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Author: Alejandro Malespin

Toddler Extended Day Teacher (Closed)

Written by Alejandro Malespin on . Posted in Blog.

Foothill Montessori of Salt Lake seeks a Toddler Assistant/Extended Day Teacher to work 11am – 6pm, Monday through Friday. FMSL has three Toddler classrooms. You will be working closely with certified Montessori Teachers and also a team of Extended Day Support Teachers.

We seek a warm, imaginative, flexible, bright and creative teacher who preferably has worked in a Montessori environment or at a minimum has experience working with young children and is interested in working in a Montessori environment. A respect for and love of children is essential. Candidates must be able to communicate effectively with students, parents and fellow staff members. Our preference would be for someone who is interested in a long-term commitment to FMSL.

Candidate must have First Aid and CPR Certification or obtain certification immediately upon being hired (offered on-site). Candidate must also be able to pass a background check.

This position is available immediately. There will be a possibility of the job extending through the Summer 2020 and continuing on for the next Academic year. Compensation is based on experience and background.

Foothill Montessori of Salt Lake opened in 1985 with a current enrollment of approximately 220 students, Toddlers through Sixth grade. We offer a uniquely authentic Montessori curriculum. Foothill Montessori of Salt Lake’s mission is to provide a rich, individualized educational experience, which guides and nurtures the natural unfolding of the whole individual and inspires a lifetime love of learning and peace. Please see our website, www.mcsslc.com, for more information about our school.

Resumes and Letters of Interest should be sent to jobs@mcsslc.com.

A Letter from the Director

Written by Alejandro Malespin on . Posted in Blog.

Dear FMSL Parents,

It has been a year of learning and growth as our administrative team have adjusted to new roles and responsibilities. Although many of us have taken on new responsibilities this year, we have been fortunate to make this transition as a committed and familiar team who have worked closely with one another for a number of years.  Robyn has provided a great deal of guidance and even more trust while sharing her vision with our students, staff and parents.  Our staff have continued to provide a quality education, with a deep commitment to the Montessori philosophy and a spirit of community, to ensure a year filled with the kind of success you have come to expect from our school.  We are indeed grateful (and lucky!) to have such a wonderful staff who are committed and trustworthy.

Over the past several years we have been working towards our IMC Accreditation and have worked as a staff to develop clear processes and procedures to the benefit of our school community.  With thanks to our well defined processes and the guidance of IMC, we have not only maintained a quality program, but we continue to grow each year.  We have had a record number of applicants to our program for the 2019-2020 year.  Thank you for telling your friends about us and for helping us create a community where are all welcomed and where our emphasis on the individual growth of each person can be a reality.

I find that one of the most thrilling parts of my work is to meet with each applicant family during our interview process. The passion and engagement among our parent population is inspiring and holds us accountable. I am continually amazed at the devotion our families have to not only their children as individuals but to an education that allows their children the opportunity to grow into their best selves.  A willingness to stoke the fires of passion for learning, a commitment to allowing and inspiring curiosity, and a respect for the child as an important human with important work to do are common themes among our parents.  Collectively, this makes our job as Montessori educators so much easier.  I thank you for entrusting us with your most precious little souls.  We are honored to work with them and realize the great responsibility we hold.

In addition to being held accountable by meeting with each family individually, we have outlined and implemented a very detailed Performance Review process.  Each of our staff have the opportunity and responsibility to regularly check in with our working peers, our supervisors, and to do a self-evaluation.  We are committed to and find great value in the process of self-inventory and peer evaluation.  And, as always, we are open to and appreciative of your feedback.  We thank you in advance for filling out your end of year surveys, your exit surveys, and for providing your other experiences via email or face to face time with our staff.

As educators, it is considered “normal” to look back on the year with regret for the things we didn’t have time to teach and the things we wish we had done better. While I believe there is value in our continual commitment to growth and I celebrate our staff for their willingness to self-reflect, I want to take a moment to celebrate all that we have accomplished and all that our students have accomplished this year. I feel incredibly blessed to be surrounded by a community with such commitment to making a better world.  I will be around this summer and appreciate any and all opportunities to touch base with you.  Please feel free to check in via email or face to face and, in the meantime, best wishes for a rejuvenating and fun-filled summer!

Sincerely,
Britney

Mother’s Day Celebrations 2019

Written by Alejandro Malespin on . Posted in Blog.

Our Aspens and Willows classes had the opportunity to celebrate their wonderful mothers last week during their Mother’s Day Tea Events.

 

Aspens invited their mothers to join them in their classroom to enjoy a breakfast snack; also a lovely chance for their mothers to see what classroom life is like for their children. They were treated to a lovely flower on their way out.

Willows had a wonderful Mother’s Day Tea in the gym. The students prepared lovely little sandwiches for their mothers and the gym was decorated with care by the children.

