Category Archives: language arts

Celebration of Learning

The Upper Unit students were proud to welcome their families to this year’s Celebration of Learning. They cleaned the whole classroom, arranged flowers, decorated the board, and created work plans so that their families could sample their Upper Unit work. … Continue reading

Posted in community, intermediate unit, language arts, math, McGuffey, Middle School, Montessori method, parents, practical life, science, sensorial, social studies, technology, Uncategorized, Upper Elementary, upper unit

A Visit of Olympic Proportions

Students in Lower and Upper were excited to welcome guest speaker, Keli Smith Puzo. Keli is a two-time Olympian, competing in the sport of field hockey in Beijing in 2008 and in London in 2012. Many classrooms have been discussing … Continue reading

Posted in community, guest speakers, intermediate unit, language arts, Lower Elementary, McGuffey, Middle School, Montessori method, physical education, social studies, Uncategorized

The History of Mail

For the last month, Lower Elementary has been studying the history of the United States Postal Service. We learned about how letters get from here to there, first by horse and then cars, trains, airplanes, and boats. We followed the … Continue reading

Posted in language arts, Lower Elementary, McGuffey, Montessori method, social studies, Uncategorized

Exploring History Through Fictional Characters

This year in ELA, we are tracing some of the major events in American history and exploring the ways in which history can be conveyed through the experiences of fictional characters, often presented as a blend of documented “truth” and … Continue reading

Posted in High School, language arts, McGuffey, Montessori method, social studies, Uncategorized

Giving Thanks

Thanksgiving is a wonderful time to celebrate with family and friends, but the history of the holiday is complicated and often misunderstood. Based on the book “1621: A New Look at Thanksgiving”, Lower Elementary had a chance to discuss what actually … Continue reading

Posted in community, gratitude, language arts, Lower Elementary, McGuffey, Montessori method, social studies, Uncategorized

France

We studied France in the Primary classroom for the past two weeks and ended this unit with an Art History lesson about ballet. We discussed how ballet was brought to France from Italy, where it developed into the performance art … Continue reading

Posted in art, community, guest speakers, language arts, McGuffey, pre-primary, preschool, Primary, primary unit, sensorial, social studies, Uncategorized, upper unit

Gratitude

Each November at the high school, we talk about gratitude. Last year, we read about and listened to speakers explain the importance of practicing gratitude to cultivate a happy life. We engaged the topic through our Seminar discussions. This year, … Continue reading

Posted in foreign language, High School, language arts, McGuffey, Montessori method, Uncategorized

Election Day

Costume Day at McGuffey is always the day after Halloween, which happened to coincide with the day before Election Day. In Lower Elementary, we combined the two subjects and held an election about candy! Based on personal preference, the class … Continue reading

Posted in community, democratic process, language arts, Lower Elementary, McGuffey, Montessori method, pre-primary, preschool, Primary, primary unit, social studies, Uncategorized

Boris the Mantis

Our students discovered a visitor living on a plant that recently came into our classroom.  Watching and learning about this beautiful mantis became a daily practice. The students even put democracy into action to choose a name. 

Posted in community, democratic process, High School, insects, language arts, McGuffey, Montessori method, science, social studies, Uncategorized

1800s Day

1800s Day is a McGuffey tradition where the Primary and Lower Elementary classrooms go back in time. All modern materials are put away, leaving only items they would have in the 1800s. Other than toilets, they do not have access … Continue reading

Posted in language arts, Lower Elementary, McGuffey, Montessori method, outside, practical life, pre-primary, preschool, Primary, primary unit, social studies, Uncategorized