NEWSLETTER
FEBRUARY 2015
Director’s Corner
One of the favorite parts of my job is touring prospective families. You have probably seen me in the halls carrying
on and on about the Co-op. In addition to touring the building, prospective parents sit and observe each
classroom, Toddler room through Upper Elementary. At the conclusion of their observation, I sit down with the
prospective parents. My first question to them is simply, “What did you see?”
“Engaged.” “Quiet.” “Focused.” “Calm.” “Independent.” “Self-sufficient.” “Discovery.” “Natural flow.” Though
varying in exact words, parents are always shocked and surprised at what they saw. Parents are shocked to see
children so focused and engaged. It is the same sense of shock that Maria Montessori experienced in Casa dei
Bambini when she witnessed unattended children continue to work, regardless of adult supervision. It is the same
shock that I experienced during my first observation of a Montessori classroom ten years ago.
So why the shock and surprise, and why did Maria Montessori’s own students surprise her? Like Maria
Montessori’s surprise in her own observations, parents see a room full of children learning, and witness children’s
natural inclination, desire, and need to learn. Learning, discovery, exploration, and growth happen in a Montessori
environment, which is set up in such a way to allow these great things to take place. We are all surprised in our
observation of a Montessori classroom because everything we want for our children is happening. Montessori
works. Its results and the predictable outcomes that you want for your child are right before your eyes.
I invite you to come in and see it for yourself. During our Parent Classroom Visits (February 24 and February 25),
our classrooms are open to you. You will have the opportunity to sit in any of the classrooms for a twenty-minute
observation. There are 9am, 9:30am, and 10am openings on Tuesday and Wednesday morning. All you have to do
is email me or call to make a reservation. For more information, please see the Parent Classroom Visit handout
included in this month’s newsletter.
Thanks,
Ms. Emily
Full School Calendar Dates
February
9 – Stretch-n-Grow / Ms. Nicole’s Birthday
10 – Board meeting @6pm
12 – Library Check-out
16 – Presidents’ Day – Elementary Closed (Care Available with Fee)
17 – Parent Meeting @6pm
23 – Stretch-n-Grow
24 & 25 – Parent Classroom Visit Days
26 – Library Check-out
SAVE THE DATE
March 27, evening – The Big Night Dinner and Art Auction Fundraiser
May 2, morning – Coming Home, Open House and 30 year Anniversary Reunion
Upper Elementary Class News
Upper Elementary Events:
February
2-6 – TerraNova Standardized Testing
2 – Pennies For Patients begins
16 – Non-required day for Elementary
17 – Talk on India by Steve Kenyon (Shay's Grandpa) @10am
20 – Elementary field trip to the Orpheum for ImaginOcean @12:15
25 – Jackson will be 11!! Happy Birthday Jackson!
27 – Indian Festival ... Parents Invited!! @3-4pm
March
6 - Parent/Teacher conferences
The students are working hard in the classroom, and are thoroughly enjoying the addition of music with Miss Sarah
and Spanish with Miss Britt (who are both doing a beautiful job)!
Current classroom studies include graphing and algebra. We are studying classical poems and the students will be
practicing writing three common forms of poetry - the acrostic poem, the limerick and the haiku.
Research has begun on the India project. The students have chosen their topics and have created a web of the
topic and developed 5 to 7 research questions to guide their inquiries. They are now gathering information from
their chosen sources. An Indian festival with projects, illustrations, clothing, music and food will be held on
February 27th. The Lower Elementary students will join us from 2 to 3pm. Parents are invited to stop by between 3
and 4 pm.
We are delighted to begin receiving our new classroom materials by UPS "special" delivery. We now have beautiful
new timelines of American History, Native American History and Ancient Civilizations. We received the Equivalence
Material for calculating the area of irregular shapes, the Biogeochemical Cycles material for the study of the
carbon cycle, the oxygen cycle, the nitrogen cycle, etc. There are also the Parts of the Animal Cell and Parts of a
Plant Cell three part cards and booklets. We are really expanding our cultural area of the classroom! And this is just
a sampling of our new work! We are so appreciative!!
Ms. Annie O.
Lower Elementary Class News
Lower Elementary Events:
February
2-6 – TerraNova Standardized Testing for 2nd and 3rd grade
2 – Pennies For Patients begins
9 – Leah will be 8!! Happy Birthday, Leah!
13 – Valentine’s Day Celebration… Details TBA
16 – Non-required day for Elementary
20 – ImaginOcean Field Trip
March
6 – Parent/Teacher conferences
Thank You …
Thank you for all of the wonderful donations from the Small Hands catalog. The kids have been enjoying the works
in the classroom!
