Oak Farm Montessori School
Community Memo - October 27, 2024
Dates to Note:
ATHLETICS CALENDAR: All practices will be found at this link
Monday, October 28:
- Primary Soccer Shots: 3:30 - 4:15pm @ VH Rec Room
- LE Fiber Friends: 3:45 - 4:45pm @ UE Club Room
- UE Boomwhackers Music: 3:45 - 4:45pm @ EAC Music Room
- Girl Scouts: 3:45 - 5:00pm @ UE Library
- HS Bowling vs East Noble AWAY @ KVegas
Tuesday, October 29:
- Primary Holiday Crafts: 3:30 - 4:30pm @ Treehouse in the woods
- LE Soccer Shots: 3:45 - 4:30pm @ RBS
- UE Fiber Friends: 3:45 - 4:45pm @ UE Library
- Musical Rehearsal: 3:45 - 4:45pm @ EAC
- Seed Collection event: 3:45 - 5:30pm @ WC
Wednesday, October 30:
- Musical Rehearsal: 3:45 - 4:45pm @ EAC
- Positive Discipline class: 6:00 - 7:30pm @ HS
Thursday, October 31:
- LE Boomwhacker Music: 3:45 - 4:45pm @ EAC Music Room
- UE Dungeons & Dragons: 3:45 - 4:45pm @ UE Club Room
- Musical Rehearsal: 3:45 - 4:45pm @ EAC
Friday, November 1:
- HS Open House & Ribbon Cutting Ceremony: 8:45 - 9:45am @ HS
- Primary Cooking with Hannah: 3:30 - 4:30pm @ VH Kitchen
- LE & UE Arte en Espanol: 3:45 - 4:45pm @ UE Club Room
Thank you to all of the teachers who put in extra hours preparing countless individualized reports for students and sharing with parents. We appreciate you!
NEED TO KNOW
Grandparents' Day
- Make sure the mailing address for your grandparent(s) is correct in Facts!
- This event is for Primary - HS students ONLY! (No infant or toddler classrooms are open)
- Classrooms do not open until 9:00am.
- Shuttle service is provided by the school.
- Light refreshments and entertainment is provided at the Wellness Center from 8:15 - 9:00am.
- Greeters will be stationed at each building to direct our special guests to the correct classroom.
Please contact Nikole should you have further questions. Additional details will be shared next week!
Gearing up for Founder's Day
Dress for fun and celebration! It is hard to believe that Founder’s Week and Spirit Week are next week! On campus, our students, and school community will celebrate our founder’s fun-loving spirit while we honor the legacy she left us: Oak Farm Montessori School.
Primary - High School students are invited to join in the fun!
Spirit Week! Here is an overview of the week. All ages are welcome to join in the fun. Please remember that all children must be able to provide self-care when participating.
Acoin Drive: Don’t be surprised if your children start wanting extra chores or cleaning out the couch or car seat cushions. Coin holders will be sent home no later than Friday, November 1st. Please remember to return the coin holder to your classroom on Friday, November 8th. Please contact Kim Davidson with any questions..
Don’t miss the birthday celebration on Friday, November 8th when we honor Lorene during Founder’s Day and the Day of Giving. The Day of Giving is one of our largest fundraisers as our community will work together to raise $90,000 to honor Lorene’s Legacy and the reality of what that has become in Oak Farm Montessori School. The Day of Giving will kick off at 6:00 am with a wrap up at 6:00pm, with the opportunity to give being available through the night of Sunday, November 10th.
Check your mail!!
Save the date for our biggest adult only community building fundraiser of the year, invitations will be hitting mailboxes this week! Line up your babysitters so you can attend the Tall Oak Gala Saturday, February 22nd at the Parkview Mirro Center!
Emergency Contact Information
Each month we will be reminding you to ensure your family’s emergency contacts are up to date in FACTS. In the event of a crisis at the school, this will be our primary means of communication. You can update your emergency contact information the following way:
- Log in to Family Portal > School > Web forms > Student & Family Information forms (blue link) > Emergency Contacts. You are able to edit and add from there.
If you need assistance, please feel free to contact the school’s main office.
We still have spots open, sign up today or share this link with a friend!
ATHLETICS
From the Oak Farm Falcon Nest
Registration is still open for MS Swim Team! Sign up today if you are interested.
VOLUNTEER HELP NEEDED:
If you love the mic and enjoy announcing, the athletic department has the perfect opportunity for you!
The basketball program is looking for volunteers to help at games with announcements pre games to welcome family and fans, introduce players and cheerleaders prior to games. If interested, please contact Donna Wolfe.
COACHES NEEDED:
7/8 Grade Basketball Coach
High School Track & Field - Head Coach
High School Track & Field - Assistant Coach
High School Track & Field - Field Coach
Middle School Tennis - Assistant Coach
If you are interested, or know of anyone that might be, please contact Donna Wolfe @ dwolfe@oakfarmschool.com
Coaches Corner
HIGH SCHOOL BOWLING: Coach Aaric Page
The Oak Farm Falcon bowlers did awesome Monday night. We had a BYE, so we did not bowl anybody, but we still put forth our best efforts, as we do each and every time we step on the lanes. The first game was really awesome! Everybody beat their averages. Ivy had a 99, Sully with a 132, Fiona beat her high game from last week with a 175, and Ryker got his new high game for the season with a 177. I am so proud of these bowlers and excited to see what the rest of the season brings us!
