Youth CaN Café About a third of our children had a parent come to the second Youth CaN Café yesterday. The Youth CaN club had baked both banana bread and brownies (all of which they sold – thanks for the baking help, Jessica!) and we had delicious fair trade coffee. Some Youth CaN club members served as hosts for the morning, greeting parents as they arrived, selling goodies, and even marketing EWMS-logo Chico bags. It has been
very nice to have an opportunity to relax over a cup of coffee with the parents and staff.
Please mark your calendars now for the December Youth CaN Café, to be held on THURSDAY, December 4. This will be your opportunity to meet the Accreditation Team from AMS and Middle States.
Thanks
Many thanks to Elizabeth Gehrt and Donna Thomas who helped out in the office this week and to Elizabeth, Kathleen Magnor-Rios, Mary Beth Miller, and Rupa Jha who helped us with a bulk mailing.
Halloween
Our Halloween festivities are legendary. Of course, we always start off with a noisy parade and
a show-off circle. Each class then hosts an activity or two or three, and the kids enjoy going from booth to booth to toss a bean bag, eat a donut from a string or have a design painted on the back of their hands. This year, the parents also organized a cookie and cupcake decorating activity. Three of the booths were estimation activities that required our kids to use their deductive and reasoning skills. Vidushi (EI) used her tactile ability to estimate the number of marbles in a Halloween sock. When her estimate was closest, she won the pair of socks and the contained marbles! Quinn (EII) came closest in estimating the circumference of a jack-o-lantern (which she took home) while Jameson (EII) came closest without going over on the number of candy corns in a jar. Well done, EWMS estimators!
Alumni Update Erin (Haupt) Binder lives and works in Wilmington. She and her husband, Paul, have two children aged three and one. Julie Capodanno is teaching English as a Second Language in New Jersey.
Hours Opportunities
We need a couple of people to track down some phone numbers for us. This can be done easily on line. If you are interested, please contact the office.
We will be finishing up our bulk mailing on Friday. If you have time to stuff envelopes this weekend, please contact the office.
Alumni Update Erin (Haupt) Binder lives and works in Wilmington. She and her husband, Paul, have two children aged three and one. Julie Capodanno is teaching English as a Second Language in New Jersey.
Hours Opportunities
We need a couple of people to track down some phone numbers for us. This can be done easily on line. If you are interested, please contact the office.
We will be finishing up our bulk mailing on Friday. If you have time to stuff envelopes this weekend, please contact the office.
Diversity Survey
Last month, thirteen Diversity Surveys were returned to the school. 92% were from current parents, one of whom is also a board member. If you would like to see all the results from this survey, please contact McCrae. In a nutshell, respondents value the diversity that is evident at EWMS, especially racial, ethnic, and cultural diversity, with several folks mentioning that this was a significant reason for the family’s decision to enroll here. Religious and economic diversity are not as overtly evident at the school, which respondents generally think is a good thing. A couple of comments reflected the notion that EWMS could do more to reach out to various communities and people (sectors of society).
Images from
Amy Dwyer
Animationfactory.com
Barrysclipart.com
E. McCrae Harrison
Gifanimations.com
Parents and Kids Working Together Day, Wednesday, November 5, 2:00 – 5:30 PM
We hope many of you are planning to stop by this afternoon to spend some time with your children in their classrooms. This is an Open House format, so you may come and leave when it’s convenient between the hours of 2:00 and 5:30 PM.
Downtown Fall Festival
The weather was spectacular for the Downtown Fall Festival on Saturday, November 1. Thank you, Brooke, Jessica, Mike, Ranieka, Victoria, and Vivek for staffing our information table.
Conferences
Conferences are scheduled for Friday, November 7 and Monday, November 10. There is no regular school on those days, but day care is available for the day or for the hour of your conference. If you need care, please talk to one of the extended day staff.
Speak Up 2008
The Elementary Workshop Montessori School is participating in Speak Up 2008, a national research project facilitated annually by Project Tomorrow, a national nonprofit organization in Irvine, CA. Your ideas and viewpoints about your child(ren)'s education matter to us and we use the Speak Up process to ask you about key educational issues regarding technology, 21st century skills, schools of the future and science education. In February, we will receive the survey results and use the information to inform our discussions and decisions about curriculum, professional development and budgeting priorities.
School districts from across the United States and a few international schools participate in Speak Up regularly. Since inception, the Speak Up process has collected and shared the views of over 1.2 million students, parents, teachers and administrators from all 50 states. In addition to serving our local needs, the Speak Up findings are released through a Congressional Briefing in Washington, DC and various speaking engagements across the country.
Our school has committed to having at least 10% of our students and teachers take the online survey. This is a great opportunity for parents to join students, teachers, and administrators in both the local and national dialog about significant and timely issues impacting education today.
Details:
* The survey is open October 27 – December 19, 2008.
* Visit www.netdayspeakup.org/speakup2008/ to take the survey; it will take about 15 minutes.
* Complete the survey only once -- even if you have more than one child.
* Enter your child's school name, and optionally the state (to narrow the search), click Find School.
* Select the school your child attends and start the survey process.
It's quick, easy and 100% anonymous and free.
We hope that you will join in and share your thoughts with us.
Sincerely,
Amy Dwyer
Technology Coordinator
Calendar
Wednesday, 11/05
Parents and Kids Working Together, 2:00 – 5:30 PM
Friday, 11/07 and Monday, 11/10
Conferences: Day Care Available
Thursday, 11/13
EI Overnight Field Trip to Ashland Nature Center
Saturday, 11/15
Maintenance Day, 8:00 AM – Noon
Wednesday, 11/26 – Friday, 11/28
Thanksgiving Break: No School
Tuesday, 12/02 – Friday, 12/05
Accreditation Team Visit
THURSDAY, 12/04
Youth CaN Café – meet the visiting team members over coffee – note that this is on Thursday this month, please.
Monday, 12/22 – Friday, 01/02
Winter Break: No School
Monday, 01/05
School Re-opens
Saturday, 01/17
Maintenance Day, 8:00 AM - Noon
Mother/Adult Female Book Club
Winterthur has formed a new Mother (Adult Female) & Daughter Book and Craft Club just for girls! Once a month on Thursday evenings, we'll get together to discuss a young adult historical fiction book we've all read, try some tasty historical snacks, and make a cool book-related craft to take home. Moms/adults should be sure to read the books too! November's Book Selection: A Journey to the New World: The Diary of Remember Patience Whipple by Kathryn Lasky. Registration is required. Call 800.448.3883 to register and for more details.
About a third of our children had a parent come to the second Youth CaN Café yesterday. The Youth CaN club had baked both banana bread and brownies (all of which they sold – thanks for the baking help, Jessica!) and we had delicious fair trade coffee. Some Youth CaN club members served as hosts for the morning, greeting parents as they arrived, selling goodies, and even marketing EWMS-logo Chico bags. It has been 
Mike, Ranieka, Victoria, and Vivek for staffing our information table.
The Elementary Workshop Montessori School is participating in Speak Up 2008, a national research project facilitated annually by Project Tomorrow, a national nonprofit organization in Irvine, CA. Your ideas and viewpoints about your child(ren)'s education matter to us and we use the Speak Up process to ask you about key educational issues regarding technology, 21st century skills, schools of the future and science education. In February, we will receive the survey results and use the information to inform our discussions and decisions about curriculum, professional development and budgeting priorities.
Calendar