After sharing tea, fruit and baked goods, the students sang a song to their mothers

Summer Screen Time Rules

Written by Alejandro Malespin on . Posted in Blog.

Looking for some great ways to create a positive summer schedule that requires movement, human interaction, and contribution to the family community before your child delves into the screens? This is a great guide for summer routines for kids of all ages!

1700 South Update

Written by Alejandro Malespin on . Posted in Blog.

FMSL has been apart of safety meetings taking place at Hillside Middle School. Administrators from the SLC School District, Dilworth, Beacon Heights, Cosgriff Memorial, UDot, City Council, and other traffic control departments are taking an in-depth look into the ebb and flow of children in the surrounding neighborhoods.

We are in the process of getting signage on 1700 South indicating to passers by, this is a school zoned area. We have installed flags to help those who are already crossing the street. As our school community is parking out front and on streets across from the front entrance, we encourage our families to utilize these flags and be vigilant about watching for students crossing this portion of road and then through our parking lot in the back to get to the other various schools in the immediate area.

Especially as the weather warms, we will see more students walking, scootering, and biking to school. Thank you for helping to keep our children and community members safe by slowing down and staying alert.

Children’s Day/ Día de los Niños

Written by Alejandro Malespin on . Posted in Blog.

While mothers and fathers are often celebrated around the world, there is also a special day that celebrates children. El Día de los Niños (Children’s Day) is a celebration of children that takes place annually on April 30 in Mexico. The celebration emphasizes the importance of literacy for children of all linguistic and cultural backgrounds.

Why celebrate Children’s Day? In the struggle to provide for their kids, parents may sometimes forget that confidence and creativity isn’t nurtured by fear and discipline. It’s a happy childhood that helps kids really succeed in their adult lives.

Where is Children’s Day celebrated? Today, 86 countries – or most of world’s nations – celebrate Children’s Day to publicly promote the idea that “children are our future”.

In Mexico, Children’s Day is celebrated on April 30. In Japan, May 5th is recognized as Children’s Day. In Canada, Egypt and Finland, November 20 is National Children’s Day. The date coincides with Universal Children’s Day, which was originally declared by the United Nations in 1954.

Día is a nationally recognized initiative that emphasizes the importance of literacy for all children from all backgrounds. It is a daily commitment to linking children and their families to diverse books, languages and cultures. The common goals of all Día programming are to:

  • Celebrate children and connect them to the world of learning through books, stories and libraries.
  • Nurture cognitive and literacy development in ways that honor and embrace a child’s home language and culture.
  • Introduce families to community resources that provide opportunities for learning through multiple literacies.
  • Recognize and respect culture, heritage and language as powerful tools for strengthening families and communities.

FMSL’ Spanish teachers Maria Reynosa, Cinthya Barajas, and Christina Economy have emphasized Día de los Niños with their students by reading Spanish books, learning about the celebration, making special fruit cups, and finishing with piñatas. We are so very lucky to have such wonderful teachers and such a wonderful community to be able to remember, recognize, and value childhood for it’s innocent beauty, fun, and creative confidence.

Toddlers Transitioning to an Early Childhood Classroom

Written by Alejandro Malespin on . Posted in Blog.

What to expect when Toddlers transition to Early Childhood Classroom
Transition to any new classroom requires change for children, parents and even teachers, who are eager to meet and learn the unique personality and gifts of each child. But the change can be slightly different for different age groups. Here are some things you may notice about the environment of your child’s new classroom; the group sizes and ratios, staff communication and new education opportunities.

At Foothill Montessori of Salt Lake the transition from our Toddler Classroom to Early Childhood Classroom takes place at two different times. If the toddler is enrolled for summer, is three years old by June 1st and the teachers consider him/her to be ready to enter the Early Childhood program he/she would transition on the first day of Summer Camp. All other toddlers who are scheduled to move to Early Childhood for the next Academic Year would move at the beginning of the Academic Year. A child is able to transition into Early Childhood classroom based upon their age, toilet-learning abilities, and social readiness.

Early Childhood is where they begin to leave behind the Toddler years. This transition is often the one parents anticipate most. Children who have previous experience in a classroom setting usually dive right in. Three year olds often are transforming themselves daily. Their motor and perceptual skills, social skills, and most dramatically, their cognitive powers, are catapulting them into new territory. Expectations for children’s planned educational experiences increase as they proceed through Early Childhood.

