"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 Dates

Thurs., Sept.18       Pre-Primary Parent Education Evening 7:00 p.m.

Sept.15-18             Middle School Odyssey Trip to Hico, West Virginia

Sept. 17-19            Upper Elementary Trip to Camp Kern

Fri., Sept 19           Cub Scout Meeting, 3:15 p.m. in the Atrium

Tue., Sept. 23         Picture Day:  Pre-primary and Upper El

                             (out of uniform)

Wed., Sept. 24       Picture Day:  Lower El and Middle School

                             (out of uniform)

Wed., Oct. 1          Lower El Parent Education Evening, 7:00 p.m.

Thurs., Oct. 9         Walkathon

Thurs., Oct. 9        1:00 p.m. Early Dimissal

Fri., Oct. 10           NO SCHOOL Staff In-Service Day

Pre-Primary Parent Education Evening; 

Thurs., September 18, 7:00 p.m.

Practical Life and Your Child's Development:  How Does Scrubbing Promote Spatial Awareness, Sequential Thinking ,and Problem-Solving?

Spend an evening with the pre-primary teachers and learn about this unique area of the Montessori pre-primary classroom.

• Why does my child  pour beans and wash dishes at school?
• What does table scrubbing have to do with reading and math?
• How do polishing and sewing enhance physical and cognitive growth?

These and a host of other practical life activities prepare your child for future learning by promoting sequencing, problem solving, and critical thinking. The practical life exercises are indispensible for helping the child develop independence, concentration, and a sense of order.  They are fun for the children and urgently needed for their development.

For more about the importance of practical life exercises In the Montessori classroom, see

http://www.montessoriworld.org/praclife/pintroim.html

For more on the integration of practical life exercises and family life, see http://www.michaelolaf.net/newsaugust2012.html

School Pictures:  Sept. 23 and 24

Weather permitting, Debra Shepard Photography will be taking school pictures on these dates:

Tue., Sept. 23      Pre-Primary and Upper Elementary classes

Wed., Sept. 24    Lower Elementary and Middle School classes

Students may be out-of-uniform on the day they are photographed..  An order form for pictures will be coming home soon by backpack mail.  

Lower Elementary Parent Education Evening

"Give the World to the Child":  Montessori Cultural Studies

Wednesday, October 1, 7:00-8:30 p.m.

Parents Only (Pre-Primary parents, please feel free to join us!)

Our lower elementary teachers will present an overview of our three-year cultural cycle at our upcoming Parent Education Evening:  "Give the World to the Child."   Curriculum integration is a defining characteristic of Montessori Education, and the "Montessori cultural curriculum" beautifully integrates all subjects,

In her book, From Childhood to Adolescence, Dr. Montessori says, "Let us give the world to the child."  She says, further, that we should "sow the seeds of all sciences when the child has a special sensitive period for imagination. (6-12 years)

Please join us for the wonderful opportunity to see many of the cultural materials that your child will experience in the lower elementary.   This parent night is open to current 6-9 parents as well as pre-primary parents who are interested in the lower elementary curriculum.

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Montessori Moment

Every Child as a Teacher

By Carrie Bucksath, Pre-Primary Directress

Every fall, even after many years of teaching, I still ask myself, "How will it all work? How will I balance serving a group of children of varying ages: three-year-olds who haven't been away from home and their families for an extended period of time and who are new to a school environment; four-year olds with their developing social tendencies of the four-year-olds; guiding the kindergarten children in their quest for knowledge as independent learners?"   Every year I spend sleepless nights trying to figure out all the answers yet again. Then school starts, many lessons are given, the classroom gets into the flow and I look around and remember that I don't have to balance it all alone. That is the beauty of Montessori education.

