February 2024
Honeybee
Happy February, Honeybee familia!
Now that the buzz has settled and we are all back into the groove of things, we are happy to see everyone enjoying the new and updated works inside the classroom!
The weather is warming up and we want to enjoy it to the fullest! The outdoor environment (ODE) is a great resource for the children to connect with nature while still engaging with material-based lessons. The ODE serves as a natural extension of the classroom, giving the child opportunity to explore their sensorial curiosities.
“The child has a different relation to his environment from ours… the child absorbs it. The things he sees are not just remembered; they form part of his soul.”
-Dr. Maria Montessori, The Absorbent Mind p.56
We will slowly begin to send home any warmer clothes that we may have in the baskets to accommodate for the fluctuating temperatures. Jackets may still be sent of course, but usually when we visit our outdoor environment or take walks around campus, the weather is much warmer than it is in the morning. Please dress/send in clothes that allow for freedom of movement and will not cause obstruction. For example, while footie pajamas are warm and cozy, they might take away the opportunity for the child to feel the sensation of their feet on the ground. ☺️
This second half of the school year will pass by quickly, so watch out for all the upcoming events we have!
March 8 – Half Day for ALL school
March 11-15 – Spring Break, All/All in session
March 19 – Nido & Toddler Social (look out
March 29 – Half Day for ALL school
April 1 – School CLOSED for all students
April 9 – Nido Community Meeting
As always, please do not hesitate to reach out with questions, comments, or just to say hi! You can reach Ms. Susan at Susan@creoschool.org or Nido@creoschool.org. Thank you for making our community as amazing as it is!
With love,
The Honeybee Team
Ms. Susan, Ms. Maria, and Ms. Roseanna 💌
Butterfly
Happy February to all and much love & peace to everyone!
It is great to continue the new year with a full classroom. We have so many students and so many personalities. It continues to amazes me to watch how our 2-3 year old’s lend a helping hand to the youngest and newest of the group just as we, as adults, demonstrate every day.. The humility and selflessness that they give each other comes from within each child; it is not forced and it is not corrected.
We have made a great effort to remind the class to care for our environment and care of self this month. Reminding children our plants, bird, and fish need care just like we do; our plants drink water every day just like we drink water and our fish eat food daily just like we do. We observe the wet table and feeling it is wet, the drips falling off our hand when we touch the wet table makes a bigger difference than just saying it is wet—we bring our senses into it. Making those connections daily reinforces a child to incorporate it into their daily routine without a reminder. Try it at home! Something as small as helping load the dishwasher every night after dinner will begin a daily routine and without asking, your toddler will begin taking the dishes to the dishwasher on her/his own in no time.
Such a bummer that many parents were unable to make it to our last community meeting. Although these sessions are not mandatory, it’s so great to all share our journey in raising our toddlers. Come with questions, hesitations, stories, and all the good and bad to share with other parents; chances are we are all facing similar or exact same issues. IF the timing of these meetings are an inconvenience, I’m open to feedback and see what we can work with to get you more informed of our environment and knowledge of the Infant community world!
Warmly,
Ms. Rebeca and Ms. Daisy
Hummingbird
We started February with our Toilet Learning community meeting. I hope it was informative and educational. In the classroom, we support the children through daily exposure and practice with the skills they need to achieve independence. For example, the children have been exploring our new puzzles, new instruments, and water activities, which in turn support the development of their fine and gross motor skills, hand-eye coordination, and sensory input, which are all needed for toileting.
The food prep activities that the children learned about include peeling and slicing bananas, peeling and slicing carrots, and spreading sun butter on crackers. Some children even tasted/ate the food they prepared. The textures and smells are very inviting, and they love to explore with their mouths. Once the food is prepped, then during lunchtime we pass it around to share with everybody.
Also, please join me in giving a warm welcome to our newest friend, Gabriella, who joined us this month. We look forward to getting to know her more. The children are very eager to have a new friend and have been showing her so much kindness, it's so cute!
After spring break, we will be welcoming parents into the classroom for observations during the morning work period. After each observation, we will have a conference to provide feedback on our observations, learn more about home life, and help answer any questions/comments about your child’s development. Please keep in mind that it is normal for children at the toddler level to stay with mom or dad throughout the observation. Therefore, we recommend that parents observe the way the classroom functions in general and take notice of how their friends are working. As it can provide an idea of how your child works or may eventually learn how to work in the future.
Thank you for all of your support,
Ms. Kat and Ms. Claudia
Squirrel
Hello Squirrel Toddler Parents!
I hope you all had a lovely February filled with lots of love and friendship. This month was eventful in our community as we had a few friends start their toileting journey! As a reminder to please label all belonging with first and last name, we have multiple children with very similar clothing, and we would love to know who they belong to and avoid mix ups.
As a community we support and encourage our younger friends who have started. We see how the older friends remind the younger ones it's time to use the toilet before leaving to go play. We even hear the older friends tell the ones who started “it's ok, you just need to go change” when soiled clothes happen. This process should be done with love, time and respect towards the child. It is normal to have regression, and those should be treated with the same kind of respect, since they are only temporary.
This month we did oatmeal applesauce bars. The children loved making them together!
Here is the recipe!
Oven 350 degrees F for 35 minutes
Ingredients
• 1 cup of applesauce
• 1/2 cup Raisins
• 2 Eggs
• 2 cups oatmeal
• 1 tsp Baking powder
• 1 tsp Cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp Salt
• 2 tsp Vanilla extract
• 1 tbsp Cooking oil
• 1/2 cup Milk
Keep an eye out for our sign-up going out for our upcoming conferences! This time we will be opening our doors to you, so you can observe our environment. Take the time to take in the beauty of our busy day.
The child is a worker and a diligent observer. He looks straight at things; he stares at them for a long time; he is interested in learning all he can about his en
Ms. Nadia and Ms. Bri
