The Brickton Weekly, March 21, 2014

Getting to Know You: Each week this section will highlight one staff member and their answer to the question: How do you express your creativity?

Patricia Cribben, Children’s House Assistant

The main ways I express my creativity are through art and music.  I sing in choir and love to sing karaoke, paint and write poetry.  These are all things I have enjoyed since a young age and use them as a constructive outlet.

Parent Appreciation Breakfast

Parents, we want to thank you for all that you do.  Please join us for our Parent Appreciation Breakfast on Thursday, April 17^th, from 7:30-9:30 a.m. in the Great Room.  Stop in for coffee and delicious, full breakfast and visit with other parents.  After breakfast, stop by your child’s classroom for some one-on-one work time.Come and be appreciated! If you can’t stay, take advantage of our grab and go selections!

Thank You Corner

We would once again like to thank Diane Grassi for working hard to beautify Brickton.  She painted our multi-functional learning space within the front office.  It has received many compliments from the students and teachers that use that space.  Thank you so much Diane!

Brickton Bowling Bash

Join the Brickton community for a fun-filled afternoon of Cosmic Bowling!

Brunswick Zone - 7333 Milwaukee Avenue in Niles.

Saturday, April 26^th, 12:00 - 2:00 p.m.

$15 per person - includes bowling, shoe rental and pizza lunch.

Tickets can be purchased in the main office.

Spring Extracurriculars Begin Soon

Brickton’s extracurricular activity offerings run this Spring from March 31^st  through

May 30^th.  We are once again offering Chess, Kinderdance, Book Club, The Runaway Circus, Crochet Club (moved to Mondays), Sports Club and Running Club!   We are offering two new activities: Future Hits Enrichment and Creative Writing Workshop.  Sign-up sheets are on the bulletin board and office or contact kelly.mcdermott@brickton.orgwith any questions.

Big Leap Success

Brickton's Annual Benefit, the Big Leap, was a huge success. With the help of many incredible volunteers, sponsors and generous guests, we were able to raise $28,000! Highlights of the evening included:

 - Presentation to our Master of Ceremonies for 10 years Larry Steinert, parent of a Brickton alum

 -Release of the “Fierce Frogs” song and music video written by John Joyce (Malina Rm 105 & Stefan Rm 101), Dave Degand on vocals (Sarah Rm 105 & James Rm 101), John Huber on banjo (Classroom Assistant) and several Poochamungas band members, Brickton students, faculty and staff.

 -An exciting live auction with beautiful classroom art projects, and a framed, autographed picture of Chicago Blackhawk Corey Crawford

Thank you to all who supported The Big Leap!

Brickton Reads!

Testing Days at Brickton showcased a wide variety of books!  Part of the testing procedure is to bring a book to read when youfinish, and book-it they did!  When Frankie Mull's top pick, Bone, went missing, Frankie went looking!  Graphic Novel formatis high on the list of 9-12.  Owen Somers was deep into Minecraft "manuals."  A different kind of non-fiction is in Megan White's

book bag:  child development texts for her course-work, but there are too many to list!  A Children's House parent requested the Bob Sornson books on fostering empathy in children.  If you are looking for Spring Break books, check out the "Once Upon a Time" (Folk and Fairy Tales) collection from Brickton's Little Free Library next to the frog tank.  We will keep it loaded up all week.  Just be sure to sign-out your books and return them after Spring Break.  Let's hope that sunshine is soon more than a Fairy Tale!

