
Montessori Buzz – June 16, 2020
Message from Kristen Crouse, Academic Director
Dear MA Families,
This week is bittersweet. Normally it is a week that is full of excitement for the students as they finish their last week of school. It is a time of fun activities, signing of year books, our Year-End Celebration and the Year 8 Graduation, to name a few. Some of these are still going to happen; they will just look a bit different.
Today all students moving to a new level had their “year-end celebration” via Zoom. Their teachers presented each student with a lovely certificate of promotion while their parents and other classmates joined in to watch.
Graduation for the Year 8’s will happen on Thursday. Their teachers, Tina and I will be travelling to each student’s house with a graduation package for them to open as well as some extra surprises. Then at 7:00 pm the graduates and other family members will join in on the graduation ceremony which will include speeches from staff, a speech from each graduate and a presentation of their diplomas. This will be followed by a short virtual dance by one of our alumni who has been our D.J. for graduation for years. The yearbooks are in and look amazing! All students will receive their yearbook either by curbside visits or when they come to pick up their belongings.
Although things are different, there are still things that are the same. That is our love for the students and families, our thanks for a wonderful year full of commitment from our staff and parents, and our wish for a restful summer which will include memories to cherish forever.
I look forward to seeing you all in the fall… or who knows, we may run into each other over the summer.
Kindest regards, Kristen Crouse, Academic Director
Keep your eyes on City Hall on Thursday night
The colours of our school will light up several buildings downtown and the fountain at the forks of the river to celebrate the students who are Moving Up to a new level. City Hall says the lights usually go on around 8:30 p.m. Our contact said: “View them later for the best colour, although twilight is pretty too.”
- City Hall
- JA Taylor building at Wellington and Dundas
- The fountain at the Forks of the Thames
- 195 Dufferin – the Sifton Building at Clarence and Dufferin
If you head downtown to any of these locations and happen to take a picture or two, send them along or tag us on social media.
A huge thank you goes out to Junior High teacher Ann who coordinated this special salute to our students with the City!
Report Cards message on Thursday
FYI: You will receive an email on Thursday with instructions on how to access your child’s Final Report through the MA Parent Portal. (For Toddlers, First and Second Year Casa Students, there is no formal written report completed.)
One more Buzz next Tuesday
Our final Buzz of the year will be next Tuesday with some updates about events going on this week.
Also, a final Board message
We will also send a year-end message from our Board of Governors next Thursday.
Summer Hours, Canada Day, and office closure week of July 6
Next week is our June Faculty Week. Summer office hours start on Monday, June 29, 2020; the Office will be open from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Monday through Friday. The administration team may be working hybrid throughout the summer — at home and at the school; they can be contacted via email. If you wish to meet with any of them in person, please contact them by email first or call the school and leave a voicemail for them.
Here’s a rundown of the next few weeks:
- The Main Office will be closed for our Year-end Staff lunch on Thursday, June 25 from 11:00 am to 12:00 pm.
- The Office will be closed July 1 for Canada Day.
- The Admin team will be off for the week of July 6-10.
- Reception will be open the week of July 6-10 to receive campers who arrive late to camp, as they will need to be pre-screened upon arrival.
Camp updates
Camp Discovery will run this summer. There will be special COVID-related procedures shared with families for the camps. Watch for information from our Camp Directors.
- Camp Discovery Explorers, our Toddler Camp, will start Monday, June 29, 2020.
- Camp Discovery Adventurers (ages 4-6) will start on Monday, July 6, 2020.
- Registration for our Sports Camp has just closed, and we will follow up individually with the families who have registered.
March Break will be March 15-19, 2021
Based on input from our famililes, our 2021 March Break will be one week, and it will be the week of March 15-19, which is also the March Break week for the Thames Valley District School Board. Thank you to all of the parents who participated in our survey about the duration and dates of next year’s March Break.
Gym Wear orders
For students in Elementary and Junior High, please complete this 2020-2021 Gym Wear Form (Montessori Academy Gym Wear Flyer JUNE 2020.pdf) and return to Tameka at tbrown@montessori.on.ca on or before July 3. Reminder: we now accept cash, cheque, MasterCard, Visa, Amex or Apple Pay.
