Students, parents and faculty enjoy the last All School Gathering (ASG) of the year!
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Hilltop Montessori School's mission is for students to practice responsible independence in a caring community of curious, critical learners and thoughtful citizens.
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Next Week:
June 3-5
- Middle School Upland Odyssey
June 6
- Field Day 1pm (Parent participation/ help is welcome!)
- Bead Ceremony 2pm (Parents welcome to attend ceremony)
- Last Day of School (TP,CH,LE,UE) No Aftercare
June 7
- Last day of school (MS)
- Middle School Graduation, 5:30-8pm
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Important Future Dates:
June 17-28
July 8-26
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Notes from The Head of School
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Making Bathrooms Safer Spaces!
As you may have read about or heard, the Equity & Anti- Bias Workgroup is underway! They have had several meetings with parents, staff, and Middle School students participating in the discussions. I was thrilled to hear that the Taskforce’s first recommendation is something we’ve wanted to address for some time, and that their proposal is an easy one to roll out for next school year: although the Arts Barn is the newest building, it is the only building with gendered bathroom design and signage. We’ve wanted to ensure that all students, staff, parents, and visitors feel safer and welcome using the bathroom that works for them.
Have you seen the informational signs in the Arts Barn bathrooms recently? We recently posted signs that highlight that "We realize sharing a bathroom could feel new and different — we appreciate your understanding”, while explaining the negative impact of bathrooms labeled with only “Women" or “Men" as options. Instead, the message we want to send is that "It’s important that we proactively work to create safer spaces whenever and wherever we can. We realize sharing a bathroom could feel new and different — we appreciate your understanding.” This message is supported by the 2017 National School Climate Survey conducted by the
Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network
(now more inclusively referred to as GLSEN) which found that “4 in 10 students avoided gender-segregated spaces in school because they felt unsafe or uncomfortable."
After much discussion, the Equity and Anti-bias Workgroup settled on a recommendation of changing the gender binary Arts Barn bathroom signs to read “all genders” with a pictographic of a toilet and/or a urinal communicating the facilities in the specific bathroom. The administration have a few other solutions in the works too, and will be making the change over summer break. We are looking into options to have the urinal enclosed or replaced with a toilet. If you have any ideas about this, please let me know.
Towards inclusivity,
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Parent Anti-Bias Education
Group
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Hilltop’s Parent Anti-Bias Education Group
Will be offering a
Parenting for Racial Justice Series this Fall
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Hilltop’s Parent Anti-Bias Education group is delighted to announce that we will offer a two-part workshop,
Parenting for Racial Justice
, this coming fall. We are working on setting two dates, likely to be one Sunday afternoon in September and one in October. It will be facilitated by social justice educators and activists Angela Berkfield and Shela Linton of
ACT for Social Justice
, a Brattleboro based group which specializes in
advocacy
,
consulting
, and
training
on
social justice issues
.
These sessions will provide the foundation for an ongoing program of monthly discussions over the 2019-2020 school year.
The program will be open to parents, grandparents, guardians, special friends, and staff/teachers involved in the lives of Hilltop students: past, present, and future.
Once we have set dates for these workshops we will ask that you pre-register, and plan to attend both workshops and hope that you will continue with the discussion group after these two workshops. We anticipate offering the discussion groups on a schedule that provides both day and evening options, most likely once a month.
These two sessions will be geared to understanding how racism shows up in us and in the environments we live, work, learn, and play in. It will be a wonderful time of learning together. We hope it will ignite ideas for how to expand and deepen this work to have a positive impact on families, the schools our children attend, and our larger communities.
“In this particular historical moment we can clearly see racism and white supremacy in the world around us. What we often have a hard time working on is noticing racism is our own thinking and actions. It is easier on our hearts to think that racism is 'out there' instead of 'in here’. ACT’s parenting workshops support caregivers in doing the important “in here” work so that a culture of understanding racism and taking action for racial justice can be established in everything from personal thoughts and interpersonal interactions to organizational policies and school curriculum. The workshops also help participants connect with relevant actions taking place in the community."
-Angela Berkfield
Childcare and light snacks will be provided for the workshops.
A donation of $0 - $250 per workshop session (for these two workshops) is requested to cover facilitator expenses and childcare.
You will be able to pay via check, cash or Paypal, online or in person at the first event. We will provide a sliding scale guide to help you decide what to give.
Please reach out to
Elizabeth Fisher
(Upper Elementary Parent) at
Email here
, or by texting her cell: (860)597-2900 and providing your name and email for further information and registration materials. Once we have the specific Sundays in the fall chosen, we will get more information out to the group.
