 May has been a beautiful month to observe all of the activity outside our window and to see all the plants grow! It has also been wonderful to feel the sunshine on our faces as it pours into the classroom on the nice days we have been having.
To start May off, we enjoyed a gorgeous day in the sun at Farrel McWhirter Park for the spring infant and toddler meet and greet. All the animals were out enjoying the day as well, so we got to see all of our resident barnyard friends! Thank you to all who joined us. We are looking forward to seeing them again soon! In the classroom, our friends enjoyed working with several put and take works that have used bracelets, clothes pins, and different shapes. The favorite has been the put and take with the large open and close lid. Friends of all ages have enjoyed working with one or sometimes both small hula hoops that we have. It is always so interesting to see how each child engages with them. During circle time, our friends are all about the ”Up and Down" song! Even before we start the song, some of our older friends are starting to lift their arms above their heads in anticipation of what will come next. You have never heard such infectious giggles as when we sing this song over and over! We also worked to create a one of a kind gift for our moms using our feet to add a unique touch. We hope you enjoy them as much as we enjoyed making them! Enjoy using them! We welcomed Luca to Ambarino at the start of the month. It has been such a delight to watch his personality emerge as he observes the activity of the room each day. His voice is so delightful to hear when he is amused by something he has seen or heard. We then said bittersweet goodbyes to both Zoe and Parker as they moved up to their respective toddler rooms at the end of the month. Even though they are no longer a part of Ambarino each day, we know they are only a short distance away and we might even be lucky enough to catch a glimpse of them on the playground during the day. We wish them the best of luck as they continue to grow into independent and confident individuals. In June we will work to create a wild gift for our dads. We can't wait to show you what we've come up with! We also hope to get outside when the weather allows us to enjoy more and be able to feel and see the sun up close and personal! In the classroom we will work with different kinds of fish and marine life as well as experience reading some soft and different textured books. Summer is almost here and we can't wait to see what the next few months will bring in and out of the classroom!
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 Songs of earth and trees,
New discoveries each day. Jumping, laughing friends. The above haiku sums up the major highlights of our circle times and overall work time in the classroom each day this month. Not only is April a celebration of poetry, the earth, and time spent with family and friends, but it was yet another month that passed quickly in the infant room. Each day our friends in Ambarino discovered new works and made more connections about the world around them. These connections are happening in the blink of an eye and each infant is consistently working on so many new things! Everyone is talking and babbling a lot more. During circle time, you can hear the infants “singing” along more to songs and throughout the day talking more with their friends and teachers. At times there can be several conversations going on at once among our youngest of friends. Our older friends are also using so many more words to communicate in the classroom about what their friends are doing and what they see going on in the room. Some of our most popular works this month have been ones that are put and take works where our friends can open and close the lid before getting the items out. In celebration of Earth day, we read Haiku Baby by Betsey Snyder and I Love You, Sun I Love You, Moon written by Karen Pandell and illustrated by Tomie dePaola. We even sand a song about the earth rotating around the sun. The “Apple Tree” song has been a constant hit and some of our older friends are even starting to do some of the hand motions to it. It is also a good song to help incorporate math by counting down from three to zero as the apples fall off the tree. We also started to put a personal touch on a special gift that will be revealed next month. So far it has been a very colorful and interactive adventure. We can’t wait to share it with you! In May we will put the final touches on our special colorful gift before sending it home. The infants will also be working on stacking and knocking down towers of blocks with our older friends and giving our younger friends the opportunity to work with blocks they can touch and feel. We will read new books about farm animals and colorful cars. One of our new books we will be looking at is all about a certain caterpillar. We will also talk about farm animals and the different sounds they make. And of course, there will also be new put and take works to explore. Enjoy the longer days and the nice weather when it sticks around to take advantage of!  The month of March was a busy one as many of our friends discovered new ways to move their bodies around the room and discovered new sounds they could make with their voices!
