Better Together
Geist Montessori Academy@GeistAcademy
Volume 21: May 3, 2020
You are our sunshine!
Dear GMA School Family,
You are our sunshine! As we head into our final two weeks of school, I am filled with such adoration and appreciation for all of you! You have been the sunshine, the constant shining force for our GMA learners through these uncertain times. Your rays of hope and light, sprinkled with order and consistency, have comforted our children, and they are thriving because of YOU!
You have planted the seeds of success by the routines that you have established, helping our students to be confident and feel securely planted. The prepared environments, with limited toys and activities, while still providing choice and independence are fostering their lifelong love of learning. We are so grateful for the rich foundation that you have created for our strong, home-school partnership, allowing our students to continue to flourish and bloom.
Like the giant sunflowers, themselves, each flower made up of thousands of tiny florets, we are better together. Together, we can truly nurture our school family, so vibrant and full of joy!
Wishing you a week of walking on sunshine,
Cindy Schuler
Executive Director
Geist Montessori Academy
(317) 813-4626 cschuler@gma.k12.in.us
“It is like the sun which appears at dawn or a flower just beginning to bloom. Education cannot be effective unless it helps a child to open up himself to life.” ― Maria Montessori
This week, the staff has collaborated to reiterate our love for our GMA school family. Please know that we are always here for you, and you can always count on us!
Ready for take off!
Pack your bags!
We’re heading to the world's largest continent that has long captivated travelers with its natural beauty, distinct cultural traditions, ancient architecture and delectable food. At a time when travel is restricted, we have found a way to bring the world a closer.
The creativity and learning experiences that you have been providing in your homes as our students have explored Asia is ready to take flight in GMA's first virtual International Festival!
Enjoy a diverse mix of features and meaningful moments as you adventure here:
Supportive Strategies by Ms. Peg: What are you looking for?
What are you looking for?
Do you believe all people have purpose? I do! But sometimes, when I was raising my children, I found myself working hard to “fix” or correct my kids more than I did admiring the goodness in them. I would think to myself, “Why can’t my kids play quietly? Why do I have to force them to read? Will they ever be able to keep their room clean? What is wrong with my kids?” I’m happy to report that my three children have grown up and are all doing really well. Phew! But if I were to go back to those days, I’d take more time to notice the many, many things that my kids were doing well and pay attention to those instead of dwelling on the few areas of need they, and all people have. “Descriptive noticing” is a strategy where the teacher (you) adjust your focus from what you don’t like, to something positive and give your attention to that. Does your child hum while he works? Instead of telling him to be quiet, smile and tell him that you know that you can’t hum unless you’re happy and you are glad that he’s happy while he works. Does your child notoriously argue with you when it’s time to start working? Be grateful that she has a strong personality and talk to her about her leadership traits. When you adjust your lens, and begin to notice the things you’ve been trying to change as possibilities for good, your child may grow into the self-motivated and independent person you always wanted.
Take Aways:
1. Pay attention to what you are focused on.
2. Reflect and ask yourself to notice your child in a new way.
3. Observe your child with these new thoughts.
4. Express positive and personal observations to your child.
5. Pat yourself on the back for noticing the great things in those you love the most.
Montessori Resources
Whole School Resources for the Coronavirus Pandemic
- Families First Coronavirus Response Act: webinar presented by Fisher Philips, hosted by the Montessori Public Policy Initiative. See summary here.
- Coronavirus response clearinghouse from the Montessori Foundation
- Montessori Leadership Facebook Group: Discuss strategies and get support from other school leaders. Admin: Tammy Oesting
- Free Webinars and Town Hall Meetings from the Montessori Foundation and International Montessori Council
- Montessori Foundation YouTube Channel
- Learning from Home Parent Handbook (graciously shared with the public by the Montessori School of Tokyo)
- Downloadable Montessori parent ed video series provided free of charge from Nido Marketing
Special Needs
- Distance Learning for Equity Plan: created by Magnolia Montessori for All, a charter school in Austin, Texas
- Montessori4Inclusion: Resource page for COVID-19 response for students with special needs
- Montessori Now: Montessori and special needs with Christine Lo
- Adapting to teaching by Teleconference by Andy Lulka and Beth Kalisky from Integrating Montessori
- Seesaw: Remote learning training for teachers and school admin
- Google resources for schools during the coronavirus pandemic
- How to use Zoom for online learning and video conferencing
- List of free online platforms: compiled by School Choice Week
Primary (3-6)
- 3-6 Parent Support Group: please refer your families to this group for general support, resources and ideas during the school closure. Moderated by trained Montessori guides and teacher trainers. Admin: Jana Morgan Herman
- Sample daily messages from Mighty Oaks Montessori.