We will need a minimum of 8 people to advance register by August 1
- to move forward with these plans. So please get us your name and we will get you registration materials right away.
We are excited to do this work with you!
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Last All School Gathering (ASG
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Things to continue practicing with your child over the summer:
1) Toilet learning! Wherever your child is in the process, there's plenty to work on - wearing underwear, using the potty at regular intervals, wiping, and handwashing.
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2) Dressing and Shoeing! Putting on their own shoes and clothes, and, most importantly, adults giving children time to do these things independently.
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3) Table manners! Basics like eating with utensils (when applicable), sitting while eating, chewing with mouths closed, using a napkin and mealtime conversations.
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4) Supporting emotional growth! Instead of trying to prevent uncomfortable feelings, support your child in learning some coping techniques like taking deep breaths, naming feelings, and asking for a hug or a little space. Tantrums are not uncommon for small children. Guiding your child through these frustrations (even if it's caused by a limit you've set), will help the child to learn resilience and self-regulation.
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(Ellie's daughter was about 2 years old when this photo was taken. She really didn't want to get buckled in her carseat. They made it through that tantrum and plenty of others, and next year she'll be driving!)
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5) Reading! 20 minutes a day with your child.
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6) Cleaning up! Whether it's throwing their dirty clothes in the laundry basket or using a dustpan and brush to sweep up mud tracked indoors, support children's independence in looking after their home environment.
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7) Fun! See the beauty and wonder in a toddler's point of view. And enjoy each other.
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Have a good weekend.
Ellie, Marco, Sarah & Amanda
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"
My vision of the future is… of individuals passing from one stage of independence to a higher [one], by means of their own activity through their own effort of will, which constitutes the inner evolution of the individual."
—Maria Montessori,
From Childhood to Adolescence
Summer Skills
The end of the school year is fast approaching. As we wrap-up our classroom work and activities, we think about all that has been learned during the past year! There has been so much growth and change. As you settle into your summer activities, keep in mind that
the young brain has much work to do to retain all of the wonderful skills during this school year.
Some skills never go away, and others need practice. Naturally, the summer is a fun time to explore other fun and exciting things. Our request for practicing skills is not to be a negative chore or have a “homework” feel. Rather it can be weaved into your child’s day as a break from all the other fun and part of a daily routine!
Academic skills such as
language (letter/sound)
and
math skills
are often the first to slowly fade. There are a host of resources online (including apps) that help with this practice.
To better retain these skills, so that less review needs to be done in September, we recommend the following:
- Letter/ Sound games (such as bingo)
- Clapping-out syllables in words (noticing the parts of a word)
- Playing rhyming games.
- Reading, Reading, Reading… Read to your child everyday!
- Counting games: focus on 1-10 for your 3 and 4 year-old children, and beyond 10 for your rising Older!
- Counting groups of objects (“How many cars do you see?”)
- Noticing language and math in the world: Signs, menus, time, exchanging money, etc!
Social and personal skills are also hugely important. We do notice that basic grace and courtesy can be lost in the shuffle of summer activities. Here are a few things you can practice:
- Patience. Waiting can be a big challenge, but it is a life-skill that will always be used. For example: if you are having a conversation, allow your child to wait until you are done, instead of interrupting.
- Manners: “Please”, “Thank you” and sitting while eating. Again, these are life-long skills! A good place to practice is at a restaurant or a store. Give your child the opportunity to thank the server, or the clerk. You’ll notice how well this is received!
- Dressing self. If you do not need to rush out the door in the morning, take the time to practice getting ready: putting on basic clothing, including socks and shoes.
- Caring for own things and cleaning-up. Toys get put away… before moving on to something else!
- Take-on a daily job (feeding a pet, setting the table, watering plants).
- Set expectations, be consistent and follow through.
For additional ideas for Chores and appropriate child involvement at home, please visit:
Have a wonderful summer and we look forward to seeing you and your child (or children) soon!
Warm Regards,
The Willow Room (Jonathan and Rebecca) and The Birch Room (Cheryl and Mariam)
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Summer is a great time for popsicles, bike rides, trips to the swimming hole, and so many other great treats and activities. It is also, however, the season of mosquitoes, ticks, and, quite often, another pest known as the
"summer slump."
This common nuisance can be repelled by regular practice in the areas of
reading
,
writing
, and
math
, in order to retain and grow the skills your child has worked so hard to achieve all year.
