Mountain Village School News

In the past few weeks we teachers have had some discussions re-visiting the value of outdoor play and what it means to us and our program. We keep coming back to the question: What are children getting when they're outside that they don't get anywhere else? To me, much of the answer is time, space, and freedom. Nearly all of our outdoor play is child-directed; there is no one and nothing telling them what to do or how to do it. While teachers are always available to support and facilitate learning opportunities, children have this time to follow their interests, make their own discoveries, be their authentic selves, and develop a sense of wonder about the natural world. Inside we have to make some restrictions to keep everyone safe; outside there is space for whole-body play, exploration of reasonable risk, and taking on physical challenges that could never be re-created inside (steep ice-covered hill, anyone?). Time outside supports social-emotional development in many ways

Hi everyone, Megan from the infant room here. I will be filling in on the blog for a little while. Exciting news to share this week! Sarah's twin boys were born on Saturday morning. Their names are Teddy and Whitley, and everyone is healthy and doing well. Many congratulations to Sarah and Nick! Classroom Updates Infant I We had a great week! Our small group play has really blossomed as children keep a very close eye on what others are doing and try to join in as much as possible. A highlight was playing chase through the red tunnel in the Infant II room. High fives (also known as "a-ba") have also become very popular this week between children and teachers alike. Finally, our younger children have settled into nap routines that allow for more time at play, both inside and out, as well as adequate rest. Infant II We spent lots of time this week focusing on our classroom rules and daily routines. Consistency is very important for our children. They also partici

News and Reminders: We have preschool graduation coming up next week! August 18th we will be closing early at 4:00 pm, please make sure to arrive no later than 4 pm. Graduation will begin at 5:00 pm. Everyone is invited to join us for graduation. It will take place in the back playground. We have 5 children that will be graduating. This is a very special event for all of us. We would like to celebrate the time that these children have spent at Mountain Village School. The children are working on putting together a few surprises for us all. We had a productive two days of in-service. Some teachers spent time renewing their First Aid, we had a training from Prevent Child Abuse Vermont, as well as an art training with two children's art teachers. Since we had such a short week, we will skip the classroom updates. Here are a few photos to hold you over.

News and Reminders: We have a short week next week. We are closed on Thursday and Friday for in-service. We will have some time on Thursday and Friday afternoons for parents to sign up for parent-teacher conferences. Please check your child's classroom for the sign up sheet. A couple of the teachers have been invited to show their photographs as the South End Art Hop this September. For the children in the photos that we would like to display, there will be a consent form in your child's cubby. Please return it to your child's teacher with your decision. If you would like to see the photo of your child first please ask Sarah or Megan to share it with you. Classroom Updates I nfant I This week we have had some slow, quiet days with lots of time for one-on-one play between children and teachers. Peek-a-boo with scarves continues to be a favorite activity, and interests this week also include finding comfortable places to lie on pillows and in the big chair, looking f