Casa News – January, 2020

January was a very busy month in Casa! Along with their regular work, the children took part in 4 Casa Cooks (fruit kabobs, carrot soup, brussel sprouts, and fries), 2 Yoga classes with Kim from Tree Song Yoga, the annual Teddy Bear Hospital, and Expert Day! Please check out the photos posted below from these events!

Our Circle Times this month have had a focus on manners (grace and courtesy) and germs (how they spread and how to prevent the spread). Students were engaged and learned so much about spreading kindness instead of germs!

February will be the month of love in Casa. Just a reminder that we do not distribute Valentine’s Day cards in Casa. In our experience, it isn’t feasible for the students to manage this task in a fair and loving manner at this level. Our celebration of this special day will be meaningful and age appropriate for all of our Casa children, so please do not worry about them missing out. Your children can look forward to a week filled with art, stories, songs, and community outreach, all centering around love, kindness, and caring for others. Students are also welcome to wear colours on Valentine’s Day that make them think of love and kindness (traditionally red, pink, purple, and white…but whatever they’d like!).

Happy New Year from Casa!

Happy New Year to all of our Casa families! We hope you had a happy, healthy, fun-filled, and relaxing holiday with your family and friends. We’re excited to be back and have lots planned for Term 2 with your children.

Friendly reminders:

  • If you haven’t already, please return your child’s indoor shoes and extra clothing bags.
  • Check in to see photos of your children working and playing at school. You will not receive notifications when we post photos so check in every once in a while to see what’s new!
  • If your child stays for recess, please consider sending two pairs of mitts on Phys.Ed days so they have a dry pair at recess.

What’s happening in January:

  • January 21st – Teddy Bear Hospital. Your child does not need to bring anything for this special morning in Casa
  • January 29th – Expert Day. Details will follow but this will take place during drop off for Casa families (approximately 15 minutes)
  • Tuesdays in Term 2 – Yoga with Kim from Tree Song Yoga

Casa News: April 15-18

This Week:

Thank you to everyone who made it out to Culture Day this morning! The children were excited to show you their work and the work of their friends!

Next Week:

Happy Easter to those of you who celebrate Easter! We hope you all enjoy the extra long weekend and we look forward to seeing the children back on Tuesday. Please remember that many of the sweets your child may receive this weekend will not be nut free. We have several children in the school who have anaphylactic allergies to nuts. Please do not send any dessert / or treats with your child so that we can ensure that everyone is safe and healthy at all times. Also, keep in mind that children who receive the prepared lunches, do not receive desserts or treats with their meals. Please help us to develop healthy eating habits by avoiding sweets and treats when packing lunches.

Tuesday is Earth Day. Students will take part in a few activities to celebrate our Earth and learn ways to care for it the best we can.

Tip of the Week:

Our yard is FINALLY starting to dry up, but as we are sure you’ve noticed, the mud is sticking around! Please continue to send rubber boots and splash pants to keep the kiddos dry and clean(ish).

Casa News: February 25-March 1

This Week:

What a busy week we have had in Casa! On Monday, Aimee’s Mom “Chef Anne” came in to help the children make fruit salad. It was a hit! Irish Millie was also visiting that day and brought along her fiddle to play for the children. Some children even had the opportunity to touch the fiddle and try out the bow on the strings. On Tuesday, Evan Ng’s Mom, Jenny, visited both Casa classes to teach the children more about Chinese New Year. Students had an opportunity to ask questions and use chop sticks! Today, Jimmy Chapman was back for another exciting session of break dancing. You can ask your children if they can show you “the robot”, “the worm” or “cut the cheese”. Remember to check out the photos we post to see some photos of these events as well as students completing daily work.

Next Week:

Tuesday will be Pancake Day at KMS. This is a wonderful morning when the Lower Elementary students prepare and serve pancakes to the whole school! The pancakes will not replace a meal, so please still send along whatever food you normally would. Please also send your child with a plate and fork in a bag. More details can be found in the email sent out by Kristi this morning.

Don’t forget there is no school on Friday, March 8th, as teachers will be hosting parent-teacher interviews.

Tip of the Week:

Thank you so very much for all of your donations of milk / juice cartons. We have received enough cartons to begin our bird feeders!

We have a new student teacher in Casa for the next seven weeks. Her name is Nanae and she is currently completing her ECE diploma at Fleming College. We encourage you to introduce yourself if you see her in the halls!

Casa News: Week of January 21-25, 2019

This Week:

What a strange week we all had! From frozen pipes to snow storms and freezing rain! Through it all, the children kept smiling. It’s been so lovely to have snow in the backyard again! If your child wants to bring their sled back to school, there is enough snow to toboggan once again. Please remember to label the sled so that we can keep track of whose sled belongs to which child.

Next Week:

On Tuesday we have a special guest coming to run the annual “Teddy Bear Hospital” in the two Casa classrooms. Angela Carruthers (mother to Brennah in UE) will be teaching the students all about life in the ER and will show the students how to care for a variety of stuffed animals with pretend injuries.

Public Open House:

There is a Public Open House tomorrow from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm. If you know of anyone who would like to come and tour the school and learn more about the Montessori philosophy and KMS, please extend an invitation on our behalf. We’d love to meet them!

Casa Test

Hello Casa Families,

It has been brought to our attention that you may not be receiving email notifications when we post our weekly Casa posts.

You don’t need to respond to this message, we are simply testing to see if we have fixed the problem.

Sorry to fill your inbox!

The Casa Team

Casa News: December 2-7

This Week:

This week in Casa, students had 2 exciting events take place that we are sure you will  hear all about this weekend (if you haven’t heard already!).

Thursday was our annual Santa Shop, run by the Lower Elementary students. Casa students loved the opportunity to buy special gifts for their family members and also enjoyed some special one-on-one time with their Upper Elementary shopping buddy.  We hope you like your gifts!  

Today we had Molly’s grandma, “Gummy” come to do a special craft with the Casa students. They will be sent home next week and can be hung anywhere you want around your home (perhaps a Christmas tree or another special place). Gummy says they will still be edible weeks from now!

Next Week:

A surprise guest will be visiting on Monday to bake a special treat with the kids!  We know the students will be excited to use the kitchen and have an opportunity to create something delicious!  

Middle School toy drive continues all next week.  Donations can be left in the grey bins in the foyer. 

Tip of the Week:

If you’re looking for something to do time this weekend, please have your child(ren) practice “It’s a Small World” for the Holiday Concert!  

Casa News – Week of October 29-November 2

This Week:

This week has been full of Halloween fun!  The week began with a visit from a special guest – Kim MacLean!  The children loved doing Halloween Yoga with her and playing funny games with Pete the Pumpkin. The children enjoyed sharing their plans for Halloween costumes and the teachers LOVED seeing the pictures you sent in from the big event!

Next Week: 

All week we will be making paper poppies to share at the school-wide Remembrance Day Ceremony that will take place on Friday. Middle School students are organizing a meaningful ceremony and all students will take part.

The Parent Child Open House will take place after school on Wednesday.  Details on how to respectfully observe your child in their environment will be e-mailed to you on Monday.  We hope to see you all there!

Tip of the Week: 

Don’t forget to change your clocks back this weekend. A friend shared with us a few years back that instead of being woken up at 6:00 a.m. Sunday morning and then having to tell your child it’s actually only 5:00 a.m. (yuck!!!), consider waiting until mid-morning and changing the clocks then!