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Thank You Parents

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Last week, the FMS PTO and FMS Parents showered teachers and staff with treats, gifts and other tokens of thanks throughout Teacher Appreciation Week. Needless to say, we felt more than appreciated — we felt cherished. Thank you so much for all your kind words and gestures and for all that you do throughout the year to support our efforts. You are appreciated as well!

From the P2 Blog:

“When Natricia (Ava’s mom), began escorting our children to the multipurpose room for a ‘special project’ (for the teachers), we had no idea how beautiful, funny and meaningful that project was until each of the teachers received their own memory book. Looking at our work through the eyes of the children is a poignant reminder of how important it is. You never know how one lesson or another leaves its mark on each individual child. Last week was filled with wonderful treats from our parents. The collective appreciation that we feel for the outpouring of love from our parents is profound. We know that every day we are entrusted with the great responsibility of being with your children; guiding them with their development of self. The moments of witnessing a child getting a concept, zipping up a zipper, laughing in delight, are treasures beyond measure. We are grateful for this time we share together and appreciate the dedicated support we feel from all of our parents.”

Breaking New Ground

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Thanks to the vision, dedication and hard work of parents, students and staff, our new courtyard gardens are currently underway.

A special thanks to Phillip Fagan and his crew for landscaping and Lorin-Pierre Andre for building the planters.

 

 

Helping Gardens Grow

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FMS is getting ready to expand its garden area this year, thanks to the help of our wonderful staff, parents and students. We are planning to build new planter boxes (thanks to the gracious assistance of a few FMS fathers); fix the sprinklers; and start planting! One of our elementary teachers, Ms. April, is spearheading this exciting new development with the hopes of teaching the children more about nutrition, health and the natural environment. If you would like to get involved, please contact her at ap***@fo*****************.com. We really have some amazing, knowledgeable and proactive parents in our community and we can’t thank you enough.

This week, middle school students got involved by cleaning out the garden and researching best planting practices. On their classroom blog, E4 writes:

“Thank you to Middle school friends for researching and cleaning our garden! After finding out some facts about the plants in our courtyard boxes, they cleaned and cut back tomatoes, peppers, and sunflowers. Next, they provided us with a list of plant information. We are preparing to build more planters and add more sprinklers. Now we know we can always turn to our middle school students for knowledge and assistance! It was interesting to learn how to care for sunflowers and tomatoes. Here are some helpful hints:

  • We should use distilled or rain water for sunflowers because other types of water can be poisonous to the flower.
  • They need at least two feet of space to grow
  • They need to be watered every other day
  • If the flower is dead, cut the head off then uproot it
  • Tomatoes need deep soil so the plant’s roots can hold it upright
  • If you don’t prune tomatoes regularly, the plants will develop extra branches called suckers. Suckers take away energy from the plant.”

Stay tuned for more garden expansion updates!

Foothills Montessori School is a private Montessori school serving families in Henderson, Las Vegas and Southern Nevada.

We Love Our Teachers

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This week is Teacher Appreciation Week, a chance to pay tribute to our wonderful teachers and staff.

This year at Foothills Montessori School, we have focused on providing our teachers with the knowledge and platforms they need to reach their full potential. We have attended conferences, seminars, in-services and workshops; hosted nationally recognized guest speakers, thought-provoking webinars, documentaries and book clubs; held regular Teacher Liason and Group Level Head Meetings; and put forth various initiatives designed to make Foothills Montessori the ideal place for your children to learn, grow and enjoy their childhood.

In our school-wide staff meetings we have begun giving out Gyroscope Awards to recognize outstanding staff members. The Gyroscope represents how our staff members do some gravity-defying ‘spinning’ around our core principle, which is to “follow the child” and create the best learning environment for each one.

We also have spotlighted two outstanding staff members on our school website, Erica Sherlock and April Dane. We invite you to read more about them as well as all of our scintillating staff on their new staff pages (administration, primary, lower elementary, upper elementary, and middle school/specialists).

On behalf of these teachers, we would like to thank you, all of our caring and committed parents, as well as our dedicated PTO, for showing us you care in so many ways — for volunteering your time in classrooms, at events, and on field trips;  for organizing luncheons and breakfasts; for  bringing treats and surprises; for recognizing teachers regularly on the PTO Loop — the list goes on and on. We really could not do it without your support and encouragement.

We take pride in the people who make this school so special. Thank you for all that you do!

Parents Get to Play

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Last week, parents of upper elementary students were welcomed into the classrooms for our annual Upper Elementary Parent/Child Night.

From the E6 Blog: “The students and teachers of E6 welcomed their parents back to school for an evening of lessons, puzzles and games that utilized the problem-solving skills acquired in upper elementary. Parents and students worked together to solve math challenges and word puzzles. They enjoyed creative practice in direction following and using their imagination to write sentences and short stories. Students tested parents’ knowledge of states and capitals and sorted animal crackers into biomes. It was fun to see so many of our families working, learning and laughing together.”

 

Plus, it snowed!! Check out more pics on the E6 Classroom Blog.

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