Due to COVID-19 restrictions, we are not able to have samples set up in the main office as usual. Because of this, we are asking that parents of returning students gauge their child’s size by the set of gym wear worn in the last school year.
For our Casa students who are entering Elementary in September, families can meet Tameka in the Elementary Courtyard behind the Main Office on Monday, June 22 and Tuesday, June 23 from 10:00–11:00 am to choose from sizes that she will have available. Please enter the Courtyard from the Piccadilly Street gate at the side of the Main Office to help us adhere to physical distancing measures.
Protocols to pick up items at school
Please pre-screen before coming to the school.
Artwork will be ready as part of the pickup of items; Senior Casa artwork will be included in their items delivered to their homes on Friday or with items to pick up – per the schedule shared on Thursday.
MA of London Procedures to follow for Item Pickup.pdf (Friendly suggestion: take a screen-shot of this PDF list to keep on your phones.) We’ll send families a reminder early on Monday, June 22 with these details.
If you can’t pick up at your classroom’s assigned time, please contact the school and we’ll arrange to have the items collected and ready for you to pick up at another time.

Staffing news: Admin team
We have two pieces of great news to share… Sara Heald, our Executive Assistant, is expecting her first child with her husband, Dan, in October. Congratulations to Sara and Dan!
The other is: Tara Protopapas will return to our school community to cover Sara’s maternity leave. Tara taught both Toddler and Casa levels, provided administrative support, and was a CCEYA Supervisor during her time at MA from 2011-2017. Since then, Tara has owned and operated her own home child care centre and is currently providing administrative support at a Long Term Care Home where she also educates families about Montessori for Dementia.
Tara will begin training with Sara during the August Faculty Week and provide coverage from September until March 2022.
Please join us in congratulating Sara and Dan on their growing family, and welcoming Tara back to our community!
Happy Father’s Day!
We hope that Sunday is a spectacular day for all of our Dads, grandads, father figures and others who love and support our children!
Mask-making update
WOW! The MA community truly came through with this non-surgical mask-making challenge for Children’s Health Foundation. The goal was 50 masks, and our grand total was 125! Thank you Upper Elementary students, parents, brothers and sisters, grandmothers and a very generous aunt who gave their time to sew masks for CHF. We are so grateful to Upper Elementary mom Blythe for initiating this and even giving a Zoom sewing lesson to get us all going. Thank you Blythe and our MA-zing sewers!

Casa class explores their senses
On Tuesday, Waterloo Casa class explored our senses in a fun hands on way! Baking soda + food colouring + vinegar = five senses awareness. Can we see it? Yes! Can we hear it? Yes! Can we smell it? Yes! Can we feel it? Yes! And can we taste it? Yes!! But, we do prefer our vinegar with French fries!!
https://www.facebook.com/MontessoriAcademyofLondon/videos/619527098914380/
And in the Facebook Post comments, you’ll see that Casa teacher Lesley has provided details on how to re-create this experiment. Thank you Lesley! 🙂
The Great Canadian Giving Challenge
The Great Canadian Giving Challenge is back and BIGGER than EVER! The GCGC is a national contest hosted annually by CanadaHelps! During the month of June, every $1 donated at CanadaHelps.org and GivingChallenge.ca acts as a ballot to enter your charity of choice to win a $20,000 donation!
HOW YOU HELP US WIN…
If you were planning to donate to our school, now is the perfect time. Not only are you already making a difference for that local charity, you also increase our chances of a much-needed donation during these unprecedented times.
Find details about the contest here: https://www.givingchallenge.ca/ , and visit Montessori Academy’s CanadaHelps page today to support MA!
From the community
Children First Canadian Parliament launches Thursday
The launch of the Young Canadian’s Parliament (YCP) is taking place on Thursday, June 18, 2020 from 1:30-3:30 p.m. (ET). Children First Canada is inviting students to sign up for this free digital event! Learn more on the Children First Canada website: https://childrenfirstcanada.org/events