The Brickton Weekly, October 21, 2010

Final Move-a-Thon Get Together
 Please join us for our final move-a-thon day this Saturday, October 23rd, at 10 a.m.  We will meet at the Peterson Park Field House, 5801 N. Pulaski, Chicago, 60646.

All pledge money should be turned in by Friday, November 5th. 
Thank you for your participation!

 

Trunker Treating at the Halloween Parade
Trunker Treating makes Halloween at Brickton even more fun!  On Friday, October 29, after the Halloween parade in the morning, parents are invited to park in the main lot and open their treat-filled car trunks so the children (except for Toddlers) can “Trunker Treat”.  About 125 students will participate - please remember that treats may not contain ANY nut products. 

Fill out the registration form and turn it in to Sara in the main office if you'd like to Trunker Treat. Remember, decorated cars and costumes add to the fun.  The main parking lot will be closed to all other cars at 8:30 a.m. on October 29.

A Peek into the Middle School Classroom (Room 106)
Each month, we are going to give parents a peek into one of our amazing classrooms with a slideshow of pictures and short videos.  It’s a chance for you to see what’s going on around Brickton!  Enjoy.

 

Did Someone Teach You That?
Below is an excerpt from Judy Beyer’s latest short piece about Brickton called Did Someone Teach You That?

“He took one last lingering look at his sentences and drawings, closed his notebook, recorded his work in his planner, and proceeded to put away his materials and roll up his rug.

He was done, but I wasn’t. I kept thinking about did someone teach me that. In the Montessori environment, we emphasize learning as a process of self-discovery. We don’t teach; we present and lead the children to knowledge through their own independent work. We set the stage, and they do the rest. I did not teach /oa/ to Joe. He knew it already from all of his practice with the sound. He owned it down to the red pencil that marked its indelible presence in his mind.

Yet, there are those magical moments when we do teach, when learning is a matter of human relationships, the intimate sharing of our collective knowledge, the realization of our deepest connections with one another. Those moments transcend time and place with a give and take of joy and wonder. That is how we do it in Montessori, how we make every experience matter. We teach when it spontaneously feels natural and right and a whole new level of learning comes cascading down.”

To read the whole story, click here.

 

Picture Re-Take Day
Picture re-take day is Thursday, November 11th!

*RE-TAKES OF CLASSROOM PHOTOS

*Sibling photos for those who would like them (please sign-up in the office)

*Re-take photos of individual students (for those who would like them, please sign-up in the office)

For questions regarding school photos please contact: Sara Gregory at sara.gregory@brickton.org or stop in the office.

The Brickton Weekly, October 14, 2010

The 9-12 is headed to Nature’s Classroom
Next week, the 9-12 class will be spending the week at Nature’s Classroom in Mukwanago, WI.  Nature's Classroom is a “unique educational program in that it teaches students the utilization of science, math, social science, and language arts skills within a natural environment.”  Students have a great opportunity to learn more about themselves and meet new people while learning in an outdoor environment.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Middle School students take two week-long trips to Nature’s Classroom throughout the year.

Teacher of the Month
Each month, we will highlight a different teacher at Brickton.  It’s a chance for you to get to know the teachers better.  At Brickton, we pride ourselves on building the relationship between teacher, student, and parent.  We feel this is important to the strength of our community. 

We hope you enjoy it!

The Brickton Move-a-Thon is closing soon
We hope that you are very close to completing all of your miles for the Brickton Move-a-thon! 

Save the date!! Saturday, October 23rd, at 10:00 a.m. in Peterson Park

Please join us for the FINAL Move-a-thon walking day.  All pledges should be turned in to the main office by Friday, November 5th.  Thank you for supporting Brickton!

NEW!  Program Blogs!
Brickton Montessori School has just switched to Google Apps for Education.  Nothing has changed for you!  All the brickton.org email address will remain the same.  We do have a new way for you to see what’s going on in the classroom.  Each program has set up a Program Blog with pictures and short descriptions of life in the classroom. 

The links are located on the family website.  Click your child’s classroom and click the link at the top of the page.  We have included links below for your convenience.

