November 26, 2013 Volume 7, Issue 2

The Tall Oak

Leaves

Grandparents Day: A Day of Celebration

Oa

k F

arm

Mo

nte

ss

ori

Sc

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Value of an Oak Farm Education 2

Infant & Toddler: Celebrating at Oak Farm 3

Primary: Beautiful Transitions 4

Lower: Reaching Out to the Community 4

Upper: MMUN Kicks Off 5

Middle School: Building Community 6

Specialist: Dia de los Muertos! 7

Inside this Issue

“This is such an incredible

place. I wish all children could

experience this.”

“The children are so proud and

they did such a great job.”

“I hope Montessori grows.”

“I was sitting there getting

teary-eyed. Those kids are the

teachers, the doctors, the nurs-

es, the lawyers... They are our

future.”

Today we delighted in our annual reception and visit of Oak Farm's grandparents. After being greeted with musical performances by our elementary students and middle school band, our grandparents enjoyed re-laxed and joyful visits with Oak Farm's chil-dren in their classrooms. This is an incredi-ble day each year, both as children beam with love and pride in sharing their learning, and as grandparents are welcomed by their grandchildren as the cherished family and community members that they are.

Thank you again, grandparents, for joining us, for supporting your grandchildren in a way only grandparents can, and we hope to see you again next year at Oak Farm!

Professional Corner: All Write Consortium 7

Building Community: One Gingerbread at aTime 8

Green Team: Ways to Green Up your Holidays 8

Our Mission:

To provide a Montessori

environment that inspires children

to reach their potential

through meaningful work.

Page 2

The Value of an Oak Farm Education Megan O’Sullivan

As you have read recently, we have begun to make plans for this year’s fundraiser, the Tall Oak Gala. We are excited for this chance to celebrate our school with you, and hope you will all rally in support of Oak Farm. As our school grows, one manifestation of the strength of our community is the additional investment, whatev-er size, made by parents, grandparents and friends in showing that an Oak Farm education is highly valued. We realize that in today’s economic times, eve-ry dollar counts. We wanted to share with you some more detailed information about the actu-al value of an Oak Farm education. We hope

you will appreciate the investment that we make in your child’s learning experience. Here you can see not only the actual cost of each child’s education, but also the difference between the cost and what tuition covers. Our grants from the Dekko Foundation allow us to keep the cost to Oak Farm families as affordable as possible, while providing a world-class program. Support from family and friends is what will keep Oak Farm going strong for generations to come. We hope you feel the worth of all that happens while your child is here with us at school. We thank you sincerely for being part of the incredi-ble community that is Oak Farm.

Supporting Life-Long Learning,

Emotional Literacy, Leadership & Citizenship

Tuition Price vs. Cost Cost Per Student:

Expense Breakdown

The infant & toddlers are learning what a work cycle is and it becoming a natural part of their routine every day. Infants are learning to sit up and post objects while toddlers are learning to count, name colors and match objects. It is fun to watch an older toddler help a younger child put a work away or set the lunch table.

Thanksgiving and the winter holidays allow opportunities for us to learn about family, giving opportunities and being thankful. Pie Feast together, stringing beads to form candy canes and learning the colors red and green are a few ways we are preparing for the holidays. We hope you and your family can prepare for the season together too.

Infant & Toddler

Celebrating at Oak Farm and Home

Page 3

‘Tis the SEASON for

families to support

their chil’ren!

S is for structure and routine.

Be flexible at times but do your

best to keep up with basic rou-

tines.

E is for expectations. Not all

emotions are happy and joyful as

we may expect. Help children un-

derstand other ranges of emotions

such as family absences, over de-

manding schedules or not receiv-

ing an expected gift.

A is for awareness. Rather than

focusing only on the behavior,

(such as increased irritability,

sleep changes, clinginess, etc.)

take a step back and try to figure

out what’s behind your child’s be-

havior.

S is for Self-Care. Parents and

caregivers who support them-

selves are, ultimately, supporting

their families by increasing their

capacity to provide loving, nurtur-

ing environments for themselves

and for their children.

O is for opportunity. Help your

child stay connected with loved

ones during the holidays.

N is for 'nesting'. The home can

be made into a kind of retreat. We

can use this “nesting” time as an

opportunity to break free from dai-

ly stress, enjoy special moments

with your children, and refuel for

the next day.

Toddlers dine “family style” - learning to

pass dishes to the next friend as well as how

to serve themselves while leaving enough

food for others.

The Toddlers from T2 and one of their

teachers, Candy, enjoy some community

time while listening to a story.

Lower Elementary

Reaching out to the Community

Primary

Beautiful Transitions

Page 4

Beginning in late October, Cohen, from T2, and Lennon, from T1, began their transitions from being Toddler stu-dents to being Primary students. Cohen is in P1 and Lennon is in P2.

