The Summit Express
A community newsletter
December, 2008
Friends pose for a picture after our recent teddy bear parade...
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A Word on First Schools
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Our nation seems ever more focused on getting into the
"right" college, even as those colleges fail to address some of our society's
most pressing needs. And college coffers
continue to expand (the top eight colleges in the Boston area have accrued a
combined endowment of $50 billion), even though they continue to teach
as they always have, with renowned professors addressing overcrowded lecture
halls, and the few attempts at any sort of real educational contact being made
by dutiful, but largely untrained, graduate students.
We've
probably all seen the bumper stickers that proclaim it will be a great day when
the Air Force has to hold a bake sale - and there are abundant funds for
children's education. I confess that I
wish colleges had to have a few more bake sales, and that our nation's alums turned their attention more fully to the education of the young.
Please
forgive the soapbox, but I have spent my
entire adult life in education. And yes,
I confess, I have spent it trying to make a difference to the children with
whom I have worked. I have taught all
the way through, from kindergarten to seniors in high school. And here, at this point in my career, I have
chosen to do what I can to make the most lasting difference I can in the lives
of my students. I have come to work on behalf of
Montessori education, because, more than anywhere else, it is here that the value
of service to others, the methodology of conflict resolution, and the true
impact of individualization is really being practiced. And I have chosen a school for the very
young, because - and every one of us knows this, despite the larger societal
fixation on college - these are the years that make the true, telling
difference in the direction and nature of a child's life.
By the time they attend college, our students, your children, will be almost fully formed as learners, with their chief focus being the declaration of a major. Their values will long since have
been instilled. Their inclination and
ability to work through conflict and to reach out to those in need will have
been forged, not in these halls of higher learning, but years before at home,
and in the school where they first began to grow
in the world. For it was in those
warm, early classrooms where they were first exposed to teachers who saw them, who
knew them, who met them where they were as individuals - and, most importantly, did all they could to
bring out the best in them. Despite the
disproportionate, even misallocated preoccupation with the final years of
education, every one of us knows that it is the early years that have the most
profound and enduring influence. And
certainly you, as parents who have found this school and invested in your
child's early education - when there were inexpensive, adequate alternatives -
know it better than anyone. That it is
in these early, utterly impressionable years that children experience - or fail
to experience - the mighty, attractive radiance of learning, the
confidence-building power of mastery, the impenetrable value of respect, and
the compounding educational advantage of a truly individualized
curriculum. Never again will intimacy,
will individualization, will independence matter as they do in these first
years - when a corresponding openness, empathy, and intellectual confidence are
forged.
Written by Richard Eyster |
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Remembering Diane DiCiccio Hoke
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On November 16, Summit Montessori lost a dear, devoted friend: Diane DiCicco Hoke. Diane was a founding parent, an alum mother, a volunteer, a member of the Board of Trustees, and above all else, an exceptional individual. Diane did nothing by halves; she brought her keen intelligence, sense of humor, outspoken frankness, and inspiring passion to all that she did.
Diane's affection and care for Summit started at its inception, when she and her husband Tom chose Summit for their son Jonathan in 1996. During the early years, Diane channeled her talents and generosity, donating the funds and building the first Summit playground. Later, after returning to Summit with daughter Juliana, who graduated from Upper Elementary in 2005, Diane joined the Board of Trustees. It was in this capacity that Diane made her largest contributions to our community, and to each of us as individuals.
Upon joining the Board, Diane brought her smarts, her wit, and her marketing skills first to the Development Committee, then as the establishing chair of the Marketing Committee. It is through her work on the Marketing Committee that Diane made some of her most significant contributions, including the newly updated website. Facing many challenges, Diane worked tirelessly, along with her co-chair Malu Doherty, the committee, and school staff, to create a compelling marketing piece that reflects the special beauty and opportunities of our school. She brought the project in under budget without compromising on the high quality she insisted upon. Without Diane, none of this would have been possible, none of this would have happened.
