Country Montessori School
Admin Corner
June 1, 2020
“The environment must be rich in motives which lend interest to activity and invite the child to conduct his own experiences.”
Upcoming Dates/Events:
- June 12-Last Day of Virtual School, half day
- June 22-Summer Camp Begins
Last Day of Virtual School Activities
We want to make the last day of school fun for the students and not close out the year without our traditional last day of school festivities! We are making it as close to normal as possible, even by providing lunch. See the following activities below and please contact your classroom teacher to let them know if you will be participating. We will also end the half day with a final car parade!
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- Live Zoom Music Session with Mr. Short
- Live Zoom Animal Show with Mr. Rehkopf
- Various Zoom activities by all teachers
- Supplies will be distributed ahead of time-More information to come
- Lunch Provided
- Grilled hot dogs (Ms. Dukes and Ms. Corrales will be wearing gloves), chips, a drink and treat.
- PLEASE LET YOUR TEACHERS KNOW IF YOU WILL BE WANTING A LUNCH
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- Lunches will be distributed during the Car Parade
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- Car Parade-Everyone Welcome
- We hope that all our students will be able to drive by to see their teachers even if they aren’t getting lunch but completely understand if you are unable to come.
Message to all our families
In light of current events CMS would like to share how we as an organization are committed to creating an environment where all people feel welcome and included. Maria Montessori was a strong proponent of peace education for children. She said: “Averting war is the work of politicians; establishing peace is the work of education.”
Montessori education doesn’t ignore race. During the preschool years, children are exposed to the continents and peoples of the world. In the elementary years, the peoples of the world are studied from a historical perspective.
Country Montessori School respects all cultures and is an inclusive institution that is enriched by the cultural diversity of its students, families and community. Peace education is taught at all levels and the respect for all mankind is taught through cultural lessons and group discussions.
Summer Camp
We know that you all have been waiting to hear about Country Montessori School’s summer plans and we appreciate your patience and understanding. The school has been researching all the requirements, safety measures, and protocols and as things change rapidly we wanted to ensure we made our decision for summer camp very thoughtfully and carefully. We are pleased to announce that we are able to re-open the campus for restricted summer camps.
In addition to the PPE measures that are listed below, the student to teacher ratios have been lowered to a 10:1 student teacher ratio for campers of all ages. This also comes with strict restrictions that the same group of 10 students can not mix with other groups of students during the camp day and the same teacher is with that group for the entire week.
Summer school is always staffed accordingly while giving vacation time to all teachers and staff. We will prepare our enrolled summer campers in groups of ten making every attempt to be as constant with the groupings throughout all camps. All siblings if in the same level will be in the same group and we will make every attempt to put close friends together.
Summer Camp Health & Safety
Country Montessori School is committed to providing a healthy and safe environment for all our students, their families, our staff and the community. We are diligently working to ensure we are following county health, community care licensing and CDC recommended safety measures.
SAFETY MEASURES
CMS will be implementing the following safety procedures in addition to existing health and safety protocols:
- Daily temperature checks are mandatory for all campers and staff before drop-off. Any student with a temperature exceeding 100 degrees will not be allowed to attend camp that day.
- Camp groups will have a 1 teacher to 10 students ratio
- Teachers will remain with the same camp group each week and be relieved for breaks by the same teacher throughout the week
- Camp groups will be made up of the same group of children each week.
- CMS will follow enhanced sanitation practices and practice frequent handwashing
- Handless sanitizer stations will be in all buildings
- Staff will sanitize supplies and facilities throughout the day
- Daily cleaning and enhanced sanitation will occur at the end of each day with a focus on disinfecting all “high touch” areas
- Camp groups will limit all interaction with other groups
- Classroom tables and chairs will be limited to 10 and be socially distanced from one another
- Lunch areas for all students will be set up to allow for social distancing
- CMS staff will wear face mask throughout the day
- County regulations does not require the children to wear masks during camp, but if parents want to send their child with a mask, we will ensure they wear it
- Outdoor space will be utilized as much as possible
- Recess times will reflect the same grouping of students
- Play structures will be not be used
- Water fountains will be taped off
- All outdoor playground toys/equipment used will be sanitized in between uses
- Modified water play will still be available
- Parents who are dropping off at CMS will also be subject to a temperature check
- Parents need to bring their own pen to use for sign in
- Parents who are dropping off must also wear a face mask that covers their nose and mouth
- Parents will be asked to initial a daily self-disclosure form
Due to the limited availability of camp spaces, enrollment spots for summer will be offered on a first come first served basis with a priority given to families registering for the entire summer. This is in an effort to maintain consistency within our student groups throughout the summer.
