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Tag: Montessori Community School

FLOOD/SCHOOL CLOSURE UPDATE

Written by Foothill Montessori on . Posted in Blog.

Dear MCS Parents,
We wanted to share a quick update about how things are progressing here at the school.  Most of the staff have been here cleaning, taking inventory of damaged or ruined materials, and moving materials in preparation for Monday.  There is a lot of cleaning to do still before the materials can be taken to the church (our official temporary location) and the classrooms there prepared.

Thank you again to all who have offered to come to the school to help.  There are already a lot of staff who are here trying to work around the cleaning staff so we do not feel we can direct many more hands.  Thank you for the kind offers. We have been informed that there are families who are still looking for child care for their children.  If you are willing to help in this capacity please let us know and we will try to get you in touch with families who are still searching for child care.

The following updates might be helpful:
  • We’ve had another confirmation that we are not dealing with sewage or pesticide contaminants. There are no microbial issues and the water does not pose any health risk.  The water that flooded the school contained soil, dirt, bark, etc. but the word “contamination” in this sense simply means the items are dirty.
  • We are still waiting for information about the boiler repairs. There is nothing new to report and the boiler is not currently working.
  • Our power has been restored. (YAY! Light has been very helpful.)
  • The road outside the school is torn up and is closed at both ends of the block.  We are hopeful that they will lay new asphalt on Thursday or Friday and the road should open over the weekend.
Keep checking Facebook, the website, and email for updates.
Many people have asked how they can make financial contributions.  If you would like to make a donation please go to our website (www.mcsslc.com) and visit “Flood Relief Fund.”

Early Childhood Field Trip

Written by Foothill Montessori on . Posted in Blog.

Students learn about Blacksmithing while watching a presentation on a chain being made.
Students learn how to churn cream to butter, how cows are milked, and how to care for different farm animals. Students also got to enjoy each other during a wagon ride. Thank you to the wonderful parent volunteers!
The Early Childhood Aspens class posing for a picture after they picked their pumpkins.
                                                                     Picking Pumpkins!
                                                          Each student was able to pick
                                                                 and bring home their
                                                 own pumpkin. It is so fun to see the different
                                  shapes and sizes of the pumpkins each child chooses!

Charitable Giving From Our PSA President

Written by Foothill Montessori on . Posted in Blog.

Hello MCS Parents,

It’s that time of year again, yes, already! Giving season! We are already being solicited to make year-end donations to various nationwide and local charities, as well as to volunteer our time and various skills. Every year we are compelled to give our support to those less fortunate than us or to causes that we feel passionate about.

One of the goals of the MCS teachers is to instill in our children a sense of responsibility to give back and support causes that are meaningful to us as a group and individually. One of my goals, as PSA President, is to help us, as parents, understand where our donations through school supported organizations are going as well as to make sure we understand who and what our donations/fundraising efforts are supporting. I also want to work with you to combine our giving efforts in the hope of making a larger impact.

With that being said, the PSA is heading up the outside fundraising efforts for the school this year. I have a lot of charities in mind but could use your help. I would love to hear back from you about what compels you to give. Who do you feel is a group really making a difference? Is it the food bank, the homeless shelters, renewable energy groups, clean air groups? Do you work with or for an organization that is making an impact locally? Where or who will you support, either financially or with your time, this year? Are any of you closely involved with a charitable organization that you would like to see the MCS community rally behind? I want to hear from you! Let’s join together as a group and really make a difference, while fulfilling the education and outreach component that is essential to our children’s classrooms.

This year, the PSA and the school would like to direct support to 4 areas of interest for our MCS families: our Navajo Grandmothers, our students in Ethiopia, the local charity that the parent community chooses, and MCS’ Classroom Giving Tree.