In addition to her work on marketing -- writing press releases, spearheading the website, spreading the good word about Summit wherever she went -- Diane's voice on the Board was one of truth and compassion. She never hesitated to share her thoughts or her feelings. Diane emoted -- she expressed herself, not only beautifully in words, but in human terms -- never letting us forget that it is the people who make up our community, it is people who matter. Diane, you are a great example of the impact one person can make on the lives of many. Thank you for all that you gave to Summit Montessori, and to all of us.
Written by Lisa Potter on behalf of the Board of Trustees
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Thanksgiving Feasts
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Thanksgiving was truly a community celebration at Summit. Each floor of the house bustled as the Children's House, Lower Elementary, and Upper Elementary put together impressively extensive spreads with the help of students, teachers, and parents. I was lucky enough to be invited to share a meal with Ms. Jean, Mr. B, and the Lower Elementary class. I knew I was in for a serious meal as soon as I entered -- the table stretched virtually the entire length of the main classroom as yo u can see from the left-hand picture. While I sat patiently next to Thomas and Aidan, we couldn't wait to fill our plates with turkey, corn, peas, mashed potatoes, stuffing, Mr. B's famous turkey meatballs, homemade cranberry sauce, and top our glasses with gallons and gallons of apple cider. I was very impressed at how politely and patiently each student waited until all had filled their plates before digging in. Once everyone was settled, we enjoyed sparkling cider toasts from Mr. E, Ms. Jean and Mr. B, and we finished off our feast with turkey-shaped sugar cookies and pumpkin tarts. Sharing this almost over-the-top meal with the Lower Elementary was the perfect warm-up for actual Thanksgiving day with my family later in the week.
Both Children's House classrooms gathered for a combined feast downstairs. The amount of preparation the students in the Children's House did to pull this celebration off was truly astounding. Ms. Stefanie told me a bit about their celebration, because, as much as I would have liked to attend both, I couldn't be in two places at once. Here's how it all went down.
The
Children's House was busy, busy, busy during the month of November getting ready
for their Thanksgiving feast. They prepared a bountiful feast of turkey
roll-ups, corn, sweet potatoes, fruit kabobs, pumpkin muffins, and apple cider.
The children ate all together at large tables, dining on fine china, and
enjoying each other's c ompany. Miss Tyra read a wonderful story called Giving
Thanks by Chief Jake
Swamp before the children
began their meal, and the room was full of fresh smelling flowers and
Thanksgiving projects made by the children. This was a wonderful day for
everyone in Children's House, and a peaceful, memorable event that is highly
anticipated by all as we begin each new school year.
Written by Kate Remsberg and Stefanie Landgren
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Author Gordon Morrison Draws a Crowd
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As part of the recent Summit book fair, a very special guest spent some time inside 283 Pleasant Street. Local children's book author and illustrator, Gordon Morrison, took time out to present original illustrations from his book A Drop of Water to the Lower and Upper Elementary classes. He also made some time to sign some of his books during book fair family night.
 Morrison has authored and illustrated a series of books related to specific parts of nature including, Pond, Nature in the Neighborhood, Bald Eagle, and Oak Tree. The story he shared with our elementary students, A Drop of Water, traces the journey of one drop at the tip of a child's finger from a brook, up into the clouds, to the top of a mountain, over cliffs, into streams, past dams, through swamps, and back to where the story begins: the meadow brook. Along the way, exquisitely detailed illustrations show the various wildlife and scenery.
For those students that didn't get to meet Gordon during his school day visit, he returned to Summit for family night at the book fair to sign some of his books and talk with both children and parents. It was a treat for all to be able to meet such a talented local artist.
For more information about Gordon Morrison, please visit Houghton Mifflin Harcourt's website by clicking here.
Written by Kate Remsberg
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A Friendly Face in Fifth Grade
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I've known Shakya longer than any other student at Summit. Granted, that means I've known him for only a few weeks longer than everyone else, but those three weeks in August gave me my first impressions of who Summit students are. And when the first student you meet is Shakya Adikari, you know you've found yourself at a very special school. He stopped by my office the other day, as he did many times over the summer, to chat with me about the first half of the year.