Summer – After School Care
Unfortunately due to the strict limitations of 1:10 groupings and staffing, we are unable to offer morning or afternoon child care at this time.
Daily Self-Declaration by Families
In an effort to protect the health and safety of our entire community families will need to initial a daily self-declaration prior to entering the campus.
Self-Declaration
Have you or anyone in your household traveled internationally or domestically within the last 14 days?
Have you or anyone in your household had close contact with or cared for someone diagnosed with COVID-19 within the last 14 days?
Have you or anyone in your household been in close contact with anyone who has traveled within the last 14 days?
Have you or anyone in your household experienced any cold or flu-like symptoms in the last 14 days (to include fever, cough, sore throat, respiratory illness, difficulty breathing)?
If you answer “yes” to any of these questions you will not be permitted to participate in camp for that week.
Virtual Summer Camp Option
For families who prefer a virtual summer camp we will be offering a virtual version of certain camp weeks.
Virtual Cricket Camp (2.5 years to incoming kindergarteners) will be available for all weeks.
Virtual Kookaburra Camp (Incoming 1st grade through 5th grade) will be available for weeks 2 – 7. Camp activities may be modified for the virtual version.
Virtual camps will consist of daily live streaming of group craft and game activities (supply kits will be made available for in-home participation). *Not all in person activities will be available for the virtual version of camp. Additional game and activity curriculum will be supplemented through the google classroom portal for each camp.
Virtual camp will be a half day program and will be offered at a reduced rate to the onsite program.
If you are interested in enrolling in the virtual version of summer camp please submit a summer camp application and reach out to Jose Bolanos joseb@countrymontessori.org to inform him you would like the virtual version.
On Site Camp Information
Cricket Camp – 2.5 year to incoming Kindergarteners
| June 22 to June 26 | Ahoy Matey! Pirates and Ships! | Ms. Salas |
| June 29 to July 3 | Ooey Gooey Science | Ms. Toth |
| July 6 to July 10 | The Secret Lives of Honey Bee’s | Ms. Osterberg |
| July 13 to July 17 | Under the Sea | Ms. West |
| July 20 to July 24 | Magical Creature Camp | Ms. Bohn |
| July 27 to July 31 | Zig Zags, Stripes and Polka Dots | Ms. Osterberg |
| August 3 to August 7 | ¡Somos artistas! | Ms. Carrete |
Kookaburra Camp – Incoming 1st graders to 5th grade
| June 22 to June 26 | Olympic fun and the study of Greece! | Ms. Rehkopf |
| June 29 to July 3 | Calling all Heroes! | Ms. Salas |
| July 6 to July 10 | Teamwork Makes the Dream Work! | Ms. Dukes |
| July 13 to July 17 | S.T.E.M. Fun in the Sun with Solar Science! | Ms. Stanphill |
| July 20 to July 24 | Adventure Camp | Ms. West |
| July 27 to July 31 | Fun with Aeronautics | Dr. Rader |
| August 3 to August 7 | Sports | Ms. Rendon |
Google Classroom Access 2019-2020 School Year
We understand the importance of keeping students engaged and having educational materials available to ensure students continue to learn. To this end, in addition to offering a fun and engaging summer camp program families will be able to review their coursework from the 2019-2020 school year. CMS families will retain their access to their Google classroom curriculum and all extra curricular lessons created for the school year. The available curriculum will be based on videos and lessons that are already in the portal and will not include new materials or additional lessons from teachers. Due to teachers personal time off, and summer staffing teachers will not be available to support the google classroom access.
2020-2021 Fall Enrollment
We are eager to reopen our campus and as we move towards that we are taking into account all county, county health, community care licensing, and CDC recommendations and guidelines to ensure that we can provide the high quality education that our families have come to expect in a safe environment. If you have not yet submitted your re-enrollment packet be sure to log into your RenWeb account and submit at your earliest convenience to secure your spot for the Fall. We will let our community know specific details about the fall semester as soon as we finalized our plans based on all safety and health requirements and protocol.
Cheers,
The CMS Family