- Day 1: Sample schedule Video
- Day 2: Sample schedule Video
- Sample daily schedule and home activity suggestions from Lanny Cheuck of WBees Forest School
- Curated Book Lists by Ashley Speed of Diamond Montessori
- Primary resources compiled by the Montessori Agency
- Want to keep up with resources for the Primary level all year long? Join the Trillium Montessori Primary Email Newsletter.
Elementary (6-12)
- Elementary Parent Support Group: please refer your families to this group for general support, resources and ideas during the school closure. Moderated by trained Montessori guides and teacher trainers. Admin: Letty Rising
- Timeline of Pandemics FB Live from Montessori Renaissance Academy
- MINT’s Idea Book for Primary and Elementary by Montessori Institute of North Texas (weekly PD also available)
- Elementary resources compiled by the Montessori Agency
- Want to keep up with resources for the Elementary level all year long? Join the Trillium Montessori Elementary Email Newsletter.
Talent Show: Students Spreading Sunshine
We miss you all so much and hope to connect with you through GMA's First Virtual Talent Show.
Everyone has been blessed with unique gifts and talents. How can your child share his/her gifts with others to spread joy and happiness? Capture your child's talent like artwork, writing, dancing, singing, playing an instrument, or sharing a special project or skill.
The Talent Show allows your student to spread sunshine and inspire others!
Students should submit entries by May 5:
https://form.jotform.com/201083498959166
We can't wait to see them shine!
The Virtual Talent Show will be Friday, May 8.
Get out your umbrella~ It's Raining with ms. joni
NUrse NOtes: All the Feels!
All the Feels
How is everyone doing? I hope that the chirping of the birds and some warm weather has gotten everyone out of the house and starting to soak up some Vitamin D. Instead of talking about something “mandatory” this week, I thought I would just talk about my own experience during this pandemic. Hopefully someone can relate and if anything, you should know that you are not alone. As a nurse, wife and mother of two toddlers, I always felt organized and like I had it together prior to COVID-19. Being a nurse, and working in the Neonatal ICU, I was always schedule driven and by the book. This carries over into my personality as a wife and a mother. Prior to the pandemic we had a schedule, we stuck to it and everyone was happy and thriving. But were we really thriving? To some extent, the answer is yes. My children thrive on school structure. They love getting up, starting their routine, seeing their friends, doing their works, and then coming home to have family time in the evening. I have been a stay at home mom on and off since my first little one was born 4 years ago. I always felt exhausted, yet still like I wasn’t doing enough. I should’ve been prepared for COVID-19 right? NO! This is a totally different situation. I can handle being at home with my kiddos, but being their teacher is a whole new ball game. I am doing the best I can to get a few ABC 123’s in each day. At the end of the day though, they are still thriving. Both of my kids have grown and blossomed right before my eyes. And you know what is such a blessing about that……COVID-19 has allowed my husband and I to be right there in front of them and to experience their growth. As sisters, they have become the best of friends and my oldest has become such a good leader. They have learned life skills, like riding a bike or cooking a meal. My two-year-old has expanded her vocabulary and sentences like crazy. These are moments that are priceless and may not have occurred had we not been asked to step back, stay at home and focus on our family. Tomorrow is never guaranteed, but today is full of possibilities. As long as everyone is happy, fed and loved at the end of the day, I would say that you are all doing a great job. If you feel overwhelmed, just remember, your kids are perfect and they are going to be just fine.
To document this time in history, our sweet neighbor did “porchraits” on everyone’s front porch, from 6 feet away of course! If you have a moment, document a picture of your family during this time. Post it on the Better Together: Padlet to Share Ideas/Learning. We would love to see all of our GMA families!