I can't imagine Shakya being uncomfortable. It could have something to do with his knowledge and comfort with his surroundings at 283 Pleasant Street, but I have a feeling if I came across him battling through the defense in a soccer game, he'd have the same confidence he did when he walked into my office for our conversation.
Shakya is my fourth Upper Elementary interview, and now, instead of being amazed, I'm starting to expect, even count on, the eloquence and insights from the bright young ladies and gents upstairs. Shakya is no different than his peers in these categories - he's well-spoken, intelligent, and just plain pleasant to be around. Shakya's personality can be most easily understood from his response to the ques tion of his favorite type of music. I thought I'd stumped him until he perked right up and stated, 'upbeat music!' Here I am expecting that he's sitting there trying to think of which obscure band he's going to tell me about, and he comes back with this heartwarming, simple answer. Of course he would love upbeat music, I should have known.
So much of Shakya's charm is in his excitability. Whenever I see him around school, he's smiling, walking tall, and moving with conviction. He is active to put it in simplest terms. He loves soccer, enjoys shooting hoops with his father in his spare time, considers recess his favorite school subject, and has a real interest in learning one of the most physically involved instruments around: the drums. But Shakya doesn't only thrive when he's given the chance to move around, his mind is also always on the move - so much so that his voice sometimes can't keep up with the deftness of his brain. His interest in science is underscored by one of the tenets of Montessori education - discovery. When asked why he loves science, particularly Chemistry, he said, 'because it's so interesting not knowing about the world,' and Chemistry allows him to quench his curiosity and find the answers to his many, many questions.
People
are in and out of my office every single day, throughout the day.
Mostly, though, the folks that come through are teachers, parents, and visitors. The student I feel like I see on a regular basis is Shakya. In fact, he stopped by the other day while his mother, Children's House teacher Luckshi Adikari, was getting ready to go home upstairs. While casually peeling a clementine, he let me know about his upcoming night. In addition to the schoolwork he does at Summit, Shakya is taking an additional math and public speaking class nearby, 'because [he] wanted to.' Although the extracurricular academics -- that's not a phrase you hear often -- give him more work to do, he seems to truly enjoy putting his mind to the test.
When I asked around school for words to describe Shakya, I got some wonderful descriptors. The most perfect, unfortunately, seems so generic. But the word that exactly pinpoints Shakya is 'friendly'. Just look at the picture of Shakya helping his Children's House friend pick out his wish list at our recent book fair, and it's easy to see why 'friendly' would be the first word that comes to mind.
The last question I asked Shakya was how he felt having his mother here as a Children's House teacher at Summit. He said, 'it's okay, it usually just means I have more stuff to do.' Smiling, I mentioned that it also means he has to hang around school during the summer. While I expected to hear a sigh or 'yeah, that's sort of annoying,' in typical Shakya fashion he replied "yeah, but I enjoy that." Enjoying being at school in the summer? Enough said.
Written by Kate Remsberg
Photographs by Macy Robison (top) and Diane Michelson (bottom)
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Kindergarten Literacy Grows Up
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Stefanie Landgren (above),
the maven of our Children's Houses and the Kindergarten children's spiritual
guide to all things literary, has been leading these lucky children through a
wonderfully sensitive exploration of reading and writing. As one parent wrote early in the school year:
However,
just three weeks into the current school year (and only one week into the
Literacy Program), he has come home asking to read his sight words and his
reading assignments with us, and has been far more interested in reading
overall. In addition to his reading, he comes home every Wednesday and
tells us what he wrote in his journal, which has quickly become one of his
favorite activities.
Last
night (when we thought he was sleeping), he came into our room and showed us a
book he had pulled from his shelf. The book was one we had read
infrequently, so he had not memorized it. He told us that he had read
the first several pages by sounding out the words himself, and then sat down
and proceeded to show us. Though he tried to keep his serious face, he
was beaming with so much pride that he was unable to hold back a big
smile. He then stayed up for another hour reading to himself in his room
(I finally had to pry the book from his hands, promising him that he could read
more tomorrow).
