Head of School March Update - Sunny Hollow Montessori

Dear Parent/Caregiver,

Happy Spring! I hope this email finds you happy, healthy and enjoying some warmer weather! With Governor Walz’ announcement to ease the restrictions starting 3/15 and our spring break around the corner, I wanted to share our continued plan to help keep our students, staff and community as safe as possible. Our plan has been successful so far due to the amazing diligence of our staff, the cooperation of our children, and the conscientiousness of our families. Thank you! Your collective efforts have kept our campus free from any onsite COVID-19 exposure.

Our staff continues to participate in the optional, onsite COVID-19 saliva testing every other week. Most of our staff have received at least a first COVID-19 vaccine and most will have received their second vaccine by spring break. Things look promising, but now is not the time to become complacent. When we hear that COVID exposures are occurring in our peer schools, we know that we need to keep doing what we’re doing.

Our Sunny Hollow Montessori COVID-19 onsite policies and procedures will remain unchanged for now. All of our efforts during the school day are working. As social gatherings are permitted outside for groups up to 50 and indoors with groups up to 15, I would encourage our community members to continue to wear masks and to stay socially distanced with members of other households; and to get tested and stay home if sick or exposed to the virus.

While visits from fully vaccinated individuals are relatively low risk, vaccinated individuals can carry the virus to those who are not yet vaccinated, including children. I would encourage our community members to continue to wear masks, stay physically distanced, get tested, and stay home if you have been exposed and/or have symptoms. Distance learning is available for children who need to stay home due to possible COVID-19 exposure*. What we’re doing is working! Let’s keep it up!

*Distance learning is not available for children who choose to stay at home for a non COVID-related reason unless prearranged with the Guide and the Head of School.

Strategic Planning Dates

March 25, 2021 – Survey Opens! We need ALL community members to take the strategic planning survey!

May 1, 2021 – Visioning Day! We need ALL community members to participate in this zoom event!

A vision is an image or description of the learning community we believe we can become at an appointed time in the future, For Sunny Hollow Montessori, the appointed time is the year 2024. Our vision statement will answer the question:

If we could have the school of our dreams and the impact we most desire, what would Sunny Hollow Montessori look like in 2024?

More information will be coming.

Parent Education event – March 23 – 7:00pm

Sorry we missed This Week At Sunny Hollow, but we wanted to make this available to our families nonetheless. Join other families from around the Twin Cities to learn about Anti-bias Education on Tuesday March 23rd at 7pm. Anti-bias education (ABE) is a framework for how to guide learning about human diversity. During this event, we will talk about how to use the four goals of ABE at home to develop your child’s positive self-identity, awareness of others and a voice for justice. This event is free to families and will take place on zoom. Please register here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/anti-bias-education-at-home-tickets-145768677037 There will be a giveaway of a $25 gift card to Wild Rumpus and a copy of This Book is Anti-Racist, by Tiffany Jewell.

About the Presenter: Iana Phillips is the Montessori Curriculum Coordinator at Seward Montessori School in Minneapolis. She holds Montessori credentials in Elementary I & II as well as administration and is an AMS board member. She is also a Montessori parent, consultant, and proud Montessorian of Colour.

Spring is an exciting time at Sunny Hollow. Sixth years are participating in the Montessori Model United Nations for the next week after researching their countries and preparing position papers and resolutions most of the year. Our very first graduating class from the Junior High is planning for their spring Odyssey to New Orleans in May. Each year, the Junior High begins the year with a fall Odyssey to the headwaters of the Mississippi River in Itasca, MN. It’s of symbolic (and of scientific, historical, literal and social) significance that the end of their Junior High journey takes them to where the Mississippi River flows into the Gulf of Mexico.

Enrollment for the 2021-22 school year at Sunny Hollow is strong. As we receive notification that our new families are accepting our offers of enrollment for their children, classes are beginning to fill up. If you have not returned your re-enrollment agreement, please do so as soon as possible. We will have a waitlist for Casa and Lower Elementary. If you have financial or other reasons that you would like to discuss with me or Henry Horne, please reach out as soon as possible. I would love for all of our current families to remain at Sunny Hollow Montessori!

Take care,

Sandy

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