Newsletter / Friday, September 7, 2018

Calendar Listings:

Monday, September 10th

3:15-4:30 Soccer, 6th grade - MS

Tuesday, September 11th

3:15-4:30 Soccer, 3rd grade - 6th grade

3:15-4:30 Cooking Class, K - 3rd grade

Wednesday, September 12th

3:15 - 4:30 Soccer, 6th grade - MS

3:15-4:30 French Class, Ages 8-12

Thursday, September 13th

3:15-4:30 Soccer, 3rd grade - 6th grade

Thursday, September 13th

September Parent Meetings:

All Programs, All Parents

Toddler, Children's House & Lower EL

4:30-5:00 Family Welcome in Lobby

5:00-6:00 Classroom Teacher Presentations

Upper EL and Middle School

5:30-6:00 Family Welcome in Lobby

6:00-7:00 Classroom Teacher Presentations

Friday, September 21st

Peace Day

Pinnacle fun!

Notes from the Head of School

Fair Isn’t Always Equal

One piece of our anti-bias work comes up regularly and has been a focus in some programs at the start of school: we all have differences, and we work to own, acknowledge, and embrace those differences. At each stage of development, students become aware of a new layer, whether it be: speaking ability, skin color, energy level, athletic ability, reading speed, artistic tendencies, etc. Some differences are obvious to others, some are ones students may bring up on their own; one child might not be able to eat certain foods, another might celebrate a holiday less common in the community, have a varied family configuration, or have fewer “toys” than friends, and another might dress differently from their peers. We talk about differences as something natural and common to us all, just as we have things in common, such as the “fundamental needs” discussed in the Lower Elementary curriculum.

In our multi-age classrooms, we have the opportunity to acknowledge many levels of growth and development. And we support/scaffold/help each other in many areas. A graphic from this website Lead, Teach, Grow helps to make this point in a visual way and the Upper Elementary used this as a springboard to a class discussion last week.

The conversation among students that followed included, “For what things do you feel ‘tall’?” and “For what activities do you need a ‘boost’ to help you out?”

Fair isn’t always equal  - Some differences lead us to needing different scaffolding to be successful. That might look different at each plane of development:

We intentionally talk about these differences being natural and appropriate. We never force a child to discuss something about themselves, yet we do encourage them to feel comfortable owning who they are, and feeling comfortable advocating for what they need. If you’d be interested in talking further about this topic, please email me or stop by my office.

September Parent Meeting

All Programs, All Parents!

Call for Students: French and Cooking Classes

We seem to have lots of soccer players. How about some chefs and francophones? We need more enrollment for our French and Cooking classes to run, so please take a second look at these class description and contact the front desk (802 257-0500) to sign up now!

French Class Bonjour, comment ça va?

Wednesdays, 9/12 - 10/31 (8 classes), 3:15-4:30, Ages 8-12, $100

This class is intended for beginners in French as well as those with some knowledge of the language. From learning basic greetings to singing French tunes, there will be plenty of opportunities to open new horizons. Mai oui!!!

Cooking Class Rock and Roll Workshop: A Wrapping Adventure

Tuesdays, 9/11 - 10/30 (8 classes), 3:15-4:30, K-3rd grade, $100

Join your teacher and Culinary Nutrition Expert Joanna Wilson Phillips as you rock and wrap your way through 8 weeks of cooking fun. Get ready to work with traditional flour and corn wraps and tortillas, roll your own dessert sushi, bake a sweet treat roll or two, and create your own unique rolled delicacy as we learn how to use our hands to wrap up our favorite foods. No previous cooking experience require. Please let us know of any allergies when you sign up. We can't wait to rock out to your wrap creations!

If we don't have enough students by Monday morning (9/10), these classes will be cancelled due to low enrollment.

Hilltop Montessori School Store

We are excited for the Fall 2018 online school store! A wonderful way to show your support of Hilltop! Check out the site here .

 

Please share with family members and friends that love to support Hilltop as well.

 

This "Pop-up Shop" is live now through October 1st.  

