Message from the Head of School
The life of a teacher, as I know from personal experience, is very challenging and demanding, but it is also profoundly satisfying. It is more than a job, for it is rooted in our deepest convictions and values. - St John Paul the Great
Dear Parents,
The quote above reminds me not only of the work of teachers in schools, but the work of parents as teachers as well. During this time of year, when much of the growth that is happening in nature, and in our children, is hidden, I am grateful for the way our adult community, both the staff here and the parents, remains committed to this challenging and demanding work we collaborate in! The growth we will see in future will be satisfying!
Sean
Sean P. Garvey
Head of School
Renaissance Montessori School
Messages from the Environments
MESSAGE FROM THE YOUNG CHILDREN'S COMMUNITY
In the Young Children’s House we are gearing up for Spring’s arrival! We have been composting for several weeks and set up our tumbler in the back garden. We have several bulbs poking out of the garden beds already and there are more inside that we are watching grow. I am a perennial gardener, and this week thought of my favorite motto about little perennial plants when first welcomed into the garden: ‘First year sleeps, second year creeps and third year leaps!” In comparing this favorite phrase to children and their development, we can think about how much sleeping happens the first year, between their first and second year more of their person is created but 70% of their development is hidden, until the third year when we see the leaps! First plane environments are set up in a 3 year cycle and when we are living together in the Montessori environment each day, we see the beauty of this development and the glimmers of this person constructing himself!
MESSAGE FROM THE CHILDREN'S HOUSE
Some of us have just begun sandpaper letters and it's very exciting! We have played lots of games with the sounds and now are thrilled to begin knowing their forms.
MESSAGE FROM ELEMENTARY
We have engaged in many areas of study in Elementary this week: the transcontinental railroad, Ancient Rome, the atmosphere and how it protects the earth, division of fractions, the volume formula of pyramids, homonyms, and succulent plants (just to name a few!). One of the signs of a thriving second-plane Montessori community is when you look around and see children engaged in many different kinds of independent work. The children’s diverse interests and strengths inspire their peers to learn more about topics that may otherwise not intrigue them. While the Guide offers particular presentations to stoke the fires of enthusiastic work, the children are truly fanning the flames in their daily studies with one another, and it is truly a sight to behold!
If you have the time, please come and observe. We are always happy to welcome parents and family members.
MESSAGE FROM ERDKINDER
Our community is so pleased to have completed our sculpted Nativity Set for the RMS Gala! Mr. Marsh showed us how the simplest household items can be used to make something beautiful. We hope you enjoy.
Re-enrollment Deadline Tomorrow!
Re-enrollment for the 2019 - 2020 academic year is due tomorrow, March 1st.Your re-enrollment decisions, whatever they be, are critical to our planning efforts, so your effort to complete this process in a timely fashion is very much appreciated.
If you have not received an invitation to re-enroll directly from TADS, please let us know. As always, you will need to submit a $100.00 tuition deposit per child ($50.00 for Parent/Infant). We will continue to use a streamlined process so after you have enrolled each of your children, you will be led directly to your payment agreement.
The enrollment form, the deposit and the payment agreement will need to be set up prior to the March 1st deadline,after which open enrollment begins and the deposit requirement becomes $500 per child instead of $100.
Please Review RMS
In our digital world, parents often look for online reviews when considering the best school for their family. We'd like to encourage you to post a review about your experience at RMS. We believe that we offer something unique in our area and we'd love for you to share your RMS story.
Upcoming Events
3/1/19 - Re-enrollment Deadline
3/2/19 - RMS Gala & Mardi Gras Auction
3/4/19 - Montessori Mondays
3/6/19 - Ash Wednesday - Mass at All Saints / 9:45 AM start time
Reminders
New Pizza Form Available
The March/April Pizza Form is now available. Orders are due with payment no later than the Wednesday before each Friday. The form is below or always at the top of the Weekly Updates.
March/April Pizza Form
Calendar Change Due to HVAC
As announced via email this week, we are excited to announce that RMS will be getting a new HVAC system. Not only will this help us better regulate the temperature in our environments, but it will save us money in the short and long term.
As you might imagine, in a campus our size, replacing the HVAC is a large project. We have been informed by the contractor that they need two weeks with no children in the environments to complete the work. In order to keep the impact of this time as minimal as possible, we have scheduled the work to be done around Easter, when we are already out of session for 10 days. We do, however, need to add days to this break to give the contractors the time we need.
So, please note the following calendar changes!
Teacher In-Service Day scheduled for March 15th will now take place on Monday, April 15th.
April 16th and 17th there will be NO SCHOOL but to use these days productively, they will now be Parent-Teacher Conferences.
Please reach out with any questions you may have!