We enjoyed working with several colorful works in the classroom. A favorite work this month was a large peg work with blue, green and yellow pegs that fit into a fish shaped board. The older infants have enjoyed using this particular work and also discovered the pegs can connect together. The younger infants have interacted with the pegs and board separately. They have enjoyed watching when adults help the older infants see how the pegs fit into the board. Other favorite works with month have been a small shamrock zipper bag, pop beads, a clothes pin put and take work and colored stacking cups. Popular books this month have been ones about dogs. We spent a lot of time looking at Go, Dog Go! and Big Dog…Little Dogboth by P.D. Eastman and The Babies and Doggies Book by John Schindel and Molly Woodward. While reading it, we spend a lot of time talking about what dogs say. “The Wheels on the Bus” has been both a popular song to sing and book to look at. It has been neat to watch the older infants start to mimic the different hand motions for songs they enjoy to listen to during circle time. The younger infants are becoming more interested in listening and watching songs during circle time. Each time, they come closer and closer to the action with big grins on their faces. Now that spring is here and the weather is gradually getting nicer, we hope to be able to get outside more to see the new colors that are outside and enjoy the sunshine when it comes out to play. Even though the sun has been peeking out more, there are some days that it is still pretty chilly outside, so until the warmer weather sticks around for an extended period of time, we will still wear layers when we get a chance to get out. Next month, we will spend time talking about rabbits and hopefully get to see some of our resident MCH rabbits around campus. For the times we cannot be outdoors, we have books to read about them and pictures in the classroom to point to and talk about. We will also look at a special book of haikus that have gorgeous colored illustrations of different things in nature in preparation for Earth day towards the end of April. We will also start working on a special project for some pretty special people in our lives that should be fun to work on and later share with everyone. Enjoy all that spring has to offer ...between the rain drops and showers!  February came and went before we knew what happened! It was a month filled with lots of smiles, laughter, and time spent with friends!
Works that connect together and can be taken apart have been very popular. We introduced pop beads of many different colors at the start of the month. The older infants love to spend time connecting 2-3 together and then try to take them apart. The younger infants spent time exploring 1 or 2 beads at a time with their hands and often their mouths. At the end of the month, a large peg work has been a fun, and at times, challenging work for our older friends to use with the peg board or just connecting the pegs together. A red mystery box was a popular work among all friends to explore this month. It contained 6 different red items of all different shapes, sizes, and textures. The one item that was almost always in use from the box was a red giraffe that squeaked. To celebrate Valentine's Day, we all wore our best shades of red and pink, sang "The More We Get Together," and read Happy Valentine's Day, Mouse! The infants also helped with a Valentine's Day craft by posing for a picture for a "whaley" sweet card for mom and dad. In March, we will explore several rainbow colored works, talk aboat all things green and enjoy watching for the first signs of spring outside. It will be nice to spring forward at the start of March to be able to enjoy daylight for longer periods of time.  January was a month of hellos and goodbyes. We welcomed Arden and Joby to Ambarino. It has been wonderful getting to know them and see all that they have to add to the classroom. We also said "see you soon" to Brian as he moved into his new toddler classroom. It is always such a nice surprise to see his infectious smile outside the window facing the playground!
Our friends enjoyed showing off their new dance moves during circle time. Occasionally our older friends can be seen dancing at times when there is no music. There is also lots of clapping to be heard and smiles witnessed when the infants are expressing themselves in these moments. It is such an honor to witness the delight on their faces! Favorite works this month were a large and small nesting dolls. Each child interacts with them differently. Younger friends have been seen manipulating them with their hands and occasionally tasting them with their mouths. Older infants have been interested in opening and closing them. "Put and take" works have been daily favorites that everyone has used in some capacity. As always, Ambarino is a very busy place with each infant in various stages of movement. In February we will use many works of red and pink hues and talk about hearts of all shapes and sizes. The infants will help with a unique art project. On Valentine's Day we will read a special book about friendship while wearing our best red or pink threads too.  December always seems to come and go before we know it!
