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MONTESSORI MOMENTS
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October 2006 |
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"We must support as much as possible the child's desire for activity; not wait on him, but educate him to be independent." - Maria Montessori We hope you are well rested after the midterm break and had a “Happy Halloween”. In class Halloween parties were a great success - it was fantastic to see all the different costumes. The children enjoyed dressing up and sharing that experience with their classmates tremendously. Special thanks to class parents to organized in-class events for the children. Click here for Recent Events, Upcoming Events, Welcome to new families and Birthdays.
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CASA DEI BAMBINI NEWS Our main objective is to make sure that your child enjoys coming to school. Settling in and adjusting can take a few months, so please be patient, even if your child is not commenting on what he or she does at school. Following on from the “Montessori Moments” of September, (Seeing the Classroom from the New Child's Point of View) of it is important to remember that some of the children will still be finding it difficult to get used to the change in routine; for others the realization that coming to school is a daily event, and is not as much a novelty as before. Gradually with time the children become very settled and adjusted. It is important to meet the needs of our children, so please try to make sure that your child arrives to school on time, and that their attendance is as regular as possible. We hope that the “Open House” on October 28th, gave you the opportunity to see what your child is doing at school. Thank you for coming in! Individual observations in the classroom will be scheduled for you in the upcoming New Year. _________________
ARTIST/COMPOSER OF THE MONTH: This month the children have been exposed to the art of Amadeo Modigliani and have been learning about the clothes of the Chinese Opera. _________________
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MONTESSORI PEDAGOGY: “LANGUAGE ACQUISITION” As the Montessori Method is an “aid to life,” so is a child’s ability to use language to communicate his or her ideas to others. Maria Montessori recognised this and took into account the human tendency for communication and the sensitive period for language that is present in very young children. Thus, in the Casa classroom the language programme for the young child is similar to a voyage of discovery. The child learns to build on what he already has, expanding his ability to communicate needs, then wishes, thoughts, and finally, ideas. It is important to meet the needs of our children by encouraging them to speak out; teaching them new words; asking open-ended questions that require them to answer using their own words; reading to our children (one of the greatest factors in predicting academic success); asking their opinion. Most importantly we must speak “with” our children rather than “at” them, encouraging them to explore their own thoughts. We would encourage parents to take advantage of as many opportunities as possible to help develop your child’s language skills at home. Children are very capable of absorbing as much information as is given – as they have “an absorbent mind”. By 2½ years of age children everywhere are speaking their own language and speaking it correctly. The child’s Absorbent Mind has picked up the syntax and grammar of his mother tongue perfectly. The next step is to help the child to make conscious discoveries of the intricacies and subtleties of his language. _________________
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CASA DEI BAMBINI CHINESE NEWS: 您們好! 在這秋風送爽的十月裏, 我們的教學主題是: 秋天, 水果,幫助我們的人,和萬聖節。 As the weather turns cooler, our themes for October are Autumn, Fruit, Community Helpers and Halloween! 中文方面, 除了有關的童謠和兒歌外, 還有詞彙和據式學習。 內容如下: For Chinese Language, we have learned the following vocabulary, sentence structure, songs and verse: 詞彙 Vocabulary: 水果(shui guo, fruit),蘋果(ping guo, apple),香蕉(xiang jiao, banana),葡萄(pu tao, grapes),橙(cheng, oranges),西瓜(xi gua, watermelon),梨(li, pear),草莓(cao mei, strawberry),櫻桃(ying tao, cherry),芒果(mang guo, mango),荔枝(li zhi, lai chee),菠蘿(bo luo, pineapple),老師(lao shi, teacher),醫生(yi sheng, doctor),護士(hu shi, nurse),郵遞員(you di yuan, postman),消防員(xiao fang yuan, fireman),警察(jing cha, policeman) 句式Sentence 你愛吃甚麼水果? (ni ai chi shen me shui guo, What fruit do you like?) Structure: 我愛吃_______。(wo ai chi, I like _________.) 你愛吃_______嗎? (ni ai chi _____ ma, Do you like eating _____?) 我愛/不愛吃_______。(wo ai / bu ai chi ____, I like / don’t like ______.) 我長大了,要做_______。(wo zhang da le yao zuo ____, I want to be______ when I grow up.)
童謠Verse: <<落葉>> Luo Ye Falling Leaves!
秋風秋風吹吹, 樹葉樹葉飛飛。 qiu feng qiu feng cui cui, shu ye shu ye fei fei The autumn wind is blowing, the leaves are falling. 好像一群蝴蝶, 張開翅膀追追。 hao xiang yi qun hu die, zhang kai chi bang zhui zhui Like a flock of butterflies chasing each other with sings spread 歌曲Song: <<水果歌>> shui guo ge The Fruit Song
蘋果妹妹紅又圓, 香蕉哥哥像小船, ping guo mei mei hong you yuan, xiang jiao ge ge xiang xiao chuan Little sister Apple is red and round, big brother Banana is like a small boat. 葡萄姨姨穿新衣, 西瓜伯伯笑哈哈。 pu tao yi yi chuan xin yi, xi gua bo bo xiao ha ha Aunty Grape is wearing her new clothes, and Uncle Watermelon is laughing!
<<摘蘋果>> Zhai ping guo Picking Apples 樹上許多紅蘋果， Shu shang xu duo hong ping guo There are many apples on the tree 一個一個摘下來。 Yi ge yi ge zhai xia lai We pick them one by one 我們喜歡吃蘋果， Wo men xi huan ping guo We like to eat apples 身體健康多快樂。 Shen ti jian kang duo kuai le So we can be healthy and happy!
地上許多大西瓜，…… Di shang xu duo da xi gua….. There are many watermelons on the ground, etc… 籐上許多紅葡萄, …… Teng shang xu duo hong pu tao There are many grapes on the vine, etc… ________________ |
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ELEMENTARY CLASSROOM NEWS
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The Elementary children have a very busy schedule inside and outside the classroom. The following lessons are given according to the level of the children.
Oceania:
Europe:
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Field trips:
Our special thanks go to the following children for donating the items as part of the classroom “materials”:
Special thanks from the Elementary teachers go to Ms. Gloria Wu for coordinating groups of parents & helpers to make Montessori materials on 13 and 27 October and also to those who came to help. “Thank you so much for helping out!” Birthdays: If you would like to send a small birthday snack with your child on his or her birthday, we will have a small celebration in the class with the rest of the students. |
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________________ As always, please feel free to contact us to arrange a time after school to speak specifically about your child’s lessons or work when you have a question. |
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ELEMENTARY CHINESE NEWS: The Chinese Curriculum in the Elementary Classrooms The 2 streams for the Chinese curriculum are continuing to pursue the curriculum as follows:
In both streams the children are learning all aspects of the Chinese language: speaking, listening, reading and writing (in traditional characters), but the emphasis is on communicative skills for Stream 2. This approach allows native speakers in Stream 1 to broaden their vocabulary and compositional skills to complement their speaking ability, and children in Stream 2 extensive practice in speaking and listening, giving them confidence to use the Chinese language. In both streams, homework and reading assignments are given and we ask parents to support your child’s efforts at home to complete and return these assignments.
___________________ Click here for Recent Events, Upcoming Events, Welcome to new families and Birthdays.
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