Our schools ongoing support of the Navajo Grandmothers has created a long-standing relationship with the Adopt a Native Elder program. We sponsor two Grandmothers: Elvira Horseherder and Emma Bahe. The Navajo Rug show is coming up this November 7th – 9th at the Snow Park Lodge in Deer Valley—Park City, UT. Our Kindergarten students and our 3rd year students will be attending this event November 6th and 7th. Prior to this event, the school will be collecting items such as: Coffee, Chicken Ramen, Tea, Quaker Oats, Meal, Salt, Spam, Baking Powder, Jello, Sugar, Peanut Butter, Canned Fruits, Veggies, and Soups, Graham Crackers, Spaghetti, Cornflakes, Pasta Noodles, Shortening, Household Items, Toiletries, Clothing, Tools, and VISA Gift Cards. VISA Gift cards are especially lovely, as our Grandmothers do not have a lot of space in their vehicles to bring items back to their home. They can also use the gift cards to purchase the much-needed firewood to heat their homes through the winter.

MCS sponsors 7 girls through the Children of Ethiopia Education Fund. This fund exists to empower young girls in Ethiopia from impoverished circumstances to have a quality, private education through generous sponsors and donors.  Around the holiday season we collect items and money that goes directly to our girls to continue our sponsorship and to heighten and brighten their holiday season.

Classroom specific giving is a way for us to directly impact the learning and growth of our kids. This year there will be a giving tree in the lobby that contains tags for each classroom. On the tags will be items the teachers ‘wish’ to have in the classroom selected from Montessori Services, Small Hands, and other places. It could be a need that the teachers feel would enrich the class environment or a replacement for a work that has been worked and loved hard over many years.  Come the end of October, there will be a tree set up in the MCS lobby with tags color coded for each classroom and specialty class. There will also be envelopes that will allow you to anonymously donate money toward an item or a classroom.

Please know that I understand we often feel overwhelmed by groups asking for our support. We may feel that we are being asked to often or for too much. But, these giving options are here to offer you a place to give if you feel compelled. There are no obligations or requirements to give. You can give a little, a lot, or not! We are trying to give you a heads up as to what is coming so you may make decisions on how or if you would like to proceed as far as giving and donations this year.

I am really looking forward to hearing from you about the charities that mean something to you and your ideas about where the PSA can help direct the giving of our community.

Again, your feedback is so important. Please contact me directly about this and any other parent community issues or ideas you would like to share. After your feedback, a decision will be made as to which charity/ies our school will support this year.

Thank you,

Ann Beverly

PSA President

 

Early Childhood Commences Outdoor Classroom

Written by Foothill Montessori on . Posted in Blog.

Early Childhood students receive their first lesson of the 2014 – 2015 school year in the Outdoor Classroom. They had the opportunity to explore our Outdoor Classroom area, located on near the northeast corner of our school building.
Nature plays an important role in the development of the whole child. Works of gardening, raking, weed pulling, and other outdoor tasks assist in this development. The Outdoor Classroom is rich in science lessons, such as bird watching and naming, insect and leaf investigations, and rock classification.
Early Childhood students explore the basic nature of land, air, water, and the creatures that inhabit those spaces.They also learn about the needs of plants and animals and creating homes for these creatures.

Lost and Found

Written by Foothill Montessori on . Posted in Blog.

Luckliy, we have not found any elephants or chickens, but we have found some very nice jackets, coats, towels, books,  lunch tupperwear, and many other various items. You may find all lost and found items on a table in the lobby.
Our lost and found needs your help! Please stop by and see if anything belongs to you.

Speech, Language, and Hearing Testing

Written by Foothill Montessori on . Posted in Blog.

Montessori Community School is offering speech, language and hearing screenings on Tuesday, September 9th.  The screenings will be a brief measure of your child’s speech and language skills in order to determine if further speech and language, or hearing evaluations are needed.

The speech and language screening will take approximately 10-20 minutes to complete.  After the completion of the screening, we will identify if there are concerns regarding your child’s speech and language skills or hearing.  A note will be sent home with your child regarding the results of the screening and if further assessment is warranted.