Upcoming Events

Club Day – Parent/Teacher Conferences, Friday, March 21^st

Manna Orders Due, Friday, March 21^st

Spring Break – Club Days, Monday, March 24^th – Friday, March 28^th

School Resumes, Monday, March 31^st

In-School Celebration, Friday, April 4^th, 8:30am, Upper Elementary Classroom

Manna Orders Due, Friday, April 4^th

Pizza Lunch, Friday, April 4^th

ISACS/AIMS Visit, Sunday, April 6^th – Wednesday, April 9^th

Hot Dog Lunch, Friday, April 11^th

Board Meeting, Wednesday, April 16^th, 7:00pm

Parent Appreciation Breakfast, Thursday, April 17^th, 8:00-9:30am

School Closed, Friday, April 18^th

Manna Orders Due, Friday, April 18^th

Bowling Bash, Saturday, April 26^th, 12:00pm, Brunswick Zone, Niles

Middle School In-School Celebration, Friday, May 2^nd, 8:30am

Pizza Lunch, Friday, May 2^nd

Manna Orders Due, Friday, May 2^nd

Fine Arts Night, Thursday, May 8^th, 7:00pm

Friends of Brickton Day and Art Expo, Friday, May 9^th

Upper Elementary Cultural Fair, Friday, May 16^th

Brickton 5K, Saturday, May 17^th, 10:00am

Annual Board Meeting, Wednesday, May 21^st, 7:00pm

The Brickton Weekly, March 14, 2014

Getting to Know You: Each week this section will highlight one staff member and their answer to the question: How do you express your creativity?

Melonie Arroyo, Toddler Assistant

Crocheting has become a really big part of my life.   It allows me to create different patterns and textures in my household.  I enjoy creating projects in color patterns that catch my eye and become a one of a kind piece of art. 

Thank You Corner

We would like to thank Dave Degand, father of James and Sarah, for coming to teach the Children’s House students about fire safety.  Dave is a Chicago fire fighter, as are many Brickton parents.  We very much appreciate the work that our parent-heroes do for our school and our wider community.

Brickton Reads!

Early Literacy is critically important to reading success.  The American Library Association is training librarians throughout the country to present a parent/teacher program Every Child Ready to Read in community libraries.   The program is available at the LaGrange Library on March 19^th.  If you discover your library offers this program, please inform Liz S. at Brickton and we’ll pass the information along.

As you begin to make plans for summer, be sure to take advantage of the wonderful programs at libraries- your own and others!  

Montessori Spells Success

A recent article in Business Insider magazine titled 7 Tech Innovators Who Became Wildly Successful After Going To Montessori School, demonstrates the strong connection between Montessori education and innovative and creative thinking.  Many of the most influential innovators in today’s technology sector are products of a Montessori education.  The founder of Wikipedia, Amazon, and a co-founder of Google, to name a few, are all former Montessori students.  Enjoy the article and share it with your friends and family to help us spread the word on Montessori’s effectiveness. 

Brickton Alum Awarded Scholarship

Catie Schweigert, Brickton alum from Toddlers through Upper Elementary, just received exciting news.  She was awarded a scholarship to study Applied Mathematics at Illinois Institute of Technology.  We are very proud of her and wish her all the success for her bright future.

Summer Camp Registration is Open!

Join us for exciting summer fun for weekly themed experiences! Click here for weekly session information on the website (see left hand side) and registration forms 

Save the Date for Brickton's First Annual 5K and Fun Run!

Saturday, May 17th 10:00 a.m. at Catherine Chevalier Woods is the First Annual Brickton 5K!

This 5K Run/Walk and Fun Run for the kids will be open to the public. We are looking for volunteers to help make this event a success. Please contact Kelly if you are interested in giving your time and talent. Registration information coming soon! 

Upcoming Club Days

March 21^st(Conferences) is a Club Day at Brickton.  Spring Break from Monday, March 24^th – Friday, March 28^th are also available as Club Days. All full day students and those pre-registered and pre-paid in the amount of $50 are welcome to attend.  If your child needs care on that day and is not pre-registered, please stop in the office and let us know, or contact Kelly.

Irish Dancers at Brickton

It is a St. Patrick's Day tradition here at Brickton Montessori School to welcome the Trinity Irish Dancers to perform at our school.  This year's performance was stunning as always.  Enjoy the video!

Upcoming Events

Club Day – Parent/Teacher Conferences, Friday, March 21^st

Parent Alliance, Tuesday, March 18^th  from5:45-7:15pm.  Care and pizza are provided.

