Teamwork in Room 101

This week, our class continued our discussions on strong women and their inspiring outlook towards adversity. We learned a lot about goal setting, perseverance and determination. We also talked about the power of team work and unification. Mr. Nick read the book, "The Youngest Marcher by Cynthia Levinson". The children were impressive with the connections they made based on our Women's Month read alouds and conversations on team work (Read, "Swimmy" by Leo Lionni). Our unit came full circle last Wednesday, March 14th when all of EC sang "This Little Light of Mine" out on the playground. It was heartfelt and beautiful. Here is a video of it.

Mr. Nick reading to the children.

We had a great discussion!

Suder EC outside and ready to sing.

We also had a St. Patrick's Day celebration. The children enjoyed green waffles and some were brave enough to try the green milk! =) We also made a leprechaun trap and caught him (he escaped, though *wink*). He left our room filled with golden coins and confetti everywhere! 

Green waffles?! Try it, you'll love it!

Friendship 101 =)

creating our leprechaun trap...

The finished product.

Thank you, Jessica for reading to our class.

Our field trip to the Art Institute was very pleasant. The children were able to practice using their quiet voices and practiced art appreciation. They also explored some of the family rooms.

EC waiting for our lunchroom to be ready.

What a beautiful place.

Create and tinker.

Friends and art all around!

We have been talking a lot about Language Arts for the past few weeks. I thought to share the beauty of Montessori Math. Please check out this old post from a previous school year. I really appreciate the progression of works in Montessori math. Mathematics is laid out very concretely and creates such a strong foundation. Here's a short read about Montessori math if you are interested to know more about it.

Ms. Sonnia and Ibrahim worked on the Multiplication Board.

The Stamp Game.

Natalie worked on the Subtraction with objects work.

Our Dynamic Banker's Game-Addition presentation.

Sophia working on dynamic addition using the Golden Beads.

In other news, I want to thank everyone for your continued support and trust in our group of teachers in Room 101. I am grateful especially to whomever nominated me to the Golden Apple Award. I did not make it as a finalist but I am truly honored that someone noticed my work as an educator to consider nominating me for this prestigious award. I will continue to love what I do and share my knowledge to support children's learning. Today, I will be flying to Denver for the AMS Montessori conference. I can't wait to update my learning to better serve your children, families and our community. Have a great Spring Break! See you back at school in a couple of days. =)

Audrey during Guided Writing.

Daniel and the Fluency Sentence Book.

Frances matched different landmarks from around the world.

Isabella and the Tonging work.

Maya created a picture using the Shaving Cream work.

Santi explored science and art with the Marble Painting work.

Spring's Arrival

"If you watch how nature deals with adversity, continually renewing itself, you can't help but learn." -Bernie Siegel, MD


Hello, families! Spring is here!

I am amazed by the growth of our students. I am observing more children-initiated extensions for the works and activities Ms. Castillo and I present to the children. It's very exciting to see when a child masters a work and carries on with a creative way to manipulate the activity into his/her own. The child takes the work to another level that creates ownership and promotes creativity. I also love seeing the multi-age class play a big role in each child's inspiration and determination to do what the other students are doing. As I shared last week, Room 101 had been making booklets FOR EVERYTHING! This activity has become so popular because one child saw another child do this work. The child then asked the other student for a presentation. They learned from each other by doing this. Now, children who were a little resistant of the Language Area are building words: labeling the environment, making books of animals, objects and other things in the room. It's pretty cool observing these moments everyday as it happens.

You will notice in the pictures I share that children are using inventive spelling. This is when a child practices spelling unfamiliar words by making guesses as to the correct spelling based on the child's phonetic knowledge. In my opinion, this developmental stage is so valuable. Please read this article on inventive spelling.

I'm also adding two videos on letter-sound correspondence games you can try at home. Enjoy!

Check this out!  Here's another one.

Daily work in Room 101.

Sophia R. measured the environment but taking objects to her rug. She used blocks as her non-standard measuring unit.

Audrey and Ibrahim worked on their Subtraction Booklet using manipulatives.

Charlie enjoying the new Letter I-Spy work.

Sebastian created a flower arrangement using the ten-frame to help him with the beads.

Roy and Stefan made sets using the Spindle Box.

Leslie measured the environment, too.

Natalie journaled her reading.

One of Ms. Castillo's creative Practical Life works: Sifting.

Winter and Maya building words using the Moveable Alphabet and Inventive Spelling.

Zoe searched for different nouns in our environment. She is making a noun list and labeling them in her journal.

Jena and her work: the Sound Box. She also made a booklet!

Roy made an animal booklet and used inventive spelling to sound out the words.

Amelia made lines with the Shaving Cream work.

Sophia R. matching time to the hour and half hour.

A re-presentation of the Parts of the Body work.

Do you think the children will be making booklets of this work this week?

An I-Spy work on Tally Marks during Kindergarten time.

Audrey shared her invention to the Kindergarteners.

Audrey at the Invention Convention.

Feel The Love

Hello, Room 101 family-

Last week was a lively one! The children were able to continue with their daily schedule like work time, presentations and read alouds while having a great time celebrating with you. All of EC did an amazing job with their Black History Month projects. They took pride of their work and eagerly shared with friends and families what they learned from the activity. One skill that we are trying to foster at Suder is public speaking. Here is a short article on how you can help your child develop this skill. 

Mr. J and his class did not disappoint us with the musical performance. Watch this and this. Every child and parent (!!!) were singing and letting their love light shine. My heart was full seeing everyone together. I definitely felt the love and community we share. I want to thank you all again for entrusting your children to us and for working with us towards your children's growth.

See you at school!

Maya is practicing her baric sense while comparing the weight of each tablet.

Natalie made her North America map.

Ivan created a Parts of a Horse booklet.

Jena and her Parts of a Tree booklet.

The beauty of flower arranging alongside the Trinomial cube.

Frances drew and labeled her Animal Booklet.

Nijel explored the Weather Bottles.

Santi was focused on completing his Parts of the Tree booklet.

Zeia admired her North America map.

Hello, Sandy!

Sandy was out for work time.

Sebastian scrubbed dinosaur bones we got from the Field museum.

Thank you, Jasmine Sandhu!

Thank you, Nyah Griffin!

Roy and the 20 Board.

Audrey completed the Word Chunk matching work.

Black History Month Fest at Suder.

So much to see, so much to learn!

We also enjoyed some snacks and lemonade!

It was nice seeing families- old and new! =)

Family time! Parents joined us at the Gathering Place.

Mr. J!!!