Both Cohen and Lennon showed their readiness to move on to their next level of development at our school year’s beginning. During the months of September and October, their Toddler environments allowed for their leadership and need for higher-level work. However, when a child begins to move from the unconscious to the conscious absorbent mind, a child’s needs change; they now have need and desire for longer, more pur-poseful work that come with a higher-level of intellectual stimulation. Oak Farm’s Primary environments were ready to meet Cohen and Lennon’s needs. Cohen and Lennon’s individualized transitions to Prima-ry are beautiful examples of how our teachers collabo-rate to meet the needs of each of our students to help them reach their potential.”

As Toddlers said to Cohen & Lennon:

“You’re ready, we’ll miss you, and see you later.” Primary said:

“Hello Cohen and Hello Lennon, welcome, we’re so glad you’re here.”

For several years, Lower Elementary has been

in partnership with Provena Sacred Heart

Nursing Home in Avilla for holiday celebra-

tions. On Wednesday, November 30, the third

year students traveled to the nursing home for

the event. They participated in a Guess the

Costume game. From behind a wall, the stu-

dents gave the residents clues about their holi-

day identity. As the costumes were guessed,

the students joined the residents at their tables

for cookies and drinks. Following the game,

the students trick-or-treated through all of the

neighborhoods in the home so their costumes

could be enjoyed by all.

TOP: Cohen working with Practical Life materials

BOTTOM: Lennon working with Sensorial Materials

LE students practice leadership and citizenship as they make joyful connections with Provena Sacred Heart residents.

Volume 7, Issue 2 Page 5

Upper Elementary

Montessori Model United Nations Kicks Off

On March 14th and 15

th 4

th-8

th

grade students from across the country will descend upon Indi-ana-Purdue University Fort Wayne for the 2

nd Midwest

Montessori Model United Na-tions Conference, (MMUN). Once again, Oak Farm will be represented by an enthusiastic group of World Changers. Last year’s successful conference has spurred over twenty stu-

dents to join the team this year. Students entered the class-rooms in August talking about MMUN. For those who partici-pated last year, MMUN was an experience that deepened their understanding of global issues. As one former delegate stated, “it has changed the way I think.” The work is big and challeng-ing, but from the words of our students it is all worth it.

What are the students

& teachers saying

about this work?

“I’m feeling really good about

this year – new countries, bet-

ter time frames, and more peo-

ple.” Ethan

“I’m looking forward to writing

my speech and dressing up.”

Esa

“It moves me; it gives me

goose-bumps. It makes me

feel hopeful for the future. I

love watching and hearing

young people so passionate

about the issues, and they

know their voices are being

heard.” Angela

“I see the skills learned in their

preparation for MMUN demon-

strated in cultural works and

research in the classroom. It

carries through on many lev-

els.” Nancy

“I’m looking forward to culture

night – celebrating and un-

winding from a long day.”

Hannah

“I’m looking forward to lunch

and going around meeting

people from other places far

away.” Lindsey S.

“I’m looking forward to talking

about the problem because I

don’t like to see people sad.”

Violet

“The energy and enthusiasm

MMUN team members display

towards global issues is conta-

gious. I am continuously im-

pressed and amazed at the level

of work students put forth for

MMUN. The United Nations docu-

ments and articles about the is-

sues are often heavy and wordy,

but the students dive in and glean

what they can. If we give them big

tasks to accomplish, they will rise

to the challenge.” Sara

This year’s delegates from Upper Elementary are Back row: Tia, Logan, Louie, Karissa, Esa, Lydia, Mate’

Middle Row: Reed, Ethan, Koral, Emma, Milana, Jeffrey, Cobin

Front Row: Violet, June, Hannah, Lindsey, Lyndsay, Mariah

In Front: Emma, Allison

Middle School

Students Build Community by Reaching Out

Page 6

The first months of the school year have been dedicated towards forming collaborative relationships among middle school students. Our work with animal care, group projects, and community meetings has all been designed to create shared experiences that introduce problem solving strategies, establish healthy patterns of communication, and form positive working relationships.

November marks a change in community focus at the middle school: outreach. Each Friday afternoon will be dedicated towards exposing students to outreach opportunities that will be developed throughout the rest of the school year. Between now and January, students will rotate through each of the four outreach areas in an effort to nurture a “consciousness of knowing how to make oneself useful.”

Outreach Area:

Learn from Our Elders Middle school students take time

to engage in conversations with

residents at Sacred Heart Nursing

Home. Eventually, students hope

to be using Montessori materials

to work with dementia patients.

Residents will be invited to tour

the middle school farm.