Toddler Program Blog (See the children making art)

Children’s House Program Blog (Click here for a look at scrubbing in Children’s House)

Lower Elementary Program Blog (View the slideshow from the Taste of Montessori)

Upper Elementary Program Blog (learn about the 9-12 trip to the Adler Planetarium)

Middle School Program Blog (Take a peek at math in the Middle School)

After School Program Blog (Click here for a great recipe for individual apple pies)

Alumni Blog (Check back here to find out what’s going on with our Brickton graduates)

Make sure to check back often to catch up on what’s going on.  Feel free to set up an RSS Feed by clicking “Subscribe to posts” at the top of the blog page.

Community Alerts from District 16
We recently received two community alerts from the Area 16 Police Headquarters.  District 16 has recommended that we forward this information to our parents and that you discuss the recommendations below with your child. We will not be discussing this with the students at school.

Thank you for your attention to this matter.

Community Alert 1
Community Alert 2
Recommendations

The Brickton Weekly, October 7, 2010

We’re on the move again!

Please join us this Saturday, October 9th,  for another Move-a-thon day! 

We are meeting at the Portage Park Field House at 10:00 AM.
4100 N. Long
Chicago, IL 60641

See you there!

 

Brickton Celebrates Its Leading Donors

LaDonna Taylor, Board President, along with her husband, David Duffy,  hosted a gathering at their home to honor Annual Fund Leadership Donors.  Leadership donors have contributed gifts of $1,000 or more in any given year to the Annual Fund.  Special guest Katrina Pipasts, alumni parent and past Board President, shared with donors why she is so grateful her daughters attended Brickton and why she herself is a Leadership donor:

"Brickton gave my daughters the tools not only to be learners who want to learn, but also to develop into conscientious young adults able to make good choices and learn from the ‘bumps’ they will encounter along the way."

 

 More photos here (password is brickton).

 

Growing Up at Brickton

An excerpt from Judy Beyer’s piece, Growing Up at Brickton:

Although I myself had often articulated my upward trek to the Middle School as a form of growing up, I hadn’t factored in any of the students. When I first began in Middle School, there was one year where I could say I had taught students for five and six years, and one of those students, I had even taught for one year in Children’s House. Soon enough, though, the era of such long-term relationships was over. Besides, the two sixth year students who joined me in Middle School as part of the first Middle School class came along from 9-12. Except for the one student who was a third year in my Children’s House class, it was not as though we traveled the entire journey alongside one another.

Still, as I think about Christopher and me growing up together, I see that at Brickton we all grow up together. Outside the Middle School classroom is a sign that reads Room 106 – Inge’s Room Forever. Our current classroom was originally Inge’s Toddler room. When Lily first entered Middle School as a seventh year, she exclaimed, “Oh, my God, I first started at Brickton in this room and now I am going to end in exactly the same room.” Then she laughed. “I guess it seems right.”

To read Growing Up at Brickton in full, click here.

 

Let Manna pay your tuition!

Manna orders are starting again, and this year there’s an added bonus – you can earn credit that goes towards next year’s tuition!  Manna is a fundraiser benefiting the Middle School.  You can purchase gift cards to hundreds of locations (including Jewel, Dominick’s, The Apple Store, Carson Pirie Scott, etc.).  The school receives a percentage of the purchase price and now a percentage of the purchase price can be applied to your tuition for next year! 

Details are coming soon to your parent folder!  The first order is due October 15, with a delivery date of October 19.

 

Extracurricular Classes at Brickton Montessori School

The Extracurricular Class registration form is due by Friday, October 8th, in the main office!

 

Race and Ethnicity Data Collection Form

As a school recognized by the Illinois State Board of Education, we are required to report certain data.  Below is the link to a form collecting information on students' race and ethnicity which we must report to the state.  Please fill out the form for each student in your family by Friday, October 15.  Thank you to everyone who has already filled out the form!

The form is located on the family website home page just below the slide show.  Go to www.brickton.org/family.  Your user name is family@brickton.org and your password is stronger.

 

Peanuts grow in the GROUND?

Debbie Kelley decided to grow peanuts at her house this summer.  She came to school with the plants to show the children and talked to them about how peanuts grow.  She didn’t realize that peanuts grew in the ground and she wanted to show the students a peanut plant so they could see how they grew.  Did you know that you can’t really eat peanuts right out of the ground?  They must be dried and roasted first. Click here for more pictures!

 

 

Because we are a nut-free school, the peanuts were safely sealed while in the school.