It is the "official" start of the 2011-2012 school year this week. Cole's Montessori school has a year-round program which is wonderful because during this pre-school period I believe it is vital to not have a cessation in learning. During the summer months, there is less emphasis on daily lessons but they still spend several hours a day developing their educational brain cells with multiple breaks for physical outdoor play.
The Montessori philosophy embraces that each child acquires skills at their own pace with support and guidance from its teachers. I have witnessed Cole flourish in his classroom. I wish that he is always as excited as he is now to show me his "work". I have to say how impressed I have been at the sheer content of his "work", doing simple math and writing letters without tracing at his age simply amazes me. He loves to have me hang his worksheets in his playroom and on the refrigerator. Holy toledo if he finds any of his sheets in the trash (*ugh, but I can't keep every single one of them!)
Many of Cole's school friends were away from Montessori for the summer as they have older siblings who were home because public schools had their seasonal break. He knew that this week, they would all be back! He kept asking each day, if it was THE day and finally it was.
This will be his final year at Montessori before embarking on his journey through Kindergarten next fall. It will be so bittersweet to watch him graduate from OMS next spring. He was just 18 months old when I left him for the very first time with Ms. Sara and soon, nearly 4 years later he will have grown up under their watchful and caring eyes. His love of "work" is a testament to OMS. I can only hope that as he moves forward with his education that he continues to have teachers that can foster his curiosity and wonderment and encourage his love of learning.
No comments:
Post a Comment