The consciousness of knowing how to make oneself useful, how to help mankind in many

ways, fills the soul with noble confidence, with almost religious dignity.

– Maria Montessori

Outreach Area: Be Stewards of the Land Middle school students take on a Farm-to-Fork entrepreneuri-

al challenge involving stewardship of our farm resources.

Eventually, they hope to open a drive-thru Friday Farmer’s

Market in the outbuilding and sell their products to the great-

er Oak Farm community.

Outreach Area: Save Our Planet Middle school students take an in-depth look at real world sustainability and

environmental issues. Connecting big topics like clean water, toxic waste,

and food gaps to local community projects will eventually place students in

positions to make a difference, locally and globally.

Outreach Area: Care for Our Young Middle school students take on the role of

writing and reading mentors as they work

one-on-one with students in Primary and

Lower Elementary. Primary and Elemen-

tary students also are invited to the Middle

School campus to learn more about our

farm and the animals that live here.

Elementary Students Celebrate

Dia de los Muertos! Flor Ortega ~ Spanish Teacher

Page 7

In October, the Upper Elementary students visited the Fort Wayne Museum of Art to see the exhibition of “Día de los Muertos,” or Day of the Dead. In addition to expanding their knowledge of this cultural theme, they studied how this celebration is still vivid in some zones of Mexico and Hispanic countries. They also appreciated graphics made from some Latino artists. After their visit, students decided to make their own altar including all the relevant artis-tic elements such as sugar skulls, paper flowers, candles, “papel pica-do” (similar to snowflakes), and they baked a special bread called “pan de muerto” that it is very popular during this celebration. The students were very excited with this project and worked hard to develop all the details of an authentic Dia de los Muertos celebration. This year the altar in Upper honored Philo Fansworth, and in Lower Elementary, Ma-ria Montessori. We hope next year we will be able to contribute one altar at the Fort Wayne Museum of Art.

Emma

adds her

sugar

skull to

the altar.

Birk concentrates as he adds

detail to his sugar skull.

Oak Farm Joins the All Write Consortium

This year, Oak Farm has become a member of the All Write Consortium, a professional network of educators in the area who support each other in integrating reading and writ-ing in the classroom through writer's workshop. In October, elementary teachers at-tended a workshop led by expert Carl Anderson on how to give feedback to student writ-ers. Next month, some primary teachers will attend a workshop on designing writing activities for kindergarten students. And throughout the year, Lower Elementary teach-ers are meeting regularly with Writing Coach Julia Nixon who is supporting us in our im-plementation of writing workshop.

Pro

fessio

na

l C

orn

er

Considering Options Lisa Coville ~ Oak Farm Parent

Page 8

A note from

Oak Farm’s

GREEN

TEAM

Building Community—One Gingerbread at a time

Oak Farm is a wonderful place where our children form lasting friendships. Making sure these friendships are cul-tivated outside of school requires dedi-cation from the parents. Our children’s school friends often do not live in the same neighborhood. The families of Oak Farm come from Noble, Allen, Dekalb, LaGrange, Steuben and Whit-ley counties. With this geographic area being so vast, a simple playdate can easily turn into a full day away from home!

Recently, a family took it upon them-selves to build community amongst the Primary One classroom. Mitch & Jennie McGinnis invited the friends from this class to come build ginger-

bread houses. The houses that the children built will be on display at the History Center in Fort Wayne. Maybe you could connect with another Oak Farm family, and make a playdate to go see this exhibit. Treat your family to a memory that will last a lifetime.

Thank you,

Mitch & Jennie,

for building

Community.

You help

Oak Farm be a

great place for

our children

to grow!

The Green Team

Ways to GREEN UP Your Holidays

1. Involve the kids by wrapping presents in your children’s artwork. If they aren’t willing to part with it, then invest in some decorative tins or fabric bags that can be used again and again. Another option is to buy some fun, reusable shopping bags as gifts and use them to wrap that person’s other gifts, too.

2. Use cloth napkins instead of paper when you have your friends and relatives over for your holiday dinner.

3. If you're hosting a holiday party, skip the traditional Red Solo cups, as they are harder to recycle (#5), and look for one their clear cups instead (#1).

4. Diffuse some essential oils or better yet simmer up some cider instead of lighting a chemically –laden candle or plugging in a synthetic air freshener.

5. Store your holiday leftovers in glass containers and do your best to avoid heating food in plastic con-tainers.

6. Consider breaking away from the recent trend of Christmas photo cards. Photo paper is not recycla-ble and if you think about what you do with the photo cards you receive, then you know that most of them end up in the trash. Photos are wonderful memories to share, so consider printing them on card-stock or even regular paper. That way if they are not added to someone’s scrapbook, at least you and your loved ones end up being recycled instead of in a landfill.