"The teacher's happy task is to show [children] the path to perfection, furnishing the means and removing obstacles, beginning with those which she herself is likely to present (for the teacher can be the greatest obstacle of them all.)" 
—Maria Montessori, The Absorbent Mind

Please scroll down for the list of important dates.

Current Families & Any Siblings (Preschool-8th)
Re-Enrollment: Feb. 19th - March 2nd

Preschool
Open Enrollment: March 5th, first-come, first-served basis

New Families
Open Enrollment: March 14th - March 28th

Lottery:
March 30th

Hello FCMA Community we need your help!

Each year FCMA’s 8th grade middle school students spend one week completing 30-40 hours of unpaid student internships at businesses in the community (see attached information and news article). This year, we have several responsible, mature students that need your assistance with securing an internship. Internship week is April 23rd - 27th, 2018. If you can help identify an internship, please email meghanvandenplas@choiceschools.com. Thank you so very much!

The goal of this internship is for students to gain knowledge about the business world and become career focused as they begin making college and career path decisions. We are confident that when you meet our 8th grade middle school student, you will find a very mature, helpful, eager, and observant person. 

Our students are open to any internship opportunity, however, some specific areas of interest include: sports and sports medicine, veterinarian, engineering, computers, photography, and a bakery/restaurant.

Internship supervisor tasks:

·        Identify work tasks for intern

·        Allow intern time for daily reflection

·        Act as a mentor for 5 days, approximately 8:00am – 3:00pm (time flexible)

·        Daily signature (student will ask you for this during internship)

·        Complete student evaluation at end of internship

Thank you for any assistance that you can provide.  
Meghan Vandenplas

Check out this video highlighting last year's internship program.

Mark your calendars for FMCA’s 8th Annual Art and Music Showcase on Saturday, May 5th. 
The proceeds from this event not only help to supplement the school’s art and music programs,
but fund art/musical guests and field trips as well. 

We are looking for adult artists to donate one art piece for the silent auction
portion of the art show.  Please email Mr. Michael, FCMA's Visual Art Teacher at michaelchabot@choiceschools.com if you or someone you know is interested. 

The staff and students thank you for your continued support!    

Dear FCMA families - 

March is "Music in Our Schools Month!" Throughout the nation, this celebration is used to both highlight the strengths of established music programs and also advocate for children who are underserved. Did you know that Michigan is one of a handful of states in the nation that does not mandate music instruction in all elementary schools? In this regard, my colleagues and I in the executive board of the Michigan Music Education Association continue to advocate for legislative change that guarantees a quality music education for all children in our state. 

In celebrating the fact that we have a thriving music program here at Four Corners Montessori, I want to zoom out a few thousand feet from our classroom rehearsals, games, and performances to illuminate the importance of music education for children. 

First, despite what we may hear in the media, music does not make children smarter. Through research, there is no connection between music achievement and overall academic achievement or IQ. Music does however highlight connections and bring new perspective to other subject areas and can certainly make learning more fun and memorable. In our music classes at FCMA, we often explore the intersections of music and its interwoven lessons of culture, geography, history, peace education, social justice, math, and science. 

Music does allow children to experience the world sonically, through the creative manipulation of sound. In his theory of multiple intelligences, developmental psychologist Howard Gardner defined seven types of intelligence. One of these is musical intelligence, which can only be accessed by engaging with music. Music education in schools allows children to cultivate this potential within themselves. When a child engages in music-making and music study, they open up their development to a form of knowing found in no other subject area. 

When we engage together in music classes at Four Corners, we also experience lessons that go beyond the nuts and bolts of the music itself. Music allows children a form of expression that is not bound by language. It opens the possibility for resonance with something that words can't express. It builds our community by bringing us together in sound and purpose. It has the potential to bind generations through a shared experience. In my 18 years of teaching, I can say the joy I feel making music with children never fades. Music is amazing.

Thank you to our dynamic community for supporting your children's music education through your attendance at concerts, buying your children instruments (and ALL the ukuleles!!), supporting their singing and song-writing, and loving the music along-side them. I am excited for growth our program will see in the years to come! 

Shannan Hibbard, Ph.D.
Music Teacher
State Research Chair, Michigan Music Education Association (MMEA)

Cultivating Respect

"Adults and children alike feel comforted when their feelings are understood. What a rich vocabulary we can give children to help them express their feelings: concerned, disappointed, dismayed, perturbed, overwhelmed, amazed, excited, grateful, inspired, proud.

In the normalized Montessori classroom, children begin to understand that all humans share the same basic needs. We can model for children how to empathize with their own and other's needs for acceptance, celebration, consideration, cooperation, community, harmony, inclusion, learning, love, order, peace, play, reassurance, safety, and support."