May/June

NEWS

2016

June 10, 2016

Dear St. James Parents:

As always, the end of each school is very bittersweet for everyone. It’s wonderful to see how each child has grown and become more independent, but it’s also very difficult to say good-bye to those graduating students and their families. It has been a wonderful year with many achievements and we are looking forward to continuing our goals and initiatives for next year.

First of all, as communicated by the PTO, I would like to extend a huge thank you to all the families that supported the Auction this year. Through the efforts of all the folks that organized the festivities to those that attended, we were able to raise approximately $50,000 to support the school! These funds will be instrumental in initiating various upgrades and improvements throughout the facility. We will keep you posted as we finalize plans for these initiatives but we certainly appreciate your support and generosity!

Secondly, we are excited to announce that we will be adding an additional Toddler classroom, Toddler 4, for the 2016 – 2017 school year. We are looking forward to this opportunity to expand our Toddler program. We certainly appreciate all the recommendations that our current families have made to friends and colleagues, which has contributed to this growth opportunity. Ms. Amanda Smith and Ms. Ashley Schlachter will be stepping into the lead this classroom.

I would also like to share with you information regarding a few teaching changes that will be effective in the fall. It is natural to have teaching changes from year to year, but each year always seems to bring its own bittersweet moments.

• Ms. Tamara Latchem will be leaving St. James to pursue a teaching position with DISD. We want to congratulate Tamara on the completion of her college degree and receiving her teacher certification. She has worked many long hard hours to accomplish this goal. We also want to thank her for all her wonderful years of service with St. James and we wish her many blessings in her new teaching opportunity. Ms. Eloise Miller will be stepping in as the lead teacher in the P3 classroom. Eloise has five years of experience teaching in a Primary classroom and has received her AMS certification through Shelton. We are excited about her joining our team and we know the kids will welcome her with open arms.

• Ms. Kim Cobo will also not be returning to St. James next fall to pursue other opportunities. We will miss Kim and her quiet calming nature with the children. I have hired Laura Coyle who has multiple years of experience in Primary Montessori classrooms and has recently earned her AMI certification!

• Ms. Marla Hernandez has finished up her college courses and will be doing her teaching internship this fall to complete her teaching degree. We would like to congratulate Marla for all her hard work and wish her well as she completes her education. Ms. Sheila Martinez will be stepping in to assist Ms. Barrineau in the P2 classroom. Ms. Sheila has been very involved in P2 classroom instruction this year and we know that this will be a very smooth transition.

• Ms. Eliane Khairallah will not be returning to the Toddler 2 classroom in the fall. Ms. Eliane will be moving to Lebanon to be with her fiancée and begin planning her wedding. We will miss Ms. Eliane and wish her the very best on her new adventure! Ms. Annabel Herrera will be moving from the Toddler 1 classroom to Toddler 2 to assist Ms. April and Ms. Lilly.

• Ms. Pamela Pedraza, an After School Care teacher, will be moving into the Mother’s Day Out classroom to assist Ms. Eva and Ms. Mary as Ms. Ashley transitions into Toddler 4. We are excited to have Ms. Pamela join us on a more full-time basis. She has been a great help in After School Care and substituting in all the classrooms during the past school year.

We are currently interviewing candidates for various other open positions within the school and will communicate the decisions as offers are made final.

We look forward to the conclusion of another successful school year and wish everyone a peace-ful and relaxing summer. As always, please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any ques-tions concerning these changes.

Sincerely,

Loree BirkenbackHead of School

DEAR PARENTS:

Here we are at the end of another great year in the classroom! The children have learned so many things from living in a community of friends. Our youngest children have learned by watching the older children. I feel as if I watched each and every one of your children begin to unfold the layer of achievements. This class has been a wonderful journey this year for me and my team. We want to thank you for sharing your children. The work they have done and the growth we have seen, as always, is amazing. We hope you agree that the year has been a success.

We wish a heartfelt farewell to those of our students who will not be returning next year, and we wish them all the best at their new schools. We wish all of our students and parents a wonderful and refreshing summer break. We look forward to seeing you return for the 2016/2017 school year. We thank all of our wonderful parent volunteers for their participation in the 2015/2016 school year. Thank you to the parents who have helped organize events and who come to support events. We know as a volunteer organization it is sometimes hard to juggle all the commitments you have, but the leadership this year has been amazing! Have a safe and wonderful summer! Ms. Eva, Ms. Mary and Ms. Ashley

MDO

The 2015-2016 school year has come to an end and summer has begun. The toddlers have learned independence, made new friends, and become amazing Montessori students. Ms. Annabel and I have truly enjoyed teaching your children. It has been so enjoyable watching each child move forward and mature in the daily works and tasks in the classroom. We will miss the students that are leaving this classroom and moving up to Primary. They have a special place in our hearts. Times of transition are so bittersweet.