Take care of yourself and your precious kids! Reach out to me if you have questions about anything or need help (jsterrett@gma.k12.in.us)
Love,
Nurse Joy
books about health, emotions, and compassion
A Germ's Journey
Micro: It's a small World!
Have you filled your bucket today?
IDOE Healthy Hoosier Challenge
Get up, get moving, and get BINGO!
In an effort to help promote our students’ well-being while at home, IDOE created this physical activity challenge! How to complete the challenge:
1. Choose an activity from the list to complete each day!
You can do each activity three times.
2. In each box write the number of the completed activity.
3. Have an adult in your household sign your form. ( see downloadable form below)
Once your challenge is complete, view our Healthy Hoosier Challenge Prizes *Link coming soon!*
Print your form OR save it on your tablet/phone and take it to one of our sponsors to receive your prize!
A word from the Riverbanks with Ms. Jeanie
Hi, it’s Ms Jeanie from the riverbank today.
I want to tell you about of one of my favorite trees, the sycamore. I bet you have seen a sycamore. You could be in a car driving down the highway and see their shiny white bark. They are usually close to water, too. So, from the back seat of a car, you can tell where the creeks and rivers are.
A sycamore has all of the normal features of a plant but with its own spin. For one, its roots are especially important.
Remember that plants have two kinds of roots. Hairy looking fibrous roots gather water and minerals such as nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, magnesium, sulfur, calcium, and others. Strong, woody roots anchor the plant, holding it tight in the ground. Because the sycamore often lives on a riverbank, the roots have to be strong enough to anchor it in flood waters. They also keep the soil on the riverbank from washing away. The sycamore in my picture was standing in eight feet of flood water earlier in April.
Another function of a stem or trunk is to hold the leaves up high to get more sunlight than neighboring trees. A sycamore is the biggest tree in Indiana at 122 feet tall! Imagine our school, but 8 stories tall. That sycamore would be taller. Here is a link if you want to see the other biggest trees in Indiana. https://www.in.gov/dnr/forestry/8169.htm
Sycamores trunks sometimes do the really beautiful thing of growing branches over a river, probably to catch the sunlight that no one else can get.
Remember I asked you to look for bird nests in the branches of trees in your yard? If you looked at a sycamore you might see a Baltimore oriole nest, looking a bit like a fuzzy sock hanging off a small branch. It would be a warm nest and oriole babies wouldn’t fall out.
Sycamore trunks often have cavities in their trunks where owls, ducks, swifts, flycatchers, squirrels, bats and other animals can live.
And finally, there are the leaves. Sycamore leaves are often bigger than my hand! Do you remember what leaves do? They use their green chlorophyll to change sunlight into energy. They pass that energy on to insects such as the Sycamore tussock moth and many others, who pass it on. Leaves also exchange gasses, carbon dioxide in and oxygen out. Leaves bring in enough carbon from air to build that amazing trunk and those huge roots!
Sycamore seeds are food for the goldfinch, chickadees, and juncos.
So, a sycamore tree feeds many kinds of insects and birds.
It provides homes for many animals.
It cleans the carbon out of our air.
Resources to stretch thinking
Digital media collections
Library of Congress (LOC) Digital Collections has endless primary source documents for students to explore.
PBS Learning Media has tens of thousands of state curriculum-aligned digital learning resources. Integrates with Google Classroom and Remind.
Literature comes alive with Kidlit TV
Kidlit TV has videos and podcasts with authors and illustrators. The site also provides activity ideas, including the annual nationwide video contest, 90 Second Newbery Film Festival, which is open to students of all ages.
Open source books and online libraries featuring works from around the world.
Project Gutenberg Free Online Library Open the works in html and right click for Google translations of anything from Ancient Greek texts to classic Norwegian literature.
International Children's Digital Library Explore tales, fables, and stories from around the world in over 59 languages.
Reading lists by grade
Mensa for Kids Excellence in Reading Program is a free program open internationally to any and all readers under 18 years of age (Grades k-12), their teachers, and librarians. The program encourages students to read to the level of their ability or interest, regardless of age or grade level.
Virtual museums and operas
Click here for a list of museums throughout the world who have opened a google virtual tour.
