Author: Joshi Haskell

Welcome Back! School is officially in session. As excited as we all might be about school starting it can be difficult for you and/or your child to say goodbye in the mornings. Don’t be surprised if your child is having a difficult time even if they are returning to the same classroom, with the same teachers, and the same peers. Separation anxiety is normal and we would like to offer some tips that might be helpful…

Prepare your child. Be sure to help them understand what they can expect. Talk about how the routine will go… “We will walk to entrance. A teacher will meet us there and I will give one hug, one kiss and one high five and then I will leave.” Stick to your routine. A change in routine can make separation anxiety even more intense for a child. If you say you are going to give one hug, one kiss and one high five, DO IT! Drawing out the goodbye not only makes it hard but also hinders your child’s ability to develop confidence that you are both really expected to do what you say.

Stay calm and let your child know you trust them. Although you might be concerned that your child is going to have a hard transition, be sure to express your confidence in them. You are welcome to give us a call later in the day and we will be happy to check on how they are doing for you. Rest assured that if your child is unable to settle or remains distraught, we will call you. It is important to us that your child feels this is a safe and peaceful place. If they need a shorter day here in order to build that confidence, we will support them.

Return on time. It can be difficult for children to build trust if their parent and/or teacher tell them that mommy or daddy will “be here soon” and you are not. If you are going to be late, give us a call so we can prepare your child. Unexpected events occur and we are happy to support you and your child so call our office if you are running late.

Give it time. It can take up to 6 weeks for children to “normalize.” If you have concerns that it is taking your child too long to adjust, be sure to speak with the teachers. They might have some good ideas to help you both. Ask your child about their day. Let them express frustrations but also ask specific questions that might lead them to remember the good parts of their day. “Did you play in the sandbox today?” “Did your teacher read any stories today? What was the story about?”

Most importantly – be consistent!

Establish a new bed time

Ahead of time, start getting into the new routine so the night before school is a lot easier.

Involve your child in the preparation 

It’s always fun for the children to participate in the process. Having the lunchbox or pencilbox they picked can make a child feel excited about the start of the year.

Review the school routine

Establishing familiarity with the new routine is key. Talking about the routine before school starts, can help alleviate anxiety about new and untried things

Talk about your memories

Share your own school experiences with your child and try to focus on the positive and be optimistic. Talk about your favorite teacher, great friends you made or a fun assignment you remember working on.

Keep calm

Get ready the night before

The night before school will be full of excitement, and it’s the perfect time to start getting ready for the big day. Lay out backpacks, clothes, and anything else needed in the morning to cut down on morning chaos. Once everything is set for the next day, focus on having a fun and relaxing evening.

Be on time

Once the big day has arrived, keep to the schedule, which will be easier if you prepared as much as possible. There’s nothing more anxiety-provoking than being rushed out the door or being the late to class.

Plan some fun

Brainstorm ideas with your child for things to do when school ends on the first day. Knowing this plan is in place will help get you and your child through the initial stressors of that first day.

And here it is, the end of another school year.  Call it what you like – unprecedented, singular or done (phew),  this year has certainly been one for the books! Brandi and I want to thank our students, staff and parents for the support and patience shown these past 10 months. We had successes and some challenges, yet despite everything, our combined efforts ensured our community was safe and the school remained open.

Firstly, we want to thank our students for their contributions this year. They wore their masks, washed their hands and learned so many new procedures and routines it would make your head spin, yet they did them all! Over and over this year, they showed real grit when faced with obstacles and reached out with help and compassion when classmates or teachers needed support or encouragement. We are so proud of them for all their hard work.

We would like to thank our hard working and caring staff who have made a huge difference to our students and families. Their commitment is outstanding. We thank them for providing an amazing Montessori experience for our students, one that allows for wonder, fosters curiosity, and  promotes responsibility for self and others. For this, and a million other things, we are truly grateful.

And lastly, we are so very grateful to each family for your attention, dedication, and understanding. We are humbled by what you have done to support our students, staff, and us this year. Without your partnership, this year would not have been possible. If this is your last year at FMSL, we would like to thank you for your contributions and for the guidance that you have provided for your children. Our best wishes to you.  For those of you returning in the fall, we look forward to being together again this August for what we hope will be a return to more normal times.

In closing, we wish you all a very happy, safe and enjoyable summer.

Our heartfelt gratitude to everyone, ​

Brandi & Margaret

With the end of the 2020-21 school year in sight, we know many of you may be wondering about our plans for the fall. While predicting the future is beyond our grasp we assume that 2021-22 will still be affected by the pandemic. This past year, we learned a great deal from our successes and challenges while conducting in person school and have used this experience to begin drafting A Safe Return to School, 2021-22. We will look to make decisions that afford an abundance of caution while balancing the impact on individuals and doing what is necessary for the betterment of the whole community. The following are preliminary plans about a few key topics:

• COVID mitigation efforts will remain steady for a good portion of the new school year.
• Anticipate that masks may still need to be worn by students and non vaccinated staff except for mask breaks, lunch, naps and recess.
• FMSL will focus on in-person learning. We shall not offer a remote learning option. Should a student need to miss school for an extended period due to COVID related sickness or quarantine we will work to accommodate some age appropriate synchronous learning opportunities. Teachers will work with elementary students and their families to get them caught up upon their return.
• Class sizes will be larger than this year.
• Anticipate that extended care hours may be extended to closer to pre-pandemic times.
• Field trips and in-house presentations will resume. Decisions for specific destinations and presentations will be made with consideration of safety protocols in place by the vendors.
• On-site parent volunteer and chaperone opportunities will be considered.
• Anticipate continuing virtual observations, parent/teacher conferences and parent education opportunities. In-person events will be considered based on the state of COVID at the time and the community’s ability to adhere to the school’s policy and procedures.
• Anticipate outside drop-off and pick-up procedures will continue.
• It is possible that children ages 2-11 could potentially be eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine this fall. Vaccine requirements are yet to be determined. We will continue to monitor the guidance from state and federal entities in relation to this.

This update likely prompts numerous questions, some of which we cannot answer before further planning efforts. We will continue to assess the state of COVID over the summer so as to finalize our plans. The full details will be communicated, in early August, prior to the start of the next school year.

We thank you for your continued support.