Here is what to expect.
Transition readiness. To prepare your child to transition into the Early Childhood, we gradually introduce them to their new classroom. The children are able to visit Early Childhood classrooms before their anticipated transition date. This time allows them to become familiar with the environment, teachers, and students in their classroom at a gradual, slow pace.
An energy-filled environment.
Early Childhood classrooms may appear full of activity, but there is an order, based on learning areas and individual work. Children are engaged in all sorts of exploration and discovery in a changing environment that is well-prepared by the teachers. Teachers are orchestrating experiences and are strategically engaged in discussion, encouragement, education, caring, and helping children navigate tricky social situations and learning self-control. When your child initially enters the Early Childhood Classroom he/she is introduced to all of the main areas of the classroom; Practical Life, Language, Sensorial, Mathematics, Geography, History, Science, Art, Botany, Zoology and Peace. The children will also be introduced to the Music/Dance and Outdoor Classroom spaces with the focal point being the Practical Life area.
The Practical Life area, in the Early Childhood Montessori classroom, is an essential area for a young first year child. Therefore we encourage children to work in this area regularly to build the skills needed to be successful in the academic areas, such as math and language arts. The practical life area helps to promote independence, concentration, coordination and order within the child. We find that when daily individualized lessons are given in the academic areas children that have obtained these chief skills seem to flourish and become confident, independent learners and take pride in doing things for themselves.
A larger group size.
Early Childhood classrooms have more children. More children means more space, which in turn results in more learning opportunities.More consistent routines.
Since Early Childhood students are able to verbalize more and follow routines, the classroom routines are more consistent. Toddlers often have difficulty with transition periods, where a student of Early Childhood age does not- so they are able to have a very consistent routine within the classroom. With the “I can do it myself” attitude of children ages 3-6 and their growing independence from adults, a higher ratio and group size is possible and beneficial without sacrificing quality in care and education. This ratio allows for increased time to interact with other children and their environment, given their budding social skills. The staff to child ratio is 1:13 for the Early Childhood (3 – 6) age group.Ways of communication.
It is not possible for daily written reports in Early Childhood classrooms, with some exceptions, because of the larger group size in Early Childhood classroom, but there are lots of creative ways that parents and teachers can communicate, through e-mail or writing a note to teachers and passing it during morning drop off.

Transition Concerns.
As part of the transition process, toileting accidents are bound to happen. As the children experience a new level of independence, they will learn again, how to grasp cues as to when it is time to use the restroom. This is all part of the process and we find it normal. The teachers will help as necessary for your child to become adjusted to his/her new routine.

Your child may also begin to experience separation anxiety. Coming to school will be a whole new experience as he/she is in a new environment. Please note that this anxiety will only be temporary and helping to keep the children in a routine will greatly help their transition into their new classroom.

Please note that if you have concerns at anytime during the transition process we would request that you address your concerns with us so we can help to encourage a positive transition.

Thank you,

Early Childhood Teachers

2019 Science Fair

Written by Alejandro Malespin on . Posted in Blog.

Science is defined as the intellectual and practical activity encompassing the systematic study of the structure and behavior of the physical and natural world through observation and experiment.

It is so important to motivate elementary-aged students with science. A Montessori philosophy advocates that children between the ages of six through eleven are in a sensitive period for learning and testing new academic skills. They are looking at the world by assessing their own abilities and accomplishments by making comparisons between themselves and others.They are also learning about social relationships beyond the family through interaction with friends and fellow students.

A Science Fair creates a model of this idea, process, and system beginning with instruction as to the what the scientific method is (a systematic process for experimentation that is used to explore observations). A science fair cues and peaks an elementary-aged student’s hunger for testing and comparing in a social setting.

At the beginning of March, our Elementary students were given an assignment to use the scientific method and create a science project on their own.

A month later, our students amazed us with their projects. Students had a chance to explore, learn, compare, and contrast their chosen areas of study with their peers. This event reflects and aligns closely to where elementary students are at in their own growth and development. I hope we can continue to guide and encourage our students toward deeper learning and keep them asking those questions as they will truly be our future.

Earth Day Inspiration

Written by Alejandro Malespin on . Posted in Blog.

Our Upper Elementary class have been studying poetry and in the process of searching for inspiration for a Haiku poem, one of our 5th year students wrote the below poem, free-verse style. Sevilla told us that Free-Verse is her favorite style of poetry because it doesn’t put any limitations on the writer and allows for more creativity than other types of poetry.  Please enjoy. For more inspiring work by our Uinta students (9-12 year olds), be sure to visit the lower level east hallway (near the dance studio).

Earth Day Inspiration

Our world will soon be ashes,
So dreamers listen up.
Our world will be a graveyard,
As humans raise their cup.
Our world will be a ghost town,
Before you can even blink.
Because even the sturdiest swimmer,
Eventually will sink.
So dreamers, find your wild side,
So explorers find your earth,
So workers find your forest,
And wanderers find your mirth.
Call upon the fire,
Buried deep within your bones.
Because everybody must unite,
If we want to save our home.
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by Sevilla Devries