The program has been an immense
success. Because I don't believe in real
"divisions" within a school - a school like Summit should offer a seamless
transition toward educational maturity - and because we have seen such benefit
from this small-group work, we have asked Stefanie to begin offering a Literacy
program for our First Graders - beginning this year (and continuing into
the future). She has agreed to do so
with her customary sparkle and enthusiasm.
Therefore, beginning when we return
in January, our First Year members of Lower Elementary will have the same
twice-per-week benefit of her literary leadership. And Second and Third Years will therefore have
the advantage of closer, more intimate ties with Jean and Bruce while they are
engaged in their own reading and writing exploits.
As a former Math teacher myself, I
know how much numeracy matters - and am thrilled by the power of Montessori
materials to make quantitative concepts deeply comprehensible. But I also recognize that skill in reading and
writing transcend the disciplines. It is
our goal at Summit
to produce readers and writers of distinction, skill, and confidence. We thank Stefanie
Landgren for her willingness to extend her considerable gifts.Written by Richard Eyster
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SMPA
UPCOMING EVENTS
AND REMINDERS
NEXT MEETING
The next SMPA meeting will take place on Thursday, January
15th at 7pm in the Community Room. Wine, cheese and other refreshments will be
served, and we have special guests, our after-school specialists, who will share
some fun ideas for cold weather/rainy day projects to do with your children.
SMPA meetings provide parents with the opportunity to mingle with other
families and learn more about what's happening at the school. ALL ARE WELCOME!!
BOOK FAIR
Thank you to everyone who visited the Book Fair, those who attended
Family Night, and those who made purchases and volunteered their time! The Book
Fair raises money for Summit
and also expands the book collections of each classroom through generous contributions
from the "Wish Lists." A very special
thank you goes to Mary Ann Ciampa for coordinating and overseeing the Book Fair
and Family Night at the Book Fair.
UNO'S FUNDRAISER
Thank you to everyone who participated in the Uno's fundraiser.
It was a well-attended event and a very successful fundraiser! We do not have
the final tally yet, but will keep you posted. The money raised from this event
helps support the SMPA for events like the annual Community Picnic. Thank you
to Sunny Herguth for organizing this fun-filled fundraiser!
HAPPY HOLIDAYS FROM THE SMPA!
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SAVE THE DATE!!
Mark your calendar and book your babysitter now!
The annual
Spring Auction will take place on Saturday, May 2nd at Sandy Burr Country Club in
Wayland. The planning has already begun for what is sure to be an incredible
evening! If you're interested in helping with this event please contact Diane
Michelson at rdmichelson@comcast.net
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DECEMBER & JANUARY
DATES TO REMEMBER
Friday, December 19Winter Break Begins
Full School 11:15am Dismissal
Friday, December 19 - Sunday January 4No School for Students
Wiinter Break
HAPPY HOLIDAYS!
Monday, January 5
School Re-opens
Thursday, January 15
SMPA Evening Meeting
7:00pm
Monday, January 19
No School for Students
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
Tuesday, January 20
No School for Students
Professional Day
Thursday, January 22
Transition Morning
Introduction to Lower Elementary
Thursday, January 29
Transition Morning
Introduction to Upper Elementary
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A Place to Turn
December's Donation:
BABY WIPES
Please drop off any and all donations to the bin located conveniently outside the Community Room.
Thank you, as always, for your generosity!
As you may already know, Summit has chosen to donate the proceeds from our recent Square One Art sales to A Place to Turn. When this month's donation is delivered at the end of the week, we will also be delivering an additional $500.00 check to the shelter. We sincerely thank you for purchasing all of the wonderful mugs, mouse pads, ornaments, pillowcases and other pieces that display your children's delightful artwork. Your purchases contributed to this significant donation.
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