Curiosity and Character in Upper West
Our first month back at school has been filled with laughter and learning! All of the students have settled in well, and our Grade Four students have been warmly welcomed into our classroom community. It’s been great fun sharing the building with Upper Elementary East.
The First and Second Great Lessons have piqued the students’ interest in the origins of our universe and all life on Earth. Using these amazing stories as a springboard, students will explore related topics in great depth: the life cycle of stars, scientific classification, animal research projects, and more.
We have also begun our character education program, and the students have enjoyed discovering the Magnificent Seven Virtues connected with success in school and life (gratitude, grit, zest, self-control, social intelligence, curiosity, and optimism). Our new journals are getting filled quickly, as the students submit weekly entries, and students have been using special Montessori math materials to explore fractions and decimals.
On our magnificent seaside playground, the students have been busily renovating their forts, using palm fronds and bamboo. Others spend their recess time competing on the football field – we have seen some fancy footwork out there!
Some of our Grade Six students have begun preparing for their spring trip to the MMUN (Montessori Model United Nations), and the Grade Five students have already started talking about their field trip to CCMI (Central Caribbean Marine Institute) in Little Cayman. The Grade Four students are excited about an upcoming cooking activity – they are going to make a lasagna as a thank-you to a classroom guest-speaker. We have had an exciting first month, and have lots of wonderful things to look forward to this school year!