We spent the month interacting with several different red and green works. A popular one was a tin slot box the infants put thin red and green blocks into. They also worked with red, green, and white blocks that were stacked over and over again. The infants lent their feet to help create a delightful painting of a snowman and a tree for a one of a kind holiday gift. Some of our friends were very interested in the process while others did not like getting their feet tickled by the paint brush, but smiled once they saw their footprints on the canvas! We hope you enjoyed the snowy gift as much as we enjoyed making it for you. We also welcomed Makenna to our room. She adds more smiles and laughter to Ambarino each day! We also said see you soon to Emerson as she moved into her new toddler classroom right before we went on winter break. Even though it is always bittersweet to see our oldest friends move on, we know we will still see them when they are out on the toddler playground. In January, we will spend time working with containers we can put objects into and open and close. We will also talk about big and small objects. We hope you enjoyed the holidays with family and friends! Happy New Year!  November always feels like such a short month because it comes and goes before we know it!
This month our friends in Ambarino spent time working with jars they are working to open and close. Watching them use this work in different ways has been such a pleasure to witness. Our older friends have been working to get the lids off, and attempt to get them back on. Our other friends attempt to get the lids off as well and have also discovered the jars make different sounds on different surfaces. They have also enjoyed working with any other type of container they find around the room that they can manipulate by themselves. Other popular works this month were a soft cat stringing work, the ball tracker, and a peg work. Favorite books of the month included This Little Turkey by Aly Fronis, Gobble Gobble by Rodger Priddy, and Five Silly Turkeys by Salina Yoon. Many of our friends have discovered new forms of mobility, which has taken exploration of the classroom to a new level! It has been such a joy to see the looks of accomplishment on our friends faces when they discover they can move in different ways and are so proud of themselves. In December we will be working on a special holiday gift, working with several new red and green works around the classroom and singing winter themed songs. We hope you have been enjoying time with family and friends as the holiday season continues!  October was a busy month! Our older friends took a walk to see a firetruck the local fire department brought to campus. It was so nice of the firefighters to visit us at the beginning of the month!
To continue the firetruck theme in the classroom,we read books that featured firetrucks, sang a firetruck song, and spent time engaging with a basket of fire themed items. Inside was a squeaky firetruck, and chunky wooden puzzle pieces of a firefighter, fire hydrant, and a Dalmatian. All of our friends loved engaging with this work for most of the month. Now that fall is in full swing, we have been enjoying many pumpkins and gourds that have been donated to our classroom! Our friends have spend lots of time exploring them with their hands and sometimes their mouths. Our oldest friends have been interested in picking up the larger squash and smaller pumpkins and carrying them for short distances. Our younger friends have been more interested in feeling the different textures of the pumpkins and gourds with their hands and occasionally their mouths. From time to time the smaller pumpkins would be used to experiment with making large sounds on different surfaces around the classroom. Everyone enjoyed looking at pumpkin books and singing pumpkin songs. Some of the big hits were Five Little Pumpkins illustrated by Dan Yaccarino and My Pumpkin by Lily Karr. Most of our songs involved counting pumpkins in one way or another. It has been so much fun watching everyone interact with all of the different jack-o'-lantern works around the classroom! A popular work that all of our friends enjoy using during the day is our floor drum. Each friend engages with it in their own way. Some like to hear how loud they can drum with their hands, while others have discovered they can use their feet to play a beat. Sitting and kicking their feet has proved to be a very fun and productive way to play the drum. Jumping songs have been a big hit during circle time and often friends will sign jump when they want Ms. Sara to sing a jumping song; particularly "Jumping Froggies". Towards the end of the month we said "see you soon" to Isabel as she moved on to her toddler classroom. It has been nice to see her stop by the window to peek in at her old friends when she is on the playground. We welcomed our newest friend to Ambarino, Teigen. It has been such fun to get to know her and listen to her sweet voice as she chatters away. In November turkeys will be the talk of Ambarino! We will read books about them and sing a special turkey song. We will also talk about leaves that we see outside on the trees and ground as well as leaves we see inside the classroom. Our gourds and pumpkins will still be a big part of the room is we continue to use our larger pumpkins as a posting work. Be sure to bundle up as the temperatures are getting cooler around the Pacific Northwest! Happy Fall!  We enjoyed the last few weeks of summer before welcoming fall and all that the season brings us in the Pacific Northwest. So many of our friends found new ways to move around the room! They have really enjoyed this new freedom to explore the world around them and all of the different works in the room. Circle time allows our friends more ways to move their bodies as well. A favorite song towards the end of the month was "Jumping Froggies". It not only incorporates music and movement, but a little sign language as well. So if you see your child tapping a finger or two up and down on the palm of their hand, they are trying to tell you they would like to jump.
