"We must help the child to act for himself,

will for himself, think for himself;

this is the art of those who aspire to serve the spirit."   -  

Maria Montessori Education for a New World

 

Upcoming Date

Nov. 12-16                Parent-Teacher Conference Week

Fri., Nov. 16              NO SCHOOL, Parent-Teacher Conferences

Sat., Nov 17             PTO Holiday Boutique, 10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
Nov. 21-Nov. 25         Thanksgiving Vacation (NO SCHOOL)

Sun., Dec. 2             First Sunday of Advent

Tue., Dec. 4             Catechesis of the Good Shepherd Parent Evening,                                  7:00 - 8:30 p.m.

  

Progress Reports: Please Note

While Nov. 15 is our official date for sending out First Trimester Progress Reports, some teachers will be sending these home earlier in order to give parents time to review the reports prior to conferences.  

 

The Community Boutique is Back! 

Please join us THIS Saturday, November 17th from 10:00am to 2:00 pm in the upper level of the main building. There will be something for everyone to do: crafts for kids, violin music from our Suzuki teacher and some of her students, beautiful singing with the GSCM choir and of course, plenty of shopping!!!! There is no entrance fee for this event.

 

Some of the vendors available will be Tupperware, Miche handbags, Pampered Chef, Premier Design Jewelry, Arbonne health and skin products, and more. You can get some or all of your Holiday shopping done while enjoying the company of other school families. Bring a friend or two, and some relatives, the more the merrier!

 

If you are interested in participating as a vendor or know somebody who may be, there are still a few spots available. Contact Rhonda Hamall at 513-238-4459. Students - remember you can also participate as a junior entrepreneur. If you like to make jewelry, hair bows, or any other type of craft, you can also be a part of this event.

 

We hope to see you on Saturday!

 

Catechesis of the Good Shepherd Parent Evening: Tues., Dec. 4, 7:00-8:30

How do children learn in the atrium? How they work? How do they pray?

Have you wondered what your child does in the atrium? What is presented? What work do children use? How do they use it? How does all this help the child grow closer to God? How do the children learn and understand basic beliefs? How can the atrium serve both Catholic and non-Catholic children?

 

Catechist Dan Teller will present a variety of atrium materials to help you better understand the atrium experience for children of all ages. The atrium experience is not only a gift to children - it is also a gift for adults who experience it. It is a conversion experience. Please join us at our CGS Parent Evening to gain insights about, and most of all, to ENJOY the beauty and depth of the atrium experience. The evening is suitable for parents of all children at our school.

 

Please RSVP to dteller@gscmontessori.org. Grandparents and non-GSCM parents are welcome as well. RSVP is needed to ensure adequate interest to offer this evening program.

BAck to top

Mission Alive

Test-taking-A Practical Life Skill

By LinMarie Cameron, Upper Elementary Teacher

 

One of the key pieces in Montessori philosophy is education for life. In the 3-6 level environment, children develop practical life skills such as sweeping, polishing, and food preparation. Over the years, we've come to speak of this as the Practical Life area, putting the focus on "practical life." However, you can also think of the phrase in another way, as practical life-skills, or skills which will be useful to the child for the rest of his life.

 

In elementary, the practical life-skills assume an even wider dimension, including the skills which will be useful for the child in his school life. In our society, this includes the ability to carefully study for a test and to take it with confidence.  When a student becomes proficient in this skill, he is much more at ease in his learning environment, and less likely to be stressed during the school years.

 

Yet some families have found their children stressed by the idea and experience of taking a test in the first place. Our protective instinct is to avoid the stressful experience, and postpone developing this skill until there's no longer any choice. Following that path may leave a child taking his first serious examinations with very little preparation in the study process and few test-taking skills.

 

In the Upper Elementary level, we address this skill directly by walking the students through the study process for weekly quizzes and unit tests.  When a unit is finished, students work on a review packet and then go over the answers with the teacher to make sure they understand the concepts.  During a practice test, teachers coach the students through helpful skills like reading all of the directions first, "skip it and go on" for tough questions, and double-checking their work.

 

Although their mastery of the concepts may be stronger or weaker than their peers, we work so that all of them have a positive experience of test-taking. In some cases, fractional scores are used instead of percentages when a poor grade could lead to discouragement. Retakes are offered when appropriate so that the child knows he is capable of mastering the concepts.

 

Each experience of taking a test is an opportunity for them to become more proficient, and to learn positive self-talk about their ability to succeed.  Both parents and teachers play a key role in supporting the development of this practical life-skill.

 

Back to top

 

Year of Faith

The apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith" (Lk 17:5)

 

A MEDITATION ON FAITH:

Do him homage and say ...

For you must understand: he desires nearness; he would like to live in you and commingle his breath with your breathing. He would like to be with you until the end of the world. He knocks at all the souls. He makes himself small and inconspicuous so as to be able to partake of all their little transactions and concerns. He approaches quietly so as not to disturb or be recognized; he comes to be present incognito in the full hubbub of earth's annual fair.

 

He seeks trust, intimacy; he is a beggar for your love. Here is where you must really stand firm so that the boundaries won't be blurred. He is God and he must remain such. He ought not demean himself. It is a God-fearing thing to remind him of what he owes to himself. When he suddenly jumps out of his ambush and grips at your heart with one of his famous handholds, and your heart goes wild with throbbing, then you must quickly cast yourselves down and say with all humility, "Lord, go away from me.   I am a sinful man!" That's an obvious distance, you see.

And when he looks at you sorrowfully and silently attempts to make his solitude visible to you, remain strong. Do him homage and say: "I am not worthy that you should come under my roof" (but leave the rest out!)

Fr. Hans Urs von Balthasar

Back to top 

 

Office and General News 

Jelly / Jam Collection This Thursday

Don't forget to bring in a jar of jelly or jam for the Inter Parish Ministry's food choice pantry collection this Thursday.

 

Please Check the Lost & Found

This week, we will have the items from the Lost & Found displayed on a table as you enter the school. Parents, as you come for your teacher conferences, please take a minute to look through the lost and found items to see if any of them may belong to your child. We will be clearing the Lost & Found out during Christmas break so any items not claimed by then will be donated to a local charity.

 

Dress Code Reminders

Now that colder weather is coming, here are a few reminders regarding our dress code.

• Only sweatshirts purchased through the school's Spiritwear program may be worn in the classrooms on a daily basis.  Sweatshirts and fleeces purchased from Lands' End may not be worn in the classroom. 
• Any solid navy blue or red sweater (cardigan, crew, v-neck or vest) may be worn.
• Girls may wear only navy blue or white tights or leggings (that come to the ankle) under their skirts, jumpers or skorts. 
• No stretch or sweat pants can be worn in the classrooms.  Only navy blue dress slacks or dress cords (middle school may also wear khaki) are approved dress code apparel.
• Students need to have boots when it snows in order to be able to go out at recess, however, no boots may be worn in the classrooms or inside the school (except for middle school students who may wear Ugg-like or dress boots in the months of November through March only).  Students would need a pair of shoes (no sandals, light-up shoes, clogs, crocs, backless or platform) to change into when they wear boots (except middle school). 
• Please label your child's sweatshirts, sweaters, boots, etc. to help reduce our lost and found items.

Parents, your help in enforcing our dress code is very much appreciated.