Health & Safety

Today's post is about something very important to both you and your children--health & safety. First, for those of you that missed Open House, Mrs. Phillips had the police come by and talk to the parents about the child restraint law. The police randomly stop by all of Metro's schools throughout the year and check to be sure that all children are restrained properly (car seat, booster seat, seat belt, etc.). These visits are unannounced. Last year on one visit they gave out 100 tickets. Please be sure to keep your children safe & buckled up properly according to the law. If you need assistance with purchasing a car seat, you can go to this site for more information: http://health.nashville.gov/CH/ch_carseat.htm. You can also go to any Fire Station to have your car seat inspected to be sure it is installed properly.
Second, we have had an extraordinary number of absences today at HJ. Please watch your child for any signs of illness. If s/he is sick, s/he must stay at home. While it may be inconvenient, it is critical for the safety of your child and the other children in the classroom. When kids come to school sick, they spread their germs around to others and then we have a cycle of illnesses. If you keep your sick child home, it will prevent this cycle. Remember to refer to the Open House handout or Metro's website if you have any questions about the policy. Any child with a fever MUST be kept out of school until they are FEVER-FREE for 24 hours. They are NOT fever-free if you give them Tylenol to bring the fever down. If your child is under a physician's care for an illness, s/he will need a doctor's note allowing them to return to school. Please be considerate of this policy.
Thanks for all of your help and support--this will be a great year if we work together as a team!

Open House

Just a reminder that Open House is this Thursday at 6 pm. We will meet in the dining hall for a welcome from Mrs. Phillips & a few other announcements. After, you are invited to our classroom for a discussion of some general policies, procedures, etc. as well as a mini-introduction to Montessori philosophy. If you are unable to attend, there will be another Curriculum Night & Kindergarten parent meeting sometime in the fall. These dates will be announced soon :)

Check out the sidebar...

Check out the sidebar for lots of information! You can find a link to my e-mail & the Hull-Jackson websites as well as an archive for the blog. There are also sections with links to great Montessori websites as well as other educational websites--including Metro's main website. Furthermore, there is a section with links to important documents that I want to share with you such as newsletters, wish lists, etc. These, too, will be updated often :)

Welcome!

Welcome to our classroom blog! I recently started a blog for my family after our daughter was born in June. All of my family is out of state & I thought the blog would be the perfect way to share photos, stories, etc. with everyone. I have really enjoyed documenting the life of our baby girl & realized this would also be the perfect way to share photos, stories & other information with my school families. And so, "Montessori Ps & Qs" was born!

First, a little bit about the title--a couple of years ago when I was married and changed my name to "Parks," Mrs. Quarles came up with the idea of naming our classroom newsletter "mind your Ps & Qs" in honor of our last names. I threw in the "Montessori" part and our newsletter--"Mind your Montessori Ps & Qs"--was created. I've since carried that moniker over here to the blog.

Second, I hope you all will come here to check the blog often. My hope is that this will be a convenient and effective way for me to share information with you about all of the fabulous things going on in the classroom. As you may know, in the Montessori environment much of the work being done is hands on with manipulatives. Worksheets & typical craft-type activities found in many traditional classrooms are few and far between. Often this leads to parents asking, "What is my child doing all day?" since they don't see many papers coming home in their child's backpack. Using this blog, I will try to post photographs of work in progress as well as share information about what we are working on.

Well, that's my introduction & welcome to the blog! I do have a 2-month old at home, so I am not sure how often I will be updating it, but I promise to try to post often--at least weekly if not more. Please feel free to post comments, ask questions, etc. You will also find a link to my e-mail in the sidebar if you have a personal question or comment you would like to share with me. I am so excited about the new school year and am looking forward to building a close relationship with your child & your family.