April 2026
Honeybee
Hola familia Honeybee!
Thank you to everyone who came to our Spring Social and collaborated with us. A special shoutout to our parent coordinator, Chelsea, for putting everything together and creating such a sweet little craft. We are so thankful for the beautiful little familia we have created in our Honeybee environment.
As our school year begins to come to an end, we are filled with gratitude for all the laughter, love, and hugs we have shared with your babies. It has been such a joy to watch them grow. With every new milestone, they are preparing themselves for their next journey, and it is truly special to witness.
This is the beauty of Montessori. Our level is called Assistant to Infancy, and our role is to support each child’s individualized development. We see them grow from sitting with support, to slithering and army crawling, building the connections needed to crawl, and eventually taking those wobbly first steps.
As your child’s infant guide, I continue to learn from them every day. They remind me that each child is unique and develops at their own pace. I meet them where they are, whether that means supporting them as they learn to sit, guiding their hand as they begin using a spoon, or reading simple books with one word per page to support language development.
Language is such a beautiful part of this stage. The babbles your babies share are their way of communicating with us, and they are always such a joy to experience. When we respond with eye contact and clear language, it creates meaningful back and forth conversations, even without full words yet. This is also a sensitive period for language, which means your babies are absorbing everything they hear. At home, I encourage lots of reading and using clear, real words when speaking with them. It takes the same effort for a child to learn “dog” as it does “woof woof,” so offering the correct language helps build a strong foundation for communication.
A few friendly reminders for our classroom:
Please label everything your child brings, including clothing, food containers, and bottles, with their first and last name. This is a requirement per DHS and helps us keep everyone’s belongings organized and safe.
For children who are beginning to take steps, please bring a pair of shoes that can stay at school so they can continue practicing throughout the day.
Thank you for trusting us to be part of your child’s early journey. It is truly an honor to grow alongside them.
💛 Ms. Nadia, Ms. Luz and Ms. Lucy
Butterfly
Dear Butterfly Familia, 🦋
Happy April! It’s hard to believe how quickly this school year is flying by. As we move toward the end of the year, we’ve been reflecting on just how much the children have grown. It has been such a joy watching their independence develop, their confidence grow, and their unique personalities truly shine. In our toddler classroom, we see this every day—through their choices, their problem-solving, their kindness toward one another, and the pride they take in their work.
This month, one of our favorite activities has been baking together. We’ve been making Cinnamon Raisin Bread, and the children have absolutely loved it. From measuring ingredients to mixing and pouring the batter, they were fully engaged in every step. Baking in the classroom is such a meaningful Montessori experience—it builds practical life skills, strengthens focus and coordination in a hands-on way. Most importantly, it brings so much joy.
If you’d like to recreate this at home, you can absolutely make it your own. You can substitute the raisins with nuts, or leave them out entirely depending on your preference.
Thank you for sharing your wonderful children with us and for being such an important part of our Butterfly Familia. Watching them grow this year has been such a gift.
With love,
Miss Daisy & Miss Rebecca 💗
Cinnamon Raisin Bread Recipe
Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
¾ cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 large egg (room temperature)
1 cup buttermilk
¼ cup olive oil
¼ cup raisins (optional or can be substituted with nuts, or omitted)
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
Directions
Preheat oven to 350°F.
In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda, salt, sugar, and cinnamon.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg, buttermilk, and olive oil.
Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir just until combined.
Fold in the raisins (or your preferred substitute).
Pour batter into a greased 8x4-inch loaf pan.
Bake for 55–60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Let cool for about 10 minutes, then remove from pan and cool completely on a wire rack.
Enjoy!
Hummingbird
Dear Hummingbird familia,
The month of April has flown by so fast, and we are almost at the end of the semester! Since the weather has been so warm/hot, the children have been practicing serving themselves water independently. First, they bring their glass cup to the table and then retrieve the glass water pitcher from the tray on the counter. Depending on the children’s height, some can reach the water dispenser button, while others need to use a small step stool. The children fill the pitcher with water, carry it to the table, and sit down. At times, a group of children all drink water at the same time, so they practice passing the pitcher gently to others, and sometimes they offer to pour water for others, too.
On the food prep shelves, the children had the opportunity to practice peeling oranges, grating cinnamon, and spreading sun butter on crackers. An exciting part of the cinnamon grating was that after the child grated the stick, we all got to enjoy smelling the scent together; the smiles on their faces said it all. The children had the option to enjoy tasting the pieces of oranges/crackers with sun butter they prepared or to save them in the refrigerator. If they chose to save the food prep, then we would share it during lunchtime as a community. When we share a community snack, we pass around the bowl with tongs, and each child serves themselves one piece and passes the bowl to the next friend.
Lastly, we are eager to host our “show me night” on Wednesday, April 29, 2026. Your child will have the chance to show you their favorite “works” around the classroom. Parents and children can take this opportunity to spend quality time together, while your toddler shares the work they have learned throughout the school year. We will be there to support you and your child and to educate parents on the materials we use to support your child’s development. We are looking forward to seeing you there!
Thank you for all your support and trust,
Ms. Kat and Ms. Lenni
Squirrel
Happy April families!
This month of April was yet another busy month in the Squirrel environment, it was so great to meet with you all for conferences, the Creo Carnival was so much fun, and we continue to support and observe the children to best support their individual developmental needs.
As part of our role in the environment as Montessori guide, we can best support the children by providing the freedom to explore their environment. Which can be a bit of a misconception.
We allow the child to explore their environment within the boundaries the environment sets. Every child needs to learn through their own experiences and natural consequences just how we all learn in life. There are clear set boundaries we establish such as you may not hurt yourself, others, or the environment. As the child gains more independence, he gains more confidence which comes from having freedom of choice. As you give freedom you must always follow it with limits, or the child will act in response to not knowing what to do because they have too much freedom.
“Limits can be compared to the railroads, without rails the train can’t go from one point to the other, the rails keep the train from derailing.” Silvia Singh
As adults we need to remember to implement the limits in the moment. The child at this age lives in the present and will not remember or care about what they did. It is important to offer realistic choices to the child, and we may not offer something we do not have.
A reminder SHOW ME NIGHT will take place on Wednesday, April 29th from 5:30–6:30 PM. This special evening gives your child the opportunity to become the teacher! Please bring your child to their classroom, where they will show you some of their favorite lessons and materials.
Warmly,
Morgan and Alina