Thank you for all of the extra food donations. The children really enjoyed shopping and dropping off the food.
Thank you for the delicious dinner that you all provided for us for our staff meeting. We greatly appreciate it!
February looks like a busy month for the children. We will be focusing on fractions, birds, graphing, snow, ancient
civilizations, and The Timeline of Man. We will also begin collecting money for the Pennies For Patients campaign.
We will wrap up our Ocean lessons by going to see ImaginOcean at the Orpheum on February 20th.
Ms. Annie G.
Junior News – Ms. Cady’s Classroom
In February we will be finishing up with our bird works that went along with our bird theme in art. The children
learned about the parts of the egg, matching different eggs to different birds, the different kinds of birds, and the
different prints birds make. We also made bird feeders out of pinecones to hang up in the back yard.
This month we will be working on transportation and parts of the volcano, as well as the parts of the orchestra. We
will hopefully be having a field trip in March to Mission Imagination. We will also be working on banana cutting
and peanut shelling.
This month we will also be participating in Pennies for Patients. Each child will have their own box to bring home to
put their change in. The child will bring the box to school and each classroom will combine their money and count
it. We will keep a chart up by the door to keep track of how much we collect. We will be talking to the children
about why we are colleting the money and will be working with the kids to count the money each day. What a
great lesson!
Ms. Cady
Junior News – Ms. Nicole’s Classroom
Happy 2015! January seemed to fly by as we were busy learning all about birds! We studied the parts of a bird,
different kinds, listened to bird sounds, made pinecone birdfeeders, and even painted our own birdhouses! We
read the book Owl Moon by Jane Yolen and recorded our bird sightings! In February we look forward to learning
all about the five oceans, waves, and ocean animals!
Also this month we were proud to welcome two Guinea Pigs to our room as class pets (courtesy of the Henkel
family)! We are learning to take care of them every day by keeping their home clean, giving them food and water,
and using gentle hands and quiet voices in the classroom.
We are excited for upcoming field trips and Farm on the Go this Spring! As always, we appreciate all of your
support as we continue to learn and grow!
Ms. Nicole & Ms. Kelsey
Toddler News
Breaking News
Hello toddler parents! We are going to be busy, busy in February. To start, we will be celebrating three birthday’s
this month. Happy Birthday to Jacob, Kellan and Ada! We have two new friends starting in the toddler class.
Please welcome our toddler friend Ignacia to the MCS family! Ms. Cady’s son Hayden will also start in the toddler
class this month. We have one graduation to celebrate. Our friend Kellan will be moving to Ms. Nicole’s junior
room! Congratulations Kellan!
Classroom Tidbits
Throughout the month of February we will be “spreading the love” in many different ways. Along with the rest of
the school, the toddlers will be making valentines for the residents at Lasting Hope Recovery Center in downtown
Omaha. As you might already know we will be participating in Pennies for Patients until the 20 th of February. The
proceeds will go to support the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.
Favorites
Since the classroom is the child’s environment, it makes it difficult to share with parents some of our favorite
things we like to do everyday. Below are a few works, books, and songs the toddlers enjoy daily!
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Works: Manana Iguana book and puzzle, the car garage, the artic ice sensory table, and the ABC tower.
Books: Memoirs of a Goldfish by Devin Scillian, Skippy John Jones by Judy Schachner, Little Blue Truck by
Alice Schertle, The Pout-Pout Fish by Deborah Diesen, and The Flea’s Sneeze by Lynn Downey.
Songs: Ring Around the Rosie, John Jacob Jinglehiemer Schmidt, Where is Thumbkin?, Tuna Fish, and Head
Shoulders, Knees and Toes.
Ms. Alex
News from the Board
February is another exciting and busy month at the Co-op!
The 2nd - 6th grade students will complete their standardized testing during the first week of the month. The
Valentine's dance on Friday the 6th will be a great way to celebrate the holiday and the end of testing. This
committee is still looking for volunteers for the dance, so please sign up to help.
Invitations for The Big Night, Dinner and Art Auction on March 27th will be out by the end of the month. Please
consider supporting our school by donating art for the auction and then by attending the event. The evening
should be very enjoyable. Attitude on Food, parent Nathan Newhouse’s award winning catering company, will be
serving a delicious meal with some fun surprises.
Remember that Saving Sidekick coupon book sales are running through the February Parent Meeting (2/17). Each
book is $20, and $10 from each sale will be applied to your parent commitment. If you need more books please
contact Antoinette Bell at antoinette.bell@gmail.com.
Alexia Morrison, Board President