 

Hilltop Montessori School themed items ball caps, winter hats, sweatshirts, t-shirts, bags and more are available for purchase. These fun Hilltop items also make wonderful holiday gifts! Check it out now, there are new items for colder weather....time is limited.

 

Orders will be completed within 2-4 weeks of the order deadline.  All orders will be bagged and delivered directly to the Hilltop main office for pickup or choose to have your order shipped directly to you.

Most of these items are available in different colors...check out the site for more information.

In the early weeks of a new school year, our primary goal is settling into an established routine. When children know what to expect from their day they feel secure and are free to concentrate. Providing predictable patterns allows children to become more self-confident and self-directed resulting in what Dr. Maria Montessori called normalization. Though it may sound like a call to conformity for those unfamiliar with its meaning, Dr. Montessori meant something very different. She used the term normalization to refer to the process in child development when children find complete freedom in an environment suited to their needs and they thrive. In our effort to pave the way to the eventual normalization of our toddlers, we support their need to explore their new environs and help them to feel successful in doing activities that can be challenging.

We follow a routine that helps children to transition from one activity to the next without hurry and honors their need to do for themselves. After recess children transition inside gradually (a few at a time) allowing the children space to take off outdoor clothing and shoes, put on indoor shoes, wash hands, and set up their lunches at the communal dining table. We talk with each other during the meal and enjoy our food. There is time to practice eating with a fork or spoon and to learn to open and close lunch bags and food containers.

While all of routines are brand new to the 5 children beginning in the Toddler Room this fall, there are 5 seasoned pros who are role models and delight in the joyful and known patterns of the classroom. Soon all 10 toddlers will be dancing and singing with Jay!

Many thanks to the Sellers-Lucy family for donating their popcorn maker to the classroom! It's already been put to good use and provided a fun cooking project for the children this week.

It was wonderful to see a few toddler families at the picnic last weekend at Green Mountain Girls Camp! The next opportunity to gather will be on Thursday, September 13, for the first parent meeting of the school year. We'll gather in the lobby at 4:30 for some light refreshments and then head to the classroom at 5:00 to chat about the school year ahead. Childcare is provided, just sign up at the Front Desk. We hope you'll join us!

Ellie, Amanda, Marco & Sarah

Children's House

Fairness and Equality in the Children’s House

“That’s not fair!”

Children between ages 3-6 are often obsessed with the idea of “fairness”. To them, that means that everyone is always treated equally. While equality may be truly “fair” in some cases, such as when everyone gets one serving of a special snack, there are many times where treating children equality it is often not truly fair. Fairness means giving each student what is individually needed to be successful. Examples of this kind of fairness in the Children’s House include giving different nap environments to different children depending on their individual sleep needs. It also includes having different behavior expectations for children depending on their developmental levels. 

The Montessori classroom provides a fair learning experience for children by having a variety of works available with different levels of difficulty. In addition, even within one work a teacher may individualize instruction to suit a particular child’s needs. For example, a teacher may sit with a young child with a letter-object matching work and emphasize 2 or 3 specific letters and some vocabulary. An older child might use that same work independently with only a quick teacher visit to help with differentiating “b” and “d”. Extensions to different works are also offered as children become ready for them. In combination, these kinds of practices help us to be as fair as we possibly can to all of our students. Please feel free to talk to us about our curriculum and schedule at any time!

Special Note: This is often the season for tearful goodbyes as the children adjust to new teachers and classmates. You can help by establishing a quick goodbye routine (for example, 2 kisses and a wave) and by walking away with confidence. This can be very hard to do when your child is obviously in distress- most of us are parents and have experienced this first hand with our own children! Still, stretching out the transition with multiple goodbyes or with lingering in the parking lot can inadvertently send your child the message that you do not believe he or she will be ok without you. That can actually make it harder for them to trust the teachers and themselves, and lead to more anxiety about drop off. If you are worried about your child, please let us know and we will be happy to send you an update about how they are doing!

Have a great weekend!

The Children's House teachers

Annabel and Athena just having fun!

Elijah works on his letters.

Cooper and Finn look at a book together.

Harper gives Phoebe a lesson on the spindle work.

Asha, Charles, and Isaac learn about the parts of a spider as they work on a nomenclature material.