The following are a few of our suggestions on how to help:
- Keeping a journal,
- Writing postcards or letters,
- Shaping lower case letters with playdough,
- Tracing letters in a tray of sand/rice/beads
These are all ways to practice writing and letter formation (depending on the ability and age of your child).
- Keep reading to your child, and have them read to you!
Having book discussions can be interesting and helpful to their emerging/growing reading comprehension skills. "Where does this story take place?;" "Who is the main character?" ;"I wonder why she did that?"; "How do you think he feels, knowing that he has to battle a dragon?" are the types of questions that invite your child to talk about what they're reading, and check whether they are understanding the text.
There are so many great sight word activities on the internet, involving hands-on work and games to learn these essential words like:
- Stacking cups sight words
- Sight word fly swat
- Sight word go fish
You can find more activities like this at
sightwords.com
, and there are many other sites to visit for ideas, too.
The instant recall of math facts is a foundational skill upon which mathematical literacy is based.
In Lower El, we expect:
- Entering second graders to be instantaneous with addition facts and possessing a working knowledge of subtraction.
- Entering third graders should have mastery of their addition and subtraction facts, and have some knowledge of multiplication.
- Entering fourth graders multiplication facts should be automatic; if this is in place, division is usually not as difficult to master.
A few ways to make this process active and fun are:
- Bouncing a ball while saying facts
- Jumping rope
- Playing "War" with a deck of cards
Of course, regular old flash cards can work, too. If you'd like to hand-tailor the facts for your child, sites like
www.mathfactcafe.com
(a worksheet generator site) are helpful.
Lastly, but perhaps most importantly, include your child in the running of the household, if they are not already involved. Chores are important to help children develop that growing independence and sense of responsibility, and to feel that they are contributing to the wellbeing of their families. This translates very nicely into their classrooms, where we can always identify the people who are accustomed to helping out!
We hope these ideas help to prepare you for a summer filled with
fun
,
adventure
, and the
joys of learning
! Thank you for being partners with us in helping your child flourish.
What follows are some pictures from Thursdays Olders' Outing on
Bald Mountain
in West Brattleboro. While they enjoyed time outside together, their younger friends got to spend the morning with Wendy!
Enjoy the warmth and sunshine this weekend.
Kerstin, Patrick, and Amelia
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Henry does snake game addition.
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Layla and Hazel in quiet concentration.
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Uri works on his book if vertebrates and invertebrates.
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Half the gang taking a mid-morning break outdoors.
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Olders work on their Moving Up speeches.
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Jade, Esme, and Leo return from Bald Mountain.
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It is important to keep reading and math skills up during the summer. Please continue with the expectation of each student reading at least 20 minutes a day! This can be on their own or with you. Also, math fact practice should continue. Wouldn’t it be great to come back to school in the fall with those mastered? With math facts at hand, Upper Elementary math will come so much faster. Let’s use this summer to get those done!
Keyboarding Over the Summer
If you need a break from sun and summer fun, practice your typing skills! All students who currently have access to Hilltop’s typing program will be able to access it over the summer, and their progress will be saved when we start the next school year. The website is
hilltopmontessori.typingclub.com
.
Here are some pictures from Upper Elementary's 3 Day trip to northern Vermont:
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On Summer Practice
Summer is a great time to regenerate a love of swimming and tree climbing, to feel warm winds and sleep late, but it is also time to keep the mind keen.
Finding a book that brings joy and allows for the exposure to other’s experiences is such an important way to feed the imagination and spark creativity. As Peter Mendelsund says in his insightful book,
What We See When We Read
,
“The rapid proliferation of the image has not kept us from the written word. And we read because books bestow upon us unique pleasures; pleasures films, television, and so on cannot proffer. Books allow us certain freedoms–we are free to be mentally active when we read; we are full participants in the making (the imagining) of a narrative.”
Reading is a practice, something that relies on repetition and perseverance, and within this practice comes pleasure, insight, and ease. It is essential for this practice to continue throughout the summer, so that this active imagining and important training can continue to blossom.
Writing about what one reads adds another important layer to a relationship to a book. It becomes an intimate dialogue where the reader offers time, thought, and integrity to a text. This too is a practice, and the skills required demand frequent use. At the
Middle School level it is
essential that initial skills attained in the structure of expository writing and literary thinking not lay fallow for months. These skills are young and must be nourished. Or to think of it another way, the pathways that allow for the clear, concise, and revelatory expression of ideas through writing must be continually traveled.
So we read and write in the summer and we read and write in the winter, and we learn how to find order and wonder in text and in our written thoughts. We learn to let the act of writing become part of our practice of thinking. We let language have a role in the discovery of ideas.
