A Time to Celebrate

Thursday night, we had a our annual Back to School BBQ.  This year, it was a bit different because we included a ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate our school expansion.  The mayor joined us for this special event, and many of the parents were there to help us usher in this new school year.  My two daughters helped to cut the ribbon, and they're still talking about it today.  I had also asked some returning students and school alumni to help us hold the ribbon on either side.  It was quite an emotional evening, but I managed to keep it together!

After the ceremony, the children enjoyed some time playing on our new playground while the parents got to know each other.  I was able to steal a moment just to stand and watch all of these loving, dedicated parents as they got to know their new little Montessori community.  At that moment, I was so proud of how far we've come and so excited for what's yet to come.   

It was a glorious evening and I can't wait to get this school year started!

Board Review

Tomorrow morning I stand before the State Board of Private Academic Schools to review our school's application for licensure.  Please think good thoughts tomorrow morning at 9:00am!  I'll keep you posted.

**Post Update**

We just got home from the Board Meeting and we were APPROVED for licensure as a Nursery/Kindergarten Private Academic School.  I think tonight will be the first Friday night in 6 months that I'm shutting off my computer and saving my work for tomorrow.  Thanks for all of your positive thoughts this morning!

Sigh of Relief

We had our final state inspection today and we passed with flying colors!  I feel like I can finally breathe and enjoy what's left of this summer.  Our inspector is fantastic, very upbeat and positive.  She even commented that our classrooms are just beautiful.  Here's to years of a great working relationship with the state!

Inspection #2

This week we passed our inspection with the Department of Environmental Protection.  We officially have safe, healthy drinking water.

Our final state inspection takes place mid-August.  We've really got the ball rolling now!

First Inspection

Well, we've got our first inspection under our belts.  It went well and was much less stressful than I imagined.  The inspector was thorough, but she wasn't at all critical or condescending.  I've had many years of experience with these inspections, and they're not typically enjoyable.  The only thing we need to "fix" is a missing form from an employee's file.  Not bad, if you ask me!

This inspector was not very familiar with the Montessori Method, but she seemed open to learning about it and understanding the purpose of the materials.  Of course, once I get on a roll there's no stopping me. I gave her a detailed explanation of the materials and the sequence of materials in each area of the classroom.  After some time I realized I probably didn't need to go into so much detail, but she did seem to maintain interest throughout my rambling. 

So our next steps are inspection number two from a different agency in two weeks, and a board meeting in August.  I'm going to try and focus on this first hurdle that we have successfully leapt before worrying about inspection number two.  Take a look at the finished product:

Sensorial Materials

Language Materials

Math Materials

Practical Life and Art

Happy Fourth of July!

I've been absent from the blog lately because we have our first inspection this Friday!!!  I've been rearranging our new furniture, moving boxes to the new building and setting up materials on the shelves.  Once again, I have to mention my respect for the quality of furniture from Community Playthings.  People walk into the classroom and are struck by the beauty of the tables, chairs and shelves.  It certainly is quite an investment into the school, but I know it will pay off.  Other directors mention that they've never had to replace a piece of Community Playthings furniture.  Can you tell I'm a bit excited about it?  We received 46 boxes of furniture and had it all unloaded and mostly set up in one day.  One looong day.  Here are some pictures of our progress...

So, it's coming right along.  I've been imagining this classroom for over ten years now, and the dream is coming alive right before my eyes.  I can hardly believe it.  I was over there working until past 11:00pm and I just had to sit down, look around, and take it all in.  I can only hope that this school will be passed down to my daughters and loved and cared for for many years to come.

I don't think I'll be posting any more pictures until the classroom is completed.  Should be within the next couple of weeks!

Enjoy the holiday weekend!

Pre-Primary Progress

My wonderful husband has been working at the new location day and night trying to get ready for inspection.  It looks like both state inspections will take place in July, so time is slowly slipping away.  The rooms had great, commercial grade carpet, but as every early childhood teacher knows, you need wet space.  Water work, paint, snack, handwashing, mopping, the list goes on.  I found a fantastic flooring that is waterproof vinyl, but looks like hardwood.  I love it so much, I want to rip up all of my carpet in my classroom and replace it with the vinyl plank.  However, my carpet is really glued down and it wouldn't be time-effective to rip it all up, so we're just going to tackle half the room.  We also only ripped up half of the Pre-primary carpet because the little ones spend a lot of time on the floor.  To give you an idea of how hard my husband is working...24 hours later, the moldings are all back on, the tack strips are nailed in, and a tiny 10 in. potty is now installed where you see that drain.  Have I mentioned he's great??

The fencing is coming along slowly, but it looks terrific:

Check back soon for more updates...

Community Playthings

Community Playthings is by and far the best manufacturer of children's furniture.  They stand behind the quality with a 10 year warranty and free shipping.  I was putting together a large furniture order for the new building, when I came across a fantastic online booklet.  Take a few moments to read about why play is an essential part of every child's emotional and physical well-being:

The Wisdom of Play

Lucky Day

Now that spring has sprung, the stress to complete the playground has re-surfaced.  If you read my posts a few months back, you might remember my ideas for the nature-based playground.  I'm still fully on-board with the idea and as excited as ever to bring it to life.  I've been pricing out log furniture all over the country (and even our neighbor to the north), but I can't seem to find anything that is even somewhat reasonably priced.  I can't even find a free shipping incentive.

