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SummerFun
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One sure way to beat the winter blues is to think "Summer". And that means -- SummerFun at Hilltop!
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Coming up...
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Tuesday, March 26
Children's House Field trip to Lilac Ridge Farm
Girls on the Run, 3-4:30
Wednesday, March 27
Lower El Work Share 8:30am
Thursday, March 28
Upper El Field trip to the Pequot Museum
Friday, March 29
Girls on the Run, 3-4:30
Tuesday, April 2-9
MS ALABAMA ODYESSY
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Classifieds
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If you have an item, service or community event you would like to post in this space, email Amelia. Deadline for entries is Thursday afternoon. Entries will be posted for one week unless requested otherwise. Thanks!
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| Notes from the Head |
Lower Elementary teacher is on board!
A wonderful welcome to Patrick Burke, who will join Kerstin in the Lower El! What makes this just that much more special is that Kerstin and Patrick have been in the same Montessori certificate program at the Center for Montessori Teacher Education and thus they have worked together on materials and practicing lessons. It's a team even before school begins.
Patrick is currently in a Lower El classroom at the Washington Montessori School in Connecticut. He previously worked with adolescents in a community service program and as an after school program leader. Like so many Montessori teachers, Patrick had that "aha" moment through observing his oldest child, Jamie, when he started in Children's House. The more Patrick read and observed and the more he watched Jamie "become", the more he knew that he wanted to teach in an environment where respect was paramount.
We are delighted to welcome Patrick, his wife, Arianne and their three children, Jamie, Pete and Claire, to the Hilltop community. Jamie will join the Lower El and Pete will be in the Children's House.
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I'm Late, I'm Late...oh no, not this again!
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It's March. Long light afternoons...but the mornings are still dark so it's that much harder to get out and get going. And there's the reality that this winter has also
tested one's ability to keep nasty bugs from invading normally healthy bodies so there's been a much higher incidence of absences.
At the faculty meeting this week lateness and absences were a source of concern for all program levels. What were a few students sneaking in 5 minutes late has become not quite a thundering horde, but quite a few - and quite a few who are 20 minutes or more late. IT IS THE CHILD WHO LOSES with continued lateness.
He misses the first social contact, sometimes entering when circle has already started. She comes in and the lesson is underway - or worse, she's missed it completely. Add up being 20 minutes late three times a week and that's an hour of missed school time!
The same goes for pick up. I know the circle can get crowded at 3:00 and the rationale can develop quickly that "if I come at 3:15 I can buzz right in," but again
please try and be here a few minutes BEFORE rather than 15 minutes after.
5:00 IS FIRM. Mariam should be able to leave the building no later than 5:05 - the time it takes for her to get ready to leave. Please be here AND SIGN OUT (this is a state regulation). Late pick-ups will be billed and the money will go directly to Mariam or whoever is on duty.
The teachers try and balance flexibility and understanding about late arrivals/pick ups so I know when the topic is raised at a faculty meeting that it has turned into a
problem. Please, please - let's go for "I'm early, I'm early"!
Thanks,
Tonia
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The Tiny House Raffle is OPEN!
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The Tiny House raffle is open - at least online! For those of you who can't wait to purchase paper tickets, or want to let far-away friends and family know, an online purchase option is now live.
Go to http://tinyhouseraffle.eventbrite.com to buy your ticket(s)
Upper El students are working hard to build a fantastic Tiny House, with the help of Chad Farnum, of Farnum Insulators. Check out this short video of their progress (thanks to Amelia!)
The house will be raffled off as a fundraiser for Hilltop's financial aid program and Morningside Shelter (the only homeless shelter in Southern Vermont). The Tiny House raffle will directly support our financial aid program so it, along with the upcoming vacation raffle, is a really important fundraiser for the school and we want everyone to get involved.
Tickets can be purchased online now and are available at the front desk. Paper tickets to sell to your friends and family will be sent home soon - along with our summer get-away raffle tickets.
The raffle drawings will be held on Saturday, June 8, right after the Strolling of the Heifers Parade, on the Commons in Brattleboro.
Huge thanks to Chad Farnum. Leader Home Centers donated materials and Jancewicz & Sons donated the windows and roofing. Be sure to say thanks when you do business with them.
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Dinner Service Volunteers Needed - Overflow Shelter
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Hilltop is once again providing dinner at the overflow shelter in downtown Brattleboro. We're scheduled to serve THIS Monday, March 25 and it's a terrific opportunity for the Hilltop community to help out our larger community. We still need some servers and food.
Upper El and Middle School students are welcome to join in.
Please email Ariel Nelson to sign up.
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