MARCH 2021 Newsletter

Dates to Remember

March 5th – Tuition Due

March 29th – April 2nd – Spring Break – No School

April 4th – School Resumes

Parent Information

• Our tax id #- 39-17-53172
  Please Email Debby if you need a formal receipt, and please allow for a few days.
• It’s going to be getting muddy in the next few weeks, and months even. Please be sure to continue to send in snow pants, and boots each day. Check those rain boots to see if they still fit before spring arrives.
• We will be welcoming a few new students as we are able to increase our class sizes by a few.
• COVID Updates & Protocols
  Please continue to:
  • Use the cones to social distance in the parking lot.
  • Please do not come up to the door with your child, as we continue to have all parents/adults 6 feet from teachers/staff.
  • Wear masks at pick up and drop off please.
  • Children should not be bringing any “extra” belongings from home.
  • All 5 year old students are expected and required to wear a fitted mask (nose piece ones help) and have an extra one in a baggie in their back pack. All masks that are used should be washed daily, before using again.
  • If you are planning on traveling out of State, the CDC is still recommending a 2 week quarantine, UNLESS after 5 days from returning you are tested negative. So one week out from return with a negative test.
  • “We are only as strong and safe as each of you, you are only as strong and safe as CMP”
  • Thank you as we get through this together! We are all doing a GREAT job!
• SUMMER REGISTRATION: CAMP COUNTRYSIDE has some spaces left for this summer. Please turn in your form and activity fee to secure your child’s space for a great summer!
• FALL REGISTRATION: 2021-22 looks to be a great school year! CMP will be following and watching for all guidelines to make it another safe one for students, families, and teachers. We have done a great job this past year with little interruption in the care and education of our students. It is our privilege to continue to do so for so many of you. Please check with your child’s teacher about options for your child. Our 4k and Kindergarten program is excellent, and a great continuation for your child in their Montessori learning.
• SCHOOL SUPPORT OPPORTUNITIES:
  Many have asked…. What can I do, How can I help CMP further?
  First of all, let us assure each of you..that your continued support and partnership is amazing and appreciated! Thank you!
  Other ways we suggest /offer:
  • Donate towards the Awnings (they are fabulous!)
  • Plan to donate / plant flowers in the many barrels around CMP
  • Assist/ donate towards the vegetable gardens in the coming months
  • Help with any outside clean up and trimming outside. This will provide us with a monetary savings.
  • Amazon gift card to your child’s classroom.
  • Boxes of zip-loc baggies
  • Paint for handrails outside and around building once warm weather arrives.
  • Write an article about CMP through COVID from a parent perspective for the Northside News

Parent Support

Positive/Negative Self-Talk and Your Child

Last month the article was about giving the gift of positive self-talk to your child and how it begins with you (the parent) first. Let’s revisit that for a moment then move on to the tools for your children.

The first and most important strategy is to role model our reactions to our own adult misfires or accidents. I want to define “misfire, failures or accident” regarding this article. I mean normal life happenings that do not go as we may have planned in our daily life.

For example, dropping a full dinner plate and saying “sh.., I have ruined dinner.” To a child this message displays accidents are not okay, and everything is ruined. Do not fret. This is just a reactive habit and thought. Reactive thoughts and habits can be changed through practice and awareness.

Practice saying, “Oops, I will just clean this up and get another plate.” Or you could even say, “I need some help.” Showing your child, it is okay to ask for help. This may seem like a minor example. We are human and every word will not be perfect. I challenge you to think of a bigger anxious reactive moment. Is this how you want your child to react to failures or accidents? Or can you practice a different response? What are the words I need to say or display for my child in order for them to understand what to do in life and reference later? Remember words and experiences shape children’s inner thoughts and actions.

Here are some concrete preventative strategies to support your child’s positive self-talk:

1. Gratitude is powerful. Practice saying real statements to and around your child. “I appreciate you trying again, or I like when Dad/Mom made a mistake and is trying again, I love that man!” This is sending a few messages: that we all make mistakes, can try again and are always loved.

2. Pay attention to the messages on the television and online your child is using or surrounded by at this vulnerable age. Parents you have control and guidance over this and what your child hears and internalizes at this young age.

3. A dose of power and attention. Let me be clear-this is not a pass for negative behavior! Your child needs boundaries and consequences which falls under parenting. A key piece of the definition of loving your child.

Each day set a special time for quality uninterrupted listening to your child. This maybe during bath time or quiet snuggling time right before they fall asleep. Find your own special time of day. Giving your child the power of the conversation with your full attention and respect. Very little response necessary. Listen to understand.

What should I do when I hear my child repeating negative self-talk?

Don’t panic! Just pay attention when your child says, “I am bad at cutting with scissors!” Our natural response as a parent may be to say, “no you are not, you are amazing at cutting with scissors!!!” and we want to fix, fix, fix in some way.

What you can do is first acknowledge the feeling, “you sound frustrated or tell me what happened and why you are feeling that way.” This may seem simple and is exactly what your child needs to hear now. Then listen. Slow down and listen.

You have listened and you have acknowledged your child’s feeling. Here are some supportive responses you can follow up with:

“You are right. Cutting is hard. It takes practice.”

“You may not be good at it yet. Cutting takes practice. Practice helps you learn.”

“Everyone needs practice cutting. Shall we try again now or later?”

“I love trying new things and mistakes happens. Why do you think that is?”

Language has big and deep and effects. Consider this analogy… A house is made of many bricks. A person’s self-esteem is made of many words and thoughts they have heard and inquired over time. What do you want your child’s inner foundation to be built on?