Well, wouldn't you know it, I was out looking for a table for our school's foyer, when I stumbled across A LOG FURNITURE THREE-PIECE SET AND MATCHING A-FRAME SWING.  I just about fell over.  It turns out log furniture is very "in" this spring and many retailers are hopping on the bandwagon.  You know you're following the right path when something you've envisioned for years becomes a new fad the exact month you need to purchase it.  This is what the swing looks like:

I'm considering a trip back to the store later this week to pick up this little bridge they had displayed.  I originally had a little bridge in my plans for the playground, but wasn't sure I'd be able to find one.  This one sells for under $100.  I was planning to place river stones in a little path down to the garden, and place this bridge over the stones.  Children would love to run over this little bridge, imagining that they are visiting far off places:

Labyrinth Continued

I'm in the process of ironing out the details of our new playground.  I had mentioned in an earlier post, here, that I wanted to include a labyrinth element.  These creative minds produced a full size labyrinth out of bulbs!

You can check out the details at:  The Bulb Project.

Expansion Update

We're moving right along with our expansion plans, thanks to my dedicated family who has helped me tremendously.  On March 9th, our school sign was completed and installed at our new location.  It's a beauty and a dream come true. 

We're at the tail end of fulfilling our requirements for our Certificate of Occupancy.  This week our fire alarm system will be installed and we already have a working telephone number (well, two really).  We'll continue to use our current telephone number, the new one will be published next school year.  That Cert. of Occupancy should be in my hands next week! 

After that, it will be mailed--along with our application and a boatload of other papers--to the State for review.  We'll have an inspection and receive license number one!  Shortly after that, we'll stand before the Academic Board for another review by the State and that will give us license number two!

With spring in the air, I'm eager to get over to the new building to start landscaping.  We need another before and after shot!  I'll keep you posted with any new updates...

Before and After

I was able to spend a few hours over at the new school building and got many things accomplished. I scrubbed the walls, added a few plants and some wall hangings. There were a few nails already in place, but I'll need to lower them so the children can enjoy the hangings too. Of course, there's really not much I can do in my classroom until June because I'll simply be moving my materials over at that time. I'm preparing the front office for the host of interviews we've got lined up for the month of January. I'm looking forward to meeting all of these new parents who are eager to learn more about Montessori. It will be so nice to welcome these families into the new school building, separate from my home. My husband knows that I work 24/7 1) because I love it, and 2) because it's here in my house. It will be refreshing to turn work off for a couple of hours every evening. Check back next year to see if I actually do take some time in the evening!

Front Office:

Before

After

Main Entrance:

Before

After

I also added a small leather bench in the foyer for children to sit. It's great because it also opens up for storage. Thanks to my husband for setting up the beautiful fish tank:

Seating

These gorgeous handmade seating solutions were created by Bienenstock Natural Playgrounds:

Do you know anyone who would be up to the challenge?

Natural Materials

Thanks to all of the people who offered to help with our playground project. I've compiled a few lists of materials needed to start this project. Some need to be purchased, but others can be made or found. Some of these objects seem a bit odd for a playground, so check the pictures in one of my previous posts for clarification. If you feel you could contribute by making or finding any of these materials, please contact me.

Materials to be Found or Made

• Stumps for stepping

• Boulders
  
• Twine branches for entrance way
  
• River rocks for "riverbed" and/or labyrinth
  
• Fill (for body of slide)
  
• birdhouses and birdfeeders
  
• Garden benches (for the handyman/woman)
  

Materials to be Purchased

• A-frame swing
  
• hammock
  
• Maple trees
  
• 6 x 6 posts for sandbox
  
• slide
  
• bridge
  
• children's picnic benches

I'm sure we'll think of many more items that we need, but that should get us going for now!

Nature-Based Playground

I have been doing a lot of research on children and nature lately, mostly stemmed by my interest in the lack of children playing outside in my neighborhood. Even on a beautiful, sunny day, you can hear a pin drop. I've seen many books written on this subject: "Where have all the Children Gone?" , "Last Child in the Woods"...

The moment I realized this was a severe problem was when I brought a group of children outside to play on the first day of school. Two of the children came outside and just stood there. They had NO IDEA how to play outdoors. I used the Montessori approach to show them (one age 3, the other age 4) how to kick a ball, run up and down a hill, go down a slide...They had never played outside or gone for a walk outdoors. This new generation is desperately in need of more unstructured free time outside in order to maintain a healthy, balanced lifestyle. I read an article recently in a Montessori publication about this topic. The writer interviewed an 8-year-old boy and asked him, "Would you prefer to play indoors or outdoors?" He responded with this jaw-dropping response, "I'd rather play inside because that's where all the electrical outlets are." Oh my.

Cheryl Charles, President of Children & Nature Network, reports that "Children are smarter, cooperative, happier and healthier when they have frequent and varied opportunities for free and unstructured play in the outdoors."

After coming to these conclusions, I'm going to do my best to incorporate a Nature-Based Playground into our new location. I found a company who specializes in planning and implementing these types of play spaces, however, that type of expense is way out of our budget. I did find several pictures that depict my vision. I've recruited some family and friends to help us make this vision a reality. If any of our current or potential families feel they can offer time, materials or creative ideas, please contact me. It is so important for us to get our children back outside.

The company that created this beautiful children's retreat is called Natural Playgrounds. Couldn't you envision the children using their imagination more and enjoying their natural surroundings in an environment like this?

Key Day!!

This evening, I received the keys to our new school building! The place looks great and I'm so excited to make it feel even more like "home". As promised, here are some pictures. Below are pictures of the foyer, part of the Primary classroom, and the main office. One of the best aspects of the building are the expandable walls. I can have one enormous classroom (practically the length of the entire building) or I can section off a room for nappers, kindergarten pull-out, yoga, or anything else I can imagine. The sky's the limit!

Here is G proud to be one of the first to sign the visitor log...