Daily 2021-22 Klahanie Routine & Monthly Themes

Dear Klahanie School Families,

We are elated to get back to love of learning explorations with your sweet children this coming week!  

Following our fantastic Teacher In-service days this week, we made some fun alterations for next week, please read below for your child’s times and class session routines.  

Class Routine 

(We replicate and condense this routine on Intro Days to practice):

First 15 minutes ease in/ check in: East Entrance Checkin Drop Off 

2-3 Class At greeting/drop off, with teachers, child heads straight up to Upper Class to make choices on deck and outside covered space.  Once all three teachers and students arrive, group gathers for condensed Circle:

• Welcome Songs

• Mindfulness pause (intro and practice)

• Montessori method of silence game to excuse each child back to focus and class exploration

3-6 Class Gather in Large Garden Circle for:

• Welcome

• Mindfulness Pause (mini silence as a group)

• Movement/ Gathering-Get To Know/Unit Themed Songs

• Transition to Classroom:

• During days with three teachers (and possibly Wednesdays and Thursdays), the group will have the ability to move between the Garden and inside the classroom that has ample air flow, air purification and hand washing protocols between all transitions as well as sanitizing following each use of materials.  

Classroom explorations

Cleanup & Ending Circle book

Transition to Garden for large motor play

Re-Gather for Gratitude Pause (verbal, movement, games)

Pickup at East Entrance: Parents sit on Bench, Children walked to parent

2020-21 Unit Themes: 

Each month we will honor PeaceMakers around the world and time, species that inspire by being their authentic self sharing hope for us all.  In each monthly newsletter we explore references and information of theme units we focus on.

Here’s our list! 

Dr. Martin Luther King, Dr. Maria Montessori, Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan, Koko, Fred Rogers, Dr. Wangari Maathai, Chief Sealth, Cesar Chavez and Delores Huerta, Queen Liliuokalani, President Nelson Mandela, Bryd Baylor, Beatrix Potter, Aretha Franklin, Stevie Wonder, The Staples, among Vashon community specialists-advocates, botanists, healers, farmers, trades to share skillsets, passions and birth origins.

September

Get to know our school environment and Classmates as well as practice with New Together.

• Spending time and care exploring the science behind Masks, exploring curiosities and ability to share-out inquiries about the elements presented to our West Coast this autumn.

• Introduction to Sharing Out and Listening through Circle

• Journal Making

• Listening/Talking Circle center piece creating

• Harvesting seeds

October

• Nocturnal Animals 

• Emotions

• Games/circle prompts and activities about our own masks in the world and making decorative abilities to share out our creativity how we express who we are

• What is a fear, what is an internal alarm system.  Exploring ways we can find resiliency and soothing when faced with the emotion of Fear. 

• Halloween celebration (costumes to school welcome, masks required 🙂 

• Pumpkin life cycle, preparation for winter, plant dormancy in our biome: botany and zoology 

November

• Gratitude, the meaning behind Gratitude.  Practices and ways to express Gratitude.

• Hibernating PNW Animals and migrating Birds

• Native plants we harvest

• COVID-19 safe class created Thanksgiving meal 

December

• Festival of Lights

• Winter Solstice, ways we gather and show love in holidays 

• Winter Birds

January

• What is a Peacemaker, ways children are Peacemakers 

• Exploration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

• I Have a Dream Clouds, Peace Mobiles and Circle/Activity prompts from our Equity Exploration

• Beavers: The World’s fresh water PeaceMakers

February

• Methods to share Love and Friendship

• PeaceMakers Fred Rogers and Helen Keller, introduction to Sign language and varying methods of communications.

• Practices and importance of Listening

March

• Spring: seed to plant

• Water: conservation, catchment practices, erosion exploration

• Elements and Geographic similar areas to our PNW 

• Islands and Archipelagos

• Culture and vibrancy of Hawaii and exploration of the birds and plants as well as language introduction.

April

• Air and high altitude areas of the world.  Clean air exploration and inventors making a mark.

• Birds: Flight

• Peru magic and geography as well as ancient explorations large and fine motor fun!

• Weaving

May

• Egg to Caterpillar 

• How are we transforming?  Exploring our own growths in the school year

• Gardening Fun and planting, garden tending.

June

• Tie Dyes and other forms of dying fabrics.

• Celebrating Friendships and sharing-out appreciation for our groups.

• Ways to prepare for the summer, how will the learning fun continue: teachers help generate ideas for fun summer activities to nurture love of learning and focus practice.

Please note:

We teachers see this school year for all classes and families to be a time of support and we are committed to sharing out the effective practices we use at school via videos through our Klahanie School/ YouTube channel demonstrating things that can be adapted for home to strengthen connection, independence and solution creation!  With each new monthly Newsletter we seek to add a video with some helpful tips to try or added resources or fun goodies we find.