Thank you to all our students and parents for making us feel so special during Teacher Appreciation week and for our birthdays and for each and every day. We are so proud of all of our students and look forward to seeing the returning students in the fall.

Enjoy life, enjoy your children, and enjoy the summertime.

Much love,Mrs. Anna and Ms. Annabel

TODDler 1

We can hardly express our gratitude for the love and appreciation over teacher appreciation week. We love working with the beautiful children of St. James and are honored with the opportunity to nurture them and watch them grow.

The last month of school is one of excitement, special events, hard work, laughter and even some tears as we say goodbye. May has definitely been a fun month, we had a few children come dressed for cinco de mayo! Aren’t they adorable? And the children always have fun when David chicken comes to school. Look him up, his songs are fun!

We are so proud of our class, almost everyone is leaving for the summer potty trained!! That is a huge accomplishment in the toddler community. It is bittersweet to see the children growing up and moving on and we will cherish the memories of our year together always.

We want to say “goodbye and congratulations” to Ms. Eliane. Ms Eliane has been at St James for three years and we will miss her dearly. She will be moving back to Lebanon this summer where she will be planning her wedding for summer 2017. We wish her

many blessings as she starts this new adventure.

We wish everyone a safe and wonderful summer break. We look forward to seeing our returning toddlers and catching a glimpse of the graduating toddlers in the primary halls.

Relax, have fun and we will see you in August! Much love, April, Lilly, and Eliane

TODDler 2

Saying Farewell

As the days are winding down, seeing these sweet faces daily makes our day a little bit brighter! The children in Toddler 3 have come leaps and bounds this year as a working community. It’s beautiful to see the relationships the children form with one another and how willing they are to help each other at this age.

We will cherish the memories we have from this year from circle and story times, to working, yoga, and playing on the playground! The children this year have mastered their routine, learned how take turns and share accordingly, as well as potty train and get their hands dirty experiment-ing with sensory and practical life.

Gardening with Ms. Loree was one of their favorite activities this as well. We are going to miss our little toddler community so much this summer but we know you will all be having so much fun with your families!

Happy Summer to You! Ms. Coral, Amy, Amanda and Pamela

TODDler 3

• A House for Hermit Crab, by Eric Carle• From Head to Toe, by Eric Carle• The Tiny Seed, by Eric Carle• The Very Busy Spider, by Eric Carle• The Mixed-Up Chameleon, by Eric Carle• A Color of His Own, by Leo Lionni• Frederick, by Leo Lionni• Inch by Inch, by Leo Lionni• Little Blue and Little Yellow, by Leo Lionni• Swimmy, by Leo Lionni• The Earth Book, by Todd Parr• The Feelings Book, by Todd Parr• The Peace Book, by Todd Parr• Can You Say Peace?, by Karen Katz• Daddy Hugs, by Karen Katz• Mommy Hugs, by Karen Katz• The Colors of Us, by Karen Katz• Toes, Ears & Nose, by Karen Katz• Chicka Chicka 1, 2, 3, by Bill Martin Jr., Michael Sampson, Lois Ehlert• Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, by Bill Martin Jr., John Archambault, Lois Ehlert• Growing Vegetable Soup, by Lois Ehlert• Planting a Rainbow, by Lois Ehlert• Belly Button Book, by Sandra Boynton• Pajama Time, by Sandra Boynton• Big Red Barn, by Margaret Wise Brown• Goodnight Moon, by Margaret Wise Brown• Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, by Judith Viorst• Barbara Reid books• Beatrix Potter books• Busy, Busy Town, by Richard Scarry