Manna Orders Due, Friday, March 21^st

Spring Break – Club Days, Monday, March 24^th – Friday, March 28^th

School Resumes, Monday, March 31^st

In-School Celebration, Friday, April 4^th, 8:30am

Manna Orders Due, Friday, April 4^th

Pizza Lunch, Friday, April 4^th

ISACS/AIMS Visit, Sunday, April 6^th – Wednesday, April 9^th

Hot Dog Lunch, Friday, April 11^th

The Brickton Weekly, March 7, 2014

Thank You Corner

Thank you to Stefan and Malina Joyce’s family for attending Sunday’s open house to help out and welcome visitors to our school.  It was so thoughtful and your help is so much appreciated.

Getting to Know You: Each week this section will highlight one staff member and their answer to the question: How do you express your creativity?

Molly Arnoldt, Director of Advancement

Creativity comes out in me when I am in the kitchen - my favorite place to be!  If I'm not trying out new spices in this or that pasta, I'm whipping up batches of sweets for our Sunday extended family dinner. I have always expressed the love I have for my family and friends through wonderful, new and interesting foods. 

Save the Date for Brickton's First Annual 5K and Fun Run!

Saturday, May 17th 10:00 a.m. at Catherine Chevalier Woods is the First Annual Brickton 5K!

This 5K Run/Walk and Fun Run for the kids will be open to the public.Currently, we are looking for volunteers to help make this a success. Please contact Kelly if you are interested in giving your time and talent.Registration information coming soon!

Re-Enrollment Reminder

Re-Enrollment for Academic Year 2014-2015 is underway!  Re-Enrollment Forms and Fees ($165 per student) are due next Monday, March 10^th. A $50 Late Fee will apply beginning Tuesday, March 11^th.

Click here for the Re-Enrollment Form

Please contact Molly with any questions. 

Upcoming Club Days

Friday, March 7^th(Records Day) and Friday, March 21^st(Conferences) are Club Days at Brickton.  Spring Break from Monday, March 24^th – Friday, March 28^th are also available as Club Days. All full day students and those pre-registered and pre-paid in the amount of $50 are welcome to attend.  If your child needs care on that day and is not pre-registered, please stop in the office and let us know, or contact Kelly.

Brickton Reads

Brickton readers marched into March with a variety of books in hand.  Dotty Schweitzer just ordered Dr. Wayne Dyer's I Can See Clearly Now. Pat Moran is returning to James Patterson. Molly Arnoldtfondly, and somewhat tearfully, remembers reading The Red Tent.  Son of Molly and alum of Brickton SeanArnoldt is working on Romeo and Julie along with other Fenwick freshmen.  Another alum, Christina Toro, and mom Jackie are lovingthe Divergent series. This popular title is also being bookmarked by Charles Martin.

In celebration of Read Aloud Day and Read Across America Day, Lower Elementary Book Buddies were treated to a Playaway Day:  thirty different titles in the form of Playaway Books. Ask your Lower Elementary student about his/her Playaway experience.  We are all looking forward to reading our own authors' Slam Poetry when Upper Elementary students return from their Open Books field trip. Finally, congratulations again to all who read for the Six Flags Read to Succeed Challenge.  ArshawnSaket is added to that list! 

Upcoming Events

Club Day, Friday, March 7^th

Manna Orders Due, Friday, March 7^th

Elementary Testing, Monday, March 10^th through Thursday, March 13^th

Hot Dog Lunch, Friday, March 11^th

Club Day – Parent/Teacher Conferences, Friday, March 21^st

Parent Alliance, Tuesday, March 18^th  from5:45-7:15pm.  Care and pizza are provided.

Manna Orders Due, Friday, March 21^st

Spring Break – Club Days, Monday, March 24^th – Friday, March 28^th

School Resumes, Monday, March 31^st

In-School Celebration, Friday, April 4^th, 8:30am

Manna Orders Due, Friday, April 4^th

Pizza Lunch, Friday, April 4^th

ISACS/AIMS Visit, Sunday, April 6^th – Wednesday, April 9^th

Hot Dog Lunch, Friday, April 11^th