The Montessori classroom is a multi-age environment, and with these multi-ages come multiple degrees of abilities. Each day, I am reminded of the wonderful benefits of the multi-age  community.  I observe a kindergarten student calming a three-year-old who is upset with a technique that calms him during work time. I see anther kindergarten student assisting a peer with tying his shoes. And again, another kindergarten student assists a three-year-old restoring his three part cards of the Animals of the Rainforest on the tray in an organized way. There are a variety of children working together and observing other children working on challenging activities, such as the movable alphabet or the golden bead materials. On the playground, older children push younger children or even same-age peers on the swing.

The multi-age classroom allows for the children to learn not only from the teacher, but also from each other:  through direct instruction, such as shoe tying, or through observing other children complete an activity. Granted, the adults give the initial lessons and set the framework of the classroom, but every child at some point is given the opportunity to be a teacher as well! This is one of the many beautiful benefits to the Montessori environment!!

GSCM Walkathon and Carnival is Just Around the Corner!

Many companies may wish to make a donation of services or goods.  Questions or ideas?  Please contact Jana Widmeyer or Sheila Lichtenberg in the GSCM Development Office (271-0205 or development@gscmontessori.org).

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Office News  

School Picture Days - September 23^rd and 24^th.

All orders and payments are due to your child's teacher by September 22^nd!    

TIPS - Pictures will be taken outside allowing nature to be the backdrop.  There should be plenty of greenery left for the pictures so here are some tips on choosing the best shirt/outfit.  Solid bright colors look the best (i.e. red, blues, yellow, orange, pink & purple).  Keep in mind your child's skin tone when choosing the color to wear as some colors can make the portrait appear dull.  Pastels colors can tend to look somewhat faded but a sharp white shirt will also work well.  Be careful of bold stripes and plaids as they can detract from the child's face in the picture.  Green colors tend to get lost somewhat due to the greenery as the backdrop.  These are head and shoulder shots so please keep in mind any printing, logos or pictures on shirts. They will get cropped and sometimes only the very top of the graphic will be in the portrait causing distractions.   

Fall Family Portrait Days

Debra will also be holding Fall Family Portrait Days again at various local parks.  This is a great opportunity to have family/sibling portraits taken for the upcoming holidays.  A portion of these reduced session fees will be donated to GSCMS.  The local parks include Ault, Alms, Mt. Storm and Eden Park.  Session fees will be $75 for a half hour session.  Regular sessions are also available at other locations but do not include the reduced session fee.  Please email or call Debra to schedule a time.  (513) 706-6881 or debrashepardphotography@gmail.com.  Appointments book up fast so get a head start on your planning for a great holiday gift!

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Volunteer News

2014-15 Family Volunteer Update

The volunteer coordinator positions for 2014-15 are posted on the GSCM website parent page and accessible through this link https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1UDXtM4yLN__EVReo6sGSYUfmGqdbPVYoQwOASRERMUM/edit?usp=sharing

You should be hearing from a PTO or GSCM staff member about your responsibilities.

There is also a VolunteerSpot link to sign up for events http://vols.pt/1PdNF8  More shifts will be added as event needs arise.  We ask families to sign up for at least 3 "shifts" over the school year.

If your family has not signed up for a volunteer coordinator position, please view the openings.  Nicolay Walz, PTO Volunteer coordinator, would be happy to discuss positions and help you find something that is a good fit for you!  You can email her at nicolay.walz@gmail.com

Thanks for sharing your time and talents with the GSCM community,

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Send Your GSCM Candids to the Yearbook Team!  

We know that parents, students, teachers, family members, and staff are taking great candids of our GSCM community in action all the time.  We need as many photos as possible to create a terrific book everyone will want to have.  Anyone can serve in this role.  Get out your phone or camera and take some photos!  And then send them to us.                 

Here is how you can submit photos online:
   * Go to: https://images.schoolannualonline.com/login
   * If it does not automatically log you into the site, enter username: 401853790
   * Browse to select the photo(s) you wish to upload.
   * Enter information about the photo and provide contact information in case the staff needs additional information.
   * Click "Save Details".

It's that easy! Submit your photos today! You can also email photos to Nicolay Walz at nicolay.walz@gmail.com to be uploaded for you.