You might consider having your child’s speech, language and hearing screened if your child shows one or more of the following:

  • Your child has a difficult time learning and using new concepts and vocabulary
  • Your child has had chronic ear infections
  • You and others have a hard time understanding your child’s speech.  Your child’s speech is less intelligible than their peers
  • Your child does not combine 2-5 words in their speech
  • You suspect your child may have a fluency disorder: stuttering
  • Your child has difficulty asking and answering “wh” questions
  • Your child becomes easily frustrated when trying to tell you something
  • See Let’s Talk! Speech and Language Therapy for more information on speech and language delay warning signs
*There is still time to sign up. Please fill out a form and turn in payment by tomorrow morning to the Montessori Community School office.

MCS Studio Classes

Written by Foothill Montessori on . Posted in Blog.

Forms can be found on the credendza by the stairs. Please fill out the forms and turn them into the office. Space can be limited for some classes, so it is to your advantage to sign up soon. Payments must be remitted prior to classes starting.
Click on the link below to access pdfs of each registration form.

Studio Classes have started this week. Please finalize this first session of classes as soon as possible.

Karate- Tuesdays and/ or Thursdays, 3:45 – 4:45

Broadway Kids- Mondays, 3:00 – 4:00 (Elementary), 3:30 – 4:30 (Early Childhood)

Ballet- Every other Friday, 3:30 – 4:15

Functional Fitness for Kids- Tuesdays, 3:45 – 4:45

Cooking with Kids- Fridays, 3:35 – 4:20 (Class full), 4:30 – 5:15 (Space available)

Zumba Kids Jr.- Wednesdays, 3:30 – 4:15

*Note: If your child is not in aftercare, but wants to participate in a studio class, they may go to aftercare until the class begins. You may pick your child up directly from the studio class. If your child stays in aftercare, your studio class teacher will collect your child and return your child to and from class. These classes are a great way for your child to develop interests, have outlets and experiences learning and growing with other friends in a different setting.

We will also be offering a Lego Robotics Club for Upper Elementary and Middle School students. Guitar classes will soon become available for elementary aged students.
For more information regarding any club or Studio Class, please contact the Montessori Community School’s office.

MCS Prepares for the New School Year

Written by Foothill Montessori on . Posted in Blog.

Toddlers are so excited to be setting up their classrooms and adding new works to the shelves. Ms. Kellie and Ms. Jennifer research new projects.
Aspens class is ready to go! Ms. Ruby poses for a picture between running copies of some work material.
Magnolias are making headway! They are so excited to have Ms. Ana Maria joining their teaching team.
Ms. Evi plugs away with lesson plans while the classroom is looking beautiful!
Ms. Kay is checking to ensure everything is in order. Frank the fish is so happy with new water!
Lower Elementary (1st grade – 3rd grade) has a lot going on– Ms. Sophie, new to the Lower Elementary Oquirrh class is hard at work making materials while Ms. Diana is organizing new Spanish lessons.
Upper Elementary’s (4th grade – 6th grade) teachers, Laura and Margaret, hard at work exploring various props and costumes.
Joshi, our Middle School teacher, is in and out ensuring materials are in order. Ms. Donda, researching wildlife habitat and preparing new lessons.
Montessori Community School is bustling on the inside. New works are arriving, being created, and placed into the classrooms. Teachers are busy creating gorgeous spaces in their classrooms for their students to enjoy and feel comfortable in spending time. The spaces are being designed and set up conducive to a Montessori learning environment.
We are so excited for this new school year to start. We can’t wait to see all of our students and families at the various back to school nights coming up.

Early Childhood Field Trip to The Living Planet Aquarium

Written by Foothill Montessori on . Posted in Blog.

The students loved visiting the aquarium. It has been one of the most fun field trips of the summer. We spent a lot of time observing in the Shark Tunnel and the Touch Pools. Many students were quite taken with the octopus, turtles, and clown fish.
The Penguin exhibit was so much fun! We were able to see and hear a presentation on penguins and enjoyed watching their feeding time. We learned that penguins really love fish! We were also able to cross the netted bridge in the aquarium’s ‘Journey to South America’ exhibit.
Measuring up with Megalodon and the penguins from around the world was a wonderful experience. The students were so proud they were almost taller than the Emperor Penguins, the tallest penguin in the world.
There were many other school groups there that day, but our Montessori students were the best!