December 2025
Dear families,We completed our North American journey in November, and will resume our travels across the northern hemisphere in 2026. December started with holiday preparations that continued until the last day of classes. Christmas is a large part of our ‘Celebrations of Light’ and has been a topic of discussion throughout December. Materials are changed on the shelves to reflect the season, sewing fabric and buttons are holiday themed, and even beading can be in traditional colours with tiny ornaments or bells. The children are welcome to decorate the tree daily, and do lacing work on cardstock cuts of trees, stockings and gingerbread men. The many projects this month kept all of us busy. The children painted pine cones (they collected these from our playground) in white, green and red, rolled them in glitter and attached cords and bells to make a very shimmery hanger. Our main art project was a peppermint candy cane candle. They deserve applause for this one. Small cantina style glasses (Arcoroc tempered glass) were marked with four levels. Melted soy wax was poured up to a line and allowed to cool and cure between each pour, alternating red and white. This craft involved gross motor control, fine motor control, focus and concentration. Wow! After the final layer set, the glass rim was dipped in glue and white glitter. Each and every child did a magical job of candle making. Did I forget to mention that the wax was scented with peppermint? There were so many daily crafts, materials and exercises, too many to mention. Some activities may seem a bit foreign, so if you have and questions, please feel free to ask. Just know that these children were BUSY! The annual gingerbread baking was the final project before the concert, and absolutely adorable! We celebrated Hanukkah week with supervised lighting of the menorah (the photos are gorgeous) and playing math games with dreidels. Helping hands not only set the table for daily snack, but in December also wore elf hats or reindeer antlers. The children watched the “Frosty the Snowman” cartoon with individual popcorn bowls. The last few days before the holiday closure was spent rolling beeswax candles (thank you Wicks and Wax for having such a wonderful shop), making the last holiday collages and sewing projects, and socializing with friends. Some of the children’s projects are shared on our Instagram page … tell the grands and family to take a look! Instagram@strathconamontessori
Christmas trees have lights, our diyas had tea lights, our menorah has candles. Celebrations of Light are a way to show that no matter where we come from, what we look like, and how we dress, we all have many things in common. For every big holiday or observance, we gather together to send out hopes and wishes and prayers at a temple, a church, a synagogue, a mosque, or simply at home. We share traditions and display lights or candles during the darkest of days. We join together with friends and family. We give gifts. We share meals. We share our time with those we love and care about. We think about loved ones who cannot be with us. We give to those less fortunate. We think about how much we have to be grateful for, which is a lot. These simple lessons about kindness and acceptance and gratitude have been lessons that we hope the children will remember and continue throughout their lives. We will finish our Celebrations of Light in 2026 with the Lunar New Year.
Our concert and potluck on Thursday, December 18th was a wonderful way to really feel the holiday season is upon us. The children gave a wonderful performance (not an easy task for little ones). Our choir directors practiced daily with laughter and patience (but mostly laughter). The children worked very hard, and we are proud of each and every one of them. The concert ended with joyous, priceless, and beaming smiles. Thank you so much for your potluck food items to share with the other families. You all did an amazing job of putting a beautiful selection of foods together, and hope you had as much fun as we did. Many stories were shared. Some families are looking forward to a quiet holiday season focused on time together, while others were heading off early to be with loved ones far away, in both sunny and snowy places. To add a finishing touch to the day, we sent each child home with a candy cane and a gift book. You all know by now that we love books, and we hope you enjoy reading these together over the break. Reading together creates the most wonderful lifelong memories.
- Please note that the school will be closed for the Christmas week and will reopen on Friday, January 2nd. While we recognize that this is an awkward day to reopen, we are required to do so in order to remain eligible for the Fee Reduction program for families. Thank you for your understanding.
- Progress reports will be sent home in January. Please review them carefully and return them to the teachers by January 16th. They will continue to be used until the end of the school year. The reports will be sent home again in July for you to keep.
- Registration packages for children returning for September 2026–2027 will go home the first week in January. Completed packages are due Friday, January 16th, 2026. Please let us know as soon as possible if you require a package for sibling.
If we did not have the opportunity to say so in person, thank you very much for the kind and extremely thoughtful gifts. We are truly overwhelmed by your generosity and kind thoughts. The beautiful handmade cards, artwork, and crafts brighten our days more than you know. It truly takes a village to raise a child, and we are grateful to be part of yours. We wish you, your families, and loved ones a very safe and very happy holiday season, and look forward to seeing everyone in the new year.
May peace and joy be yours, in this season of hope
Miss Stacy, Miss Ainsley, Miss Grace, our very loved volunteer Miss Maria, and Mrs. B (Cynthia)