Metropolitan Opera: Free Nightly Opera Stream provides free streaming of different encore presentations from the company’s Live in HD series.
National Association for Gifted Children
NAGC has compiled an extensive list of eLearning resources for the gifted learner, family, and teacher.
Online courses and video lessons
Crash Course, an online youtube channel started by Hoosier native John Green and his brother, Hank, has 15 courses with up to 75 video lessons for each. Lessons are geared for the middle and high school student.
Crash Course for Kids follows the same format as Crash Course but with elementary level content.
Thinking skills practice
Prufrock Press At-Home Student Activities & Worksheets offers a free eBook of Thinking Skills Activities for Grades 3-8
Industry outreach and virtual connections
Nepris has an incredible selection of videos from industry experts.idoe daily learning challenge
Have fun learning and exploring this week!
Counselor's Corner
Hello Everyone!
The Kelso and Lily stories have arrived! Below is a Google Drive link that contains 5 stories that involve Kelso and Lily. For the first story, Lily mentions Kelso's 9 ways to solve small problems and there is a download for those 9 ways in the folder as well. Also included is a choices color wheel that can help give a visual representation of the choices that Kelso makes during the stories and in everyday life! I hope these stories are able to give some great ideas on how to help solve small problems that might happen during quarantine. If you have any questions about the link, please let me know. I hope everyone has been doing well! Let me know if there is anything else I can do to help.
Story Folder Link:
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/13SJmLIVmEKE8X-YLJOY-8fq8g3lzlwzK?usp=sharing
Thank you!
Michael Skiles
Geist Montessori Academy
School Counselor
317-813-4626 EXT: 104
Social Emotional Resources:Social Emotional Learning Resources related to Covid-19
Resources to support you and your family:
- See this link for information on hospitals, Community Mental Health Centers, and other local supports: https://www.in.gov/issp/2422.htm
- Trauma and ACES: https://developingchild.harvard.edu/resources/aces-and-toxic-stress-frequently-asked-questions/
Thank you GMA School Board
A possible virtual School Board Meeting will be held in May, so please stay tuned for more details.
http://gmacademy.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/GMA-January-2020-Board-Meeting-Minutes.pdf
Padlet to Share Ideas
We have already been receiving so many incredible ideas and adorable pictures of amazing projects/learning at home. As such, I have decided to create this Padlet for our GMA School Family: Better Together: Padlet to Share Ideas/Learning
Please feel free to share photos, ideas, or other positive items to this site. You can upload items by clicking on the + sign. This is a fun way that we can all stay connected as a supportive and caring community. I look forward to the posts, and thank you for sharing!
Summer School and Summer CAmps
With new guidance about gatherings being such a fluid process, we hope to be able to announce a definitive schedule with days, times, and course details very soon.
Enrollment/ Registration scheduled for late may
internatioal festival QR Code: Enjoy your trip!
working together for the better!
Meet Geist Montessori Academy's Executive Director: Cindy Schuler
Email: Cschuler@gma.k12.in.us
Website: gmacademy.org
Phone: (317)813-4626
Twitter: @GeistAcademy
New Phone Number: (317) 813-4626 and Address
Please take note; our new school family has a
NEW PHONE NUMBER:
(317) 813-4626
NEW ADDRESS:
6058 W. 900 N.
McCordsville, IN 46055
s'more Newsletters
Better Together Newsletter, Volume 1
Better Together Newsletter, Volume 2
Better Together Newsletter, Volume 3
Better Together Newsletter, Volume 4
Better Together Newsletter, Volume 5
Better Together Newsletter, Volume 6
Better Together, Newsletter, Volume 7
Better Together Newsletter, Volume 8, 1.26
Better Together Newsletter, Volume 9, 2.2.2020
Better Together Newsletter, Volume 10, 2.9.2020
Better Together Newsletter, Volume 12, 2.23.2020
Better Together Newsletter, Volume 13, 3.1.2020
Better Together Newsletter, Volume 14, 3.8.2020
Better Together, Volume 15, 3.15.2020
Better Together, Volume 16, 3.22.2020
Better Together Newsletter, Volume 17, 3.29.2020