We recently received some new sparkle sticks and our friends have enjoyed using them in a put and take work over and over again. It is such a delight to see the joy on their faces when they complete this work from start to finish. Object permanence works have also been a big hit in Ambarino! Temporarily hiding something and then finding it again is something we find ourselves doing a lot during the day. This can be seen regularly with games of peek-a-boo and the "uh oh" game when a work is dropped off the changing table and then located to repeat this activity over and over. Knowing a lost item/object can be found over and over again is a delight for everyone, from to our youngest to our oldest friends. Our object permanence box and ball tracker and great examples of this. At the end of the month, we spent a few hours at Ferrel McWhirter park enjoying the cool fall weather. As always, the animals were entertaining and it was wonderful to enjoy the company of the infant toddler community members who joined us. In October we will be talking about orange pumpkins, reading lots of fall themed books, and looking at and talking about fall leaves that we see outside the classroom. We will have a visit from the local fire department and to prepare for this, we will learn a fire truck song, look at books about firetrucks and get a chance to work with some fire fighter works. Enjoy the cooler weather when we still have some rain free days before fall weather really settles in! May was a busy month for our friends in Ambarino! We worked on creating a beautiful gift for Mother’s Day. Our friends lent their feet to help create this one of a kind piece. We welcomed Brian to our room. It has been so much fun getting to know him and watch him explore any work that he is able to crawl after. We also said good bye to Zoë as she moved up to her toddler classroom. Even though we won’t see her as much as we used to, we know we will still catch glimpses of her as she goes past the window on the playground.
Some popular works this month were the straw put ‘n take container, a basket of different open and close containers and soft cubes. Our older friends have been practicing packing their work away when they are done with it. Sometimes they can even be seen helping their younger friends by packing their work away as well, even when they aren’t done with it. We have been helping the older friends to give the work back to their younger friends. It has been nice to see our older friends helping around the classroom. All of our friends have been very vocal! It has been wonderful to hear their voices and all of the chatter that has been going on! It is always nice to hear how each child is finding their voice and discovering how to use it. In June we will be welcoming more new friends to the room and working on creating a one of a kind Father’s Day gift. This time of year is always bittersweet as we say goodbye to our friends who are moving on and welcoming new friends into the room. Combine that with wrapping up the school year and then getting ready for summer- it is a wonderful mix of excitement and a slight bit of frenzy all at the same time. Thank you as always for sharing your children with us. It is such an honor to watch them learn and grow each day. Enjoy the nice weather that continues to tease us as we head towards summer! Sara Davies Lead Teacher, Ambarino |
Ms. SaraEl Salon Ambarino Lead Teacher Archives
June 2018
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Montessori Children's House
5003 218th Ave. NE Redmond, WA 98053 Phone: 425-868-7805 [email protected] For Records Requests, please reach out to [email protected]. |
Founded in 1987
Fully Accredited in Infant - Elementary II
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