Important dates and reminders for FCMA families. No Images? Click here "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.)" Please scroll down for the list of important dates. Current Families & Any Siblings (Preschool-8th) Preschool Lottery: The Ned Show: Character Ed Assembly 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. Check out this video highlighting last year's internship program. School Spirit Signs Show your school spirit by ordering a yard sign and placing it on your lawn during open enrollment in March. Send your $10 payment via Paypal (use friends & family option) to: fcmaparentguild@gmail.com. Include your child's name and classroom. An FCMA Parent Guild volunteer will then contact you to make arrangements for sign pick up. This is a Parent Guild Fundraiser. Please note that the menu has been slightly changed. On March 21st, students will be served Chicken Burrito Bowls w/ brown rice, a banana, fritos and milk instead of Lentil Sloppy Joes w/ corn, yogurt, an apple and milk. CHRIS CAKES OF MICHIGAN Monday, March 26th Students will enjoy watching as pancakes are flipped from the grill and onto their plates! Never heard of Chris Cakes? Known for their "Flying Pancakes," watch this video from the Food Network to learn about this catering company that's coming back to FCMA soon.
Please click the link below to find out more information on how to donate books for the upcoming Book Swap on Monday, March 26th.
On Thursday, April 12, 2018 FCMA will be hosting its 3rd annual Poetry Jam! This is a day in which students can Mark your calendars for FMCA’s 8th Annual Art and Music Showcase on Saturday, May 5th. We are looking for adult artists to donate one art piece for the silent auction 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.
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."
The Ned Show: Chris Cakes/Pajama Day/Book Swap: Family Skate Night: SAVE THE DATES: Family Formal Spring Dance:
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