• Carl’s Birthday, by Alexandra Day• Corduroy, by Don Freeman• Crabby Crab, by Ruth I. Howard, Helen Downing Hunter• Dr. Seuss books, by Theodor Geisel• Elmer, by David McKee• Emily’s Out And About, by Cindy P. Senning• Go Away, Big Green Monster!, by Ed Emberley• Guess How Much I Love You, by Sam McBratney• Mercer Mayer’s Little Critter series• Mouse Paint, by Ellen Stoll Walsh• Our Peaceful Classroom, by Aline D. Wolf• Old Turtle and the Broken Truth, by Douglas Wood• Robert Munsch books• Ten Flashing Fireflies, by Philemon Sturgess• The Foxwood Treasury, by Cynthia and Brian Paterson• The Giving Tree, by Shel Silverstein• The Gruffalo, by Julie Donaldson & Axel Scheffler• The Gruffalo’s Child, by Julie Donaldson & Axel Scheffler• The Jolly Postman, by Janet & Allan Ahlberg• The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, by A.A. Milne• he Story of Ferdinand, by Munro Leaf• The Water Hole, by Graeme Base• The Velveteen Rabbit, by Margery Williams, William Nicholson• When Sophie Gets Angry… Really, Really Angry, by Molly Bang

Montessori Recommended Preschool/Kindergarten Reading Lists (ages 3-6)

Dear Families of Primary 1,

What a fun and exciting year we have had. This month has been filled with the anticipation of graduation for our kindergarten class and thoughts of summer for everyone. We have, however still managed to do some work. I want to thank Ms. Kim for having written all of our previous newsletters for the year, what an eloquent wordsmith she is. My first full year at St. James has been a blessing and I am honored to have been able to share it with your children. Some of you may have noticed throughout the year the daily scripture verse on the small chalkboard just outside our door. The verses come from our class devotional which we read and discuss each day before lunch. I want to share with you a story of something that went on in our class.

After reading our devotional we get our lunches and set them at a table and then wash our hands. Some time back there were some issues as the children worried if they put their lunch down at a table where there were no others yet, would a friend sit with them. We have in the past, through song and other means, discussed that we are all friends. I was so pleased when a child in our class raised her hand before lunch to share with the class that,

“If you set your lunch down and there is not another there yet, there is no need to worry.”

I knew where she was going with this but I wanted the whole class to hear her say it, so I asked her what she meant.

Her answer -

“Because in P1 we are all friends, so no matter who puts their lunch down you will be sitting with a friend!”

One of the most beautiful aspects of a Montessori classroom is the children teaching each other and learning from each other.

Our kindergarten students have stepped up and helped out while at the same time doing more ad-vanced works. Our second years really took to getting their folders out and doing that work first (preparing them for next year) with great enthusiasm. Our first years have been steadily working on skills that build the muscles in their hands for future handwriting through push pinning, tracing, coloring and cutting with scissors. They have been learning the bead colors for future math works as well number symbols with quantities. The complete color wheel, teaching the gradation of color has also been of great interest this past month.

To my students who are leaving, it is bittersweet to see you go.

To my students who are returning, we have much still to learn and more ways to grow.

All my best! Have a great summer.

Ms. AmarisMs. Kim

PriMary 1

PriMary 2

Have a great summer!

Mrs. Barrineau and Ms. Marla

Ms. Jaymie reads A Camping Spree with Mr. Magee by Chris Van Dusen to the class

Ms. Tamara observes Anna matching objects with their initial alphabet sounds

It is hard to believe that summer is upon us! The school year has truly flown by.

There has been a flurry of activity in our classroom right up to the very last day. The children have been motivated to finish maps, book-making works, and other projects before the end of the year. They have shown a strong interest in collaborating with each other and having “one more lesson” before the year is through. We have also been preparing for the Kindergarten Showcase and have enjoyed celebrating our summer birthdays. Those birthdays include Sawyer Irvin and Hunter Stockstill, who will turn four this summer, and Audrey Lippert and Patrick Whitmire, who will turn six.

As we wind down the year, it is a joy to reflect on the milestones that each student has achieved over the last nine months. Every step towards autonomy, every sign of self control, and every “light bulb moment” reminds us of the inner motivation that each child has to grow. Ms. Jaymie and I have loved guiding your children this year and we can honestly say that we have grown with them. For me, this graduation is especially bittersweet, as it also marks the end of my time at St. James. I am grateful to each of you for the tremendous opportunity to guide your child’s development. I will cherish every memory I have with them as I move on to new opportunities.

Many congratulations to our kindergarten graduates: David Waterman, Levi Wester, Patrick Whitmire, and Audrey Lippert. To you, our graduates, and to the other students who are moving on, we wish you the very best! And to all our Primary 3 families, we wish you a safe and happy summer!

Ms. Tamara and Ms. Jaymie

PriMary 3

Levi is working on addition with the abacus

Alex is sorting the insects

nomenclature cards

Madeleine is pricking out pieces for her North America map while Mason and Benton work on the lifecycle of the duck puzzle and Aidan works with the number rods

Daniel is very focused on constructing the tanagram

Cole is making a book about the seasons of the year

PriMary 4Times flies when you’re having fun!