Over the summer, Hilltop Montessori Middle School students commit to reading at least two books, of different genres, and writing a thematic five paragraph essay on both of them. This commitment keeps the practice of actively reading and writing alive and reinforces previously acquired skills.
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Paul calibrates his hairdryer pingpong ball launcher for Math Bash fun.
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In spite of the soggy weather, Tuesday's Math Bash was a hit. UE students and 8th graders, along with UE and MS staff, played a range of fun carnival-inspired math games in the gym and theater. A special thanks to the many parents who showed up to support their 7th graders and join in on the fun.
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THANK YOU
to
Hazel Pizza
for providing delicious pizzas for the students and staff every week! Sccccrrrrumptious! We still and always will ♡
🍕!!
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THANK YOU
to Michael Alexander and his company
Recycle Away
for helping us upgrade our trash, recycling, and composting containers! We are so grateful and excited about this new system which will help us stay clean, organized, and better to the environment.
♻️♻️♻️
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Calling all students (and their parents), here is an opportunity to march in this year's Strolling of the Heifer's Parade.
The Strolling of the Heifers Parade will occur on
Saturday, June 8, 2019.
This year’s theme is “Farmers are our Heroes." The Strolling of the Heifers Parade is looking for future heroes by asking our young heroes and their parents to march in the parade.
Register your Smallest Superheroes in the parade and salute our farmers! Children are encouraged to dress as their favorite hero. No Problem if you do not have a costume, they will have some capes and masks to share for our caped crusaders.
Parents and Children will need to be registered using this link:
www.strollingoftheheifers.com/kids-unit
, if you plan on marching this year. The Strolling of the Heifers committee is organizing this event. This is not a Hilltop sponsored parade group.
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Julia Fedoruk '18 and Alix Fedoruk, outgoing
Hilltop Board Chair
, would like to thank everyone who has made donations to
Carry Me Home's
clothing drive for refugees over the last year. We are finishing up our work for the season soon, and will be back in the fall. Before we go, though, we are having a fabulous Coffeehouse Concert on June 1st, with a cappella music from around the world, sung by the talented local group House Blend. You can see the info
below
, or on our Facebook event page at
Here
. Please
come!
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This event is a fundraiser for Brattleboro Area Hospice as they celebrate 40 years! A wonderful opportunity to support an amazing organization!
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"Attention is the Beginning of Devotion"
-Mary Oliver
POETRY, BOOKMAKING AND ART WORKSHOP:
Once again a summer workshop combining poetry, bookmaking and art, will be held at
Ann Gengarelly’s Poetry Studio
. As always, young people will have the opportunity to write and draw in a natural setting with woodlands and beautiful gardens.
Workshops are divided into two groups; a younger group and and an older group. Each student participates in a poetry and bookmaking/art class each day.
Classes are kept small in order to create an individualized and intimate setting where creativity flourishes.
Poetry classes will be taught by Ann Gengarelly who has been a poet-in -the-schools for over twenty-five years. Bookmaking and Art Design will be led by Tony Gengarelly who teaches Art History at Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts.
ONE WEEK INTENSIVE:
AUGUST 19, 20, 22, 23
Students will be accepted on a “first-come, first-serve” basis. If interested call Ann at
802-257-8972
or contact us at
agengar@sover.net
or
a.gengarelly@mcla.edu
.
We welcome students between the age of 7 and 17.
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SO MUCH CIRCUS!
The New England Center for Circus Arts (NECCA) has lots happening this Spring and Summer. Enjoy activities, or just watch a show, there is something for everyone! Tickets and registration open now!
See a Show
Spring Programming includes:
•
June 7 - 9
AS ONE
: ProTrack Year 2 Showcase
Join Summer Camp
NECCA is recognized by the American Youth Circus Organization as an international leader in curriculum development. NECCA’s attention is on teaching to the heart and dreams of every student and meeting them at their own level of fitness and aspiration. Summer Camps include Trapeze, Juggling, trampoline, clowning, low wire, unicycling and more!
- Age 3 – 5 Half Day Camp / Age 5 – 17 Full Day Camp
- Camps run weekly June 24 – August 23
- Special Teen Camp and Advanced Camp, too!
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New England Youth Theatre
is celebrating its 20th year with lots of great summer programs for kids ages 6-19! From Shakespeare to Improv to Melodrama along with our Design and Technical program, we've got something for everyone, even those who prefer to remain behind the scenes! Visit
www.neyt.org
to learn more about all we have to offer to make this your Best Summer Ever!
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