Cheryl reads "The Color of Us" by Karen Katz.

In addition to math and language lessons in these first two weeks of school, the Lower El had a large group lesson centered around one of our new books, "Kamishibai Man," by Allen Say. Our class won this book at the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Arts, where Patrick and Kerstin attended a workshop on diversity in children's picture books. 

The book features an elderly Japanese man who longs for the days when he was a "kamishibai man," an artist who peddled throughout the city and told his "picture stories" to crowds of children. As television enters the homes of most of his customers, the kamishibai man becomes less popular until, eventually, he gives up his work. Years later, he returns to the changed city, and people re-discover this once-beloved art form. Some of the people in his audience were the same children who used to listen to his stories. 

Lower El explored story elements such as setting and main character through this gentle and beautifully-illustrated book. Other books in our new collection include Maya Angelou's "My Painted House, My Chicken, and Me," and "Drum Dream Girl: How One Girls' Courage Changed Music," by Margarita Engle and Rafael Lopez. We are excited to grow our collection of diverse books, and look forward to introducing them to the class throughout the year. 

Take-home folders should be accompanying your child home today! Please empty out any work and send your child to school on Monday with the empty folder. Finished work will be sent home every Friday afternoon, with occasional exceptions. 

Have a good weekend.

Kerstin, Patrick, and Amelia

Upper Elementary

We are having a wonderful time at Pinnacle. We will be arriving on campus soon if we haven't already. We look forward to sharing more about our trip next week. In the meantime, please enjoy these pictures. Have a wonderful weekend.

Middle School

We are back from Upland! We have been working, playing, reading, talking, singing, cooking, eating, and sleeping under our big green tarp. Enjoy a few of our favorite pictures. We will share more next week. Enjoy the weekend.

FREE

Two nice organic crib mattresses; bought new and are now used but in excellent condition. Sealy Nature Cotton Bliss 2-Stage Infant/Toddler Crib Mattresses . Email Joslyn if interested!



Let's support Groundworks Collaborative!

Rest Less. Circus More: 

New England Center for Circus Arts Fall Session Open Now

It’s been just over one year since the doors opened at the custom built trapezium in Brattleboro, Vermont. It is a gem of a facility outfitted with in ground trampoline and indoor flying trapeze inside a massive room with people of all ages upside down and in the air. With growing enrollment alongside an international roster of expert coaches, NECCA has re-developed its programming structures. Fall session begins September 4, offering even more classes for adults and youth who want a non-competitive but aspirational atmosphere to grow stronger, fly higher and learn more. NECCA offers scholarships and payment plans. 

Enroll now at www.necenterforcircusarts.org or call for info at (802) 254-9780.

You are all warmly invited to attend this year's annual Greek Supper to benefit Carry Me Home, Saturday September 22nd, from 5-7pm at St. Michael's Episcopal Church, 16 Bradley Avenue, Brattleboro. Proceeds support Carry Me Home's work collecting and shipping gently used clothes and other necessities for refugees in Greece, and now locally also. Please donate winter clothes in good condition, sizes small or medium ONLY for adults, and all sizes for children; and sturdy winter shoes and socks for all ages. Please place them in the box in the lobby. If you would like to help by donating ingredients for the supper, cooking, serving, setting up, or cleaning up, please sign up on the forms posted near the collection box, or contact Julia or Alix Fedoruk (Hilltop alum and board chair, respectively) at  [email protected]

The fall session of the Brattleboro Women’s Chorus will begin on September 5th and 6th with open rehearsals for any women or girls over age ten who would like to try out the chorus without obligation. It's a great chance to hear the songs we will perform this fall.

Rehearsals are Wednesday evenings, beginning September 5th, from 6:30 – 8:30 at All Souls Church in W. Brattleboro or Thursday mornings, starting September 6th, from 10:00 – noon at the Brattleboro Music Center, near Memorial Park. Singers may attend either or both. The chorus will be preparing for concerts on November 17th and 18th, and performing in these is always optional.

There are student and family-pair rates as well as financial aid, and all registration information is available on the website, BrattleboroWomensChorus.org , or by calling 802-254-8994.