What a joyful year this has been for me and Ms. Bianca! We greatly enjoyed watching your children learn and grow during this school year and we absolutely appreciated every valuable minute we got to spend with the children of Primary 4. As much as this year was filled with delightful experiences, the end of the year is always a bittersweet time for us teachers. We were blessed with 5 confident and intelligent Kindergarteners; 8 thoughtful and hard-working second levels; and 10 eager and loving first levels. As we all know, children grow up and have to move on and we wish nothing but the best for our children who will be leaving the Primary 4 nest!

Ms. Bianca and I would like to say thank you to all of the wonderful parents that have welcomed us into the Primary 4 family and have supported us this year. We look forward to seeing all of our returning families in August for the 2016-2017 school year.

“Within the child lies the fate of the future. Whoever wishes to confer some benefit on society must preserve him from deviations and

observe his natural ways of acting. A child is mysterious and powerful and contains within himself the secret of human nature.”

-Maria Montessori

Have a fabulous summer! Ms. Sarah and Ms. Bianca

Primary 4’s 2015-2016 Kingergarten Graduates!

I cannot believe it is time to say “goodbye for now” already. This year has truly flown by! We have had so much fun in art and technology this year. I am sad to say goodbye to some of the students, but I know they are off on a new adventure to do great things.

The past few weeks have been busyas we have completed our final projects for the year. The second level students created beautiful paintings of a prickly pear cactus on canvas, and the kindergartners completed drawing and painting their self portrait. I am so proud of all of the hard work the students put into their projects this year. I hope they will be cherished for years to come!

The kindergartners continue to amaze me with their enthusiasm for technology. They worked so hard on their PowerPoint presentations. They created all of their slides - choosing the background color, picking out fun transitions, typing their steps, and recording their sweet voices. I thoroughly enjoyed visiting each of them in their classroom to take pictures of them doing their favorite work. They even taught me a thing or two! Put it all together it is a great presentation of this moment in time. I hope you all enjoyed the showcase! I am so proud of each of the kindergartners, and I will miss them greatly next year. Good luck to each of you! Thank you for a great year,Ms. Hanna TechnOlOgy

arT &

Another year has flown by and somehow we are in May again. The days are long and the years are short. I have enjoyed this year tremendously. There has been such growth since August, tears have been replaced with smiles. In the last couple of weeks I have noticed the second year toddlers are looking like primary students. Not only do they look like primary students, they act like primary students. They have grown and are becoming leaders.

The primary students continue to be a continuous burst of energy. Their growth can be seen during playtime. Their ability to resolve their differences with friends has improved greatly. They can talk to their friends and resolve their differences and very seldom need to seek the help of a teacher. It makes for a peaceful environment in our little ASC Family.

Our sweet toddlers walk with an air of confidence that melts my heart. They love circle time and can be heard singing songs, now knowing all of the words to each song that is sung.

Happy May! It has been a wonderful year and I thank you for allowing me to watch your children “after hours.” I have loved getting to know them and share in their day.

Have a safe and wonderful summer and I can’t wait to see all of you in the fall!

Lisa Wilson & The ASC Staff

aSc

God’s Love Is Big

The time has come - our last newsletter for the year - it’s gone by so fast. As I write this I’m think-ing toward this coming Chapel service, which will also be our last for the year. How appropriate that the topic will be “God loves us”! I hope that by now you will have come to understand that in all my newsletters and in all our services, that is the most valuable and greatest thing that I can share with our students.

Since our last newsletter we have had some great stories acted out by our kindergarten class-es. Daniel in the Lion’s Den was great fun and we learned that when we are faithful to God he is always faithful to us! Primary 3 kindergarten students made great lions!

The Parable of the Lost Sheep taught us that we are all, each and every one of us, important to Jesus, the Great Shepherd.

Our next lesson acted out by ourkindergarten students from P4 was about how Jesus took two fish and five loaves of bread and fed 5000… teaching us that when we give a little to God, He can take it, bless it, and create much more.

Finally, we learned through the story of Zacchaeus that we are never too far from God, that the love of Jesus our Savior changes our hearts if we let it.

It has been my pleasure to share the love of God with our students, to watch the growth of our kindergarten students in their various roles in chapel, to see the smiling and encouraging faces of my fellow teachers and to witness the beautiful commitment of our parents!

As always remember God loves your child, and you, BIG!

Ms Amaris chaPel