate their knowledge of various time
periods in human history and the clues that a vertical study can give to our past.
In math we are working on more advanced work with fractions with unlike denominators (4th), ratio and
proportion with means and extremes (5th), and square roots of binomials and trinomials (6th). Our
cultural/science studies are focusing on topics such as the composition of the earth (4th), vital functions
of animals (5th), and the study of the systems of the human body (6th). Science lessons with Mr. Iain in
February have covered topics that include conductivity, electrochemistry, elements, and compounds.
Art - Kat
In after care art we will be looking at the art work of Edgar Degas starting with pictures of his bronze
sculpture, "Little Dancer Aged Fourteen." We will be studying both the paintings and sculpture that Degas
did later in life noticing how he was able to "freeze" time by capturing figures in movement. Students will
be taking turns posing and working with soft pastels, oil pastels, watercolor paint and clay.
Dance - Lexy
We have been very busy tapping and twirling in dance class and I am always impressed with the level of
enthusiasm that is held throughout our hour together. We have started putting together our performance
for the end of the year show! Everyone is very excited to show off their moves to friends and family. We
are currently focusing on our creativity and how we can use our bodies to mimic our active imaginations.
We are also continuing our practice of tap and ballet fundamentals. I look forward to all the fun and
movement that is yet to come throughout the rest of the school year!
Snack – You will also be given a reminder and specific suggestions the Thurs. or
Fri. before your child's snack week.
SNACK
LIST
date
Ones
Carrie
Finley/
Alessandra
Nicki
Miko
Sam/
Heather
Carolina
3/7
Alexander
Benicio
Calvin
Anais
Stella
Joe
Colin
3/14
Aleks
Vivian
Liv
Lauren
Avery
Adrian
Sophia
3/21
Zachary
Gabby
Augustin
Holden
John T
Hawke
Finn
3/28
*****
*****
SPRING
BREAK
*****
*****
*****
4/4
Rachel
Zachary
Charlie
Peregrine
Emma
Keeley
Ginika
4/11
Xavi
Indio
Hunter
Marisol
Amia
Elliot
Piper
4/18
Joseph
Eleni
Sarah
Boston
Max
Bailey
Dasia
4/25
Ana
Anna
Camryn
Liam
Raleigh
Samara
Lovam