News Archive

Montessori Buzz – Sept. 26, 2023

Dear MA Families & Friends,
There is a lot of important information in this Buzz for all levels of the school. Please take a few minutes to read through this Buzz. Thanks!

Elementary Construction reminder

With the progress on our renovations, we have a change in routine for Elementary Early Hours and morning drop-off for tomorrow, Wednesday, September 27. If you have a child in Lower or Upper Elementary, a child registered for Elementary Early Hours, or you are attending the Upper Elementary social in the morning, this message is for you! 

 

Cement is getting poured in the courtyard starting at 7:00 a.m. The construction fence will extend across the courtyard. This will happen rain or shine.

Elementary Early Hours

Good weather –  The driveway between the Lower and Upper Elementary homes will be not accessible. All students in Elementary Early Hours enter through the Piccadilly gate. Early Hours will take place in the courtyard; the turf will be accessible.

 

*Rain (NOTE: this is different than last time) – Students need to enter off Piccadilly through the gate, to the first set of double silver doors. A staff member will be there to escort students across the library to LE3.

Upper Elementary Social at 8:15 am / Drop-off

The driveway between the Lower and Upper Elementary homes will be not accessible. All UE students and parents must access the school off of Kenneth and head to the Upper Elementary doors. They will not be able to walk across the courtyard due to the construction fence.

Lower Elementary Drop-Off at 8:30 am

Enter the courtyard as usual through the Piccadilly gate and through the first set of silver doors. LE1 and LE2 will head to their cubbies as usual; and LE3 students will be directed across to their cubbies by a staff member.

 

If everything is cleared by 8:15 am, we will send an “All clear, drop off as usual.” text message to all Elementary families. 

 

Thank you for your continued patience as these renovations keep rolling. We’re getting there, and it’s going to be MA-zing when it’s done.

 

Tina Brown
Executive Director

The UE Social is Wednesday morning!

We’re looking forward to welcoming our Upper Elementary parents to the social happening tomorrow morning between 8:15-9 a.m.

Parking, pick-up and drop-off downtown

We have recently received complaints from neighbours and MA families about the way some individuals are parking during drop-off and pick-up at our downtown locations. Please ensure you’re following the law, street signage and common courtesy. Avoid blocking and turning around in our neighbours’ driveways, and please do not block the sidewalks even for a short period of time.
Thank you for helping us to be good neighbours.

Board of Governors updates

Welcome message – Thursday

Watch for a message from our newly appointed Board President, Melissa Sariffodeen on Thursday.

Board recruitment: 1 parent and 2 community members

As our Board of Governors prepares for a few members to complete their terms, the board seeks 3 new members:
  • 1 parent member
  • 2 community members, who are not affiliated with the school
Priority will be given to candidates with expertise and knowledge in Human Resources, Finance, and Fundraising. Previous experience sitting on a Board and an understanding of board governance is helpful.
If you are interested in the parent member opportunity, or you know of any contacts outside the school who might want to join the board as community members, please take a look at the full posting on our website: https://montessori.on.ca/3-new-members/ Forward any questions to: maboard@montessori.on.ca.

 

Outdoor Movie Night is October 5!

Plan to join us for Outdoor Movie Night for a showing of “Encanto” in the Oxford Courtyard – 311 Oxford Street East. Space is limited to 75 people.
  • WHEN: Thursday October 5 at 6:45PM – Movie starts at 7:00PM
  • WHERE: Oxford Casa Courtyard – 311 Oxford Street East
  • BYOS: Bring Your Own Snacks

 

Elementary Hot Lunch Registration Closes Friday

The deadline to add any orders to your child/children’s hot lunch for this term is Friday, September 29. After the deadline has passed, the orders will be closed. If you need assistance with ordering, please contact the Main Office before the deadline. NOTE: Some items require you to select different options for the meal, so please read each item carefully, as the order will not be able to be adjusted after submission.
IMPORTANT: Even if you are not adding any orders, please review your complete balance when you place your orders online at https://mahotlunch.campbrainregistration.com/ to ensure that everything is paid in full. Payments can be made online, or you can drop into the Main Office to pay by cash, cheque, credit.

50/50 Raffle!

We are having a Halloween Raffle! One winner will take home 50% of the total ticket sales.  The other 50% will support the school.
The more we sell, the more you can win…
With 300 tickets available, you could win up to $2,500 cash!
Tickets are $20 each or buy 3 tickets for $50.
Draw Date: Thursday, October 26, 2023 
Tickets can be purchased at The Main Office, Oxford Casa and Westmount. Find more details on our website: https://montessori.on.ca/raffle/

Qdoba Gives is this Thursday!

This Thursday! Back to school dinner at QDOBA – Beaverbrook location!
Buy your dinner at Qdoba’s Beaverbrook location on Thursday, Sept. 28, between 4-8pm, and the school will receive 25% back as a donation!
  Location: QDOBA Mexican Eats*
  • 1371 Beaverbrook Ave. London, ON N6H 0J1
  • Thursday, Sept. 28 4pm and 8pm.
Take-out or Dine-in orders all qualify when you show our special QR Code at the register. You can also order online from the Beaverbrook location using the Digital Code: QDOBAGIVES
*Please note: Only orders taken at the QDOBA at 1371 Beaverbrook Location will count towards this fundraiser.

Orange Shirt Day is Friday

The school will observe Orange Shirt Day on Friday. We invite our students to wear orange in solidarity with our Indigenous communities. We also encourage our families and friends to take time this weekend to reflect on what it means to be a good citizen and settler on this land called Canada.

From the Community – Truth and Reconciliation

Atlohsa has announced a number of events in the area this week. Visit their website for details on how to get involved: National Day for Truth and Reconciliation 2023 – Atlohsa

 

Photos from the week

Casa Peace Day celebrations

Our Casa students across the school sang “Light a Candle for Peace” to celebrate the International Day of Peace on Sept. 21.

Lower Elementary work

The Courtyard is still (safely) in use as construction at Elementary continues. 🙂 Last week, Lower El 1 took advantage of the great weather and sunshine for an afternoon of work outdoors.
Lower Elementary students learned about North American Biomes as part of their unit study of North America.

Year 6 Phantom trip

Some of our Year 6 students dressed the part for their field trip to the Grand Theatre to see ‘Phantom of the Opera’ last week.

Year 6 Peer Peacekeeping

One of the many hidden gems in a traditional Montessori Curriculum, in Year 6, our students take part in the Peer Peacekeeping program. On the last Friday of September, they spend the day learning how to be objective and empathetic as they learn to mediate conflict between their peers and younger students in the school. After the initial training, the students assist as Peer Peacekeepers on yard to deal with conflict resolution among the younger students. The UE program provides further lessons throughout the year to expand upon their knowledge. This is only one example of how traditional Montessori lays the foundation of life skills that will serve our students throughout their lifetime.

Terry Fox Run!

Thank you to all the students, parents and staff who joined us Monday for our Terry Fox Run.
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