COMMUNITY CORNER
After School Clubs
Session 2 kicks off tomorrow and everyone should have received an email with information regarding dates and times of their child's club. And, exciting news...this is the largest club session we have ever had, with 114 students participating in our after school enrichment programs! We are still accepting enrollment in the Upper Elementary Fiber Friends club on Tuesdays. If you did not receive a confirmation email or would like to do a late sign up, please reach out to Nicole Lowe.
Help Restore the HS Prairie - October 29th
Please join John Brittteham of Blue Heron Ministries and our Ecoliteracy Coordinator, Gena Grobarek, for a community service event. We will be collecting seeds to help re-seed the high school prairie that was impacted by the high school addition construction project. Please meet at the Wellness Center after carline. If you have any questions you can reach out to Gena via email ggrobarek@oakfarmschool.com.
97th National FFA Convention
Oak Farm Montessori Middle School Farm Manager and FFA Leader, Crystal Leu, and 13 middle and high school students attended the National FFA Convention this past week in Indianapolis. Crystal said that students attended many sessions, including a tour of the press box to learn about agriculture communications career options, National FFA Career and College Expo, and opportunities to meet other members from across the nation. "They returned inspired with new ideas for their chapter, as well as their own Supervised Agricultural Experience projects and entrepreneurial businesses!" she shared.
Parent Walk
Pep Band Announcement
After further consideration, we are viewing our pep band as an extension of our school music program and will not be charging for this program. We will still require a sign up and commitment from students and parents since the students will have performances at basketball games. As this program grows, families may be responsible for renting an instrument or purchasing a band uniform t-shirt. So don't hesitate, sign your child up now for this exceptional opportunity to grow their musical ambitions!
Wishes!
Our wish tables were very successful at Parent/Teacher Conferences. Thanks to everyone who supported our students in a classroom or related arts field. If you missed this opportunity, but would still like to participate, please reach out to Nicole Lowe for a list of available items. Wishes will make their final appearance at the Tall Oak Gala in February. Ordering is underway!
Do you have spirit?
The OFMS spiritwear store is finally open! With the closing of our former supplier, it has taken some time to find a new one. Use this link or head to the website under My Oak Farm to place your order today. The store will close on November 15th to ensure delivery before the holiday break.
Honoring our alumni
You will notice one of the designs in our spiritwear store looks different from our normal selection. This beautiful design called, Maria's Garden, was created by Oak Farm Montessori School alumni Violet Landrum, to represent the seeds of creativity and knowledge sown by the Montessori philosophy each day at our school. It was part of her senior capstone project and can be found prominently displayed, in mural form, at the Upper Elementary building on campus. You may read Violet's full senior story at this link that highlights her other work on campus and in the local community. This design also has a Montessori quote on the back, chosen by Violet.
Each year OFMHS students go on a field trip to visit Saint Francis University to see the high school exhibition and to tour the facility (date TBD). We can submit up to 10 works of art from our highschoolers! We are looking for submissions now through January 6th.
Please reach out with any questions to Leigha Vandezande lvandezande@oakfarmschool.com
OFMS Sponsors
It's the last week to get the best perks for your sponsorship! Anyone wishing to sponsor at the Innovator or Trailblazer level ($2000 and above) and have their logo placed on the Wellness Center banner should have their commitment to Nicole Lowe by this Friday, November 1st. We are pleased to announce we have secured $55,000 of the $65,000 goal with our newest contributors being: A Lauren Design Company, Combustion Mechanical, Engineering Resources, Inc., Gassafy Wholesale, JC Enterprises, and Kelco Industries. Huge shout out to all the businesses that have chosen to support OFMS this year, you are truly making a difference in the lives of our students.
Barn Sale at OFMHS
The HS Ag Pathways program is clearing out and bringing new life to the barn along State Road 8. They invite you to take a look at their inventory on November 14th & 15th. All proceeds will go towards buying their first farm animals. What will they be? You must wait and see! In the meantime, come shop the barn!
SOCIAL SHARING
Spreading cheer in halloween gear!
Oak Farm Montessori Lower Elementary students took a field trip to Chandler Place Assisted Living to learn a deeper respect for the elderly, experience hands on empathy, connect with a different generation, and yes...trick or treat for some candy!
Teacher, Ines Oldenburg, shared that the students put smiles on the residents' faces and made them feel young again. Maria Montessori said, "When the child goes out, it is the world itself that offers itself to him."
Field trips allow our students to practice grace and courtesy, develop resilience, independence in social interactions, develop responsibility, and realize the interconnectedness of the world around them. It also brings joy to those lucky enough to interact with out students
Archives and anatomy
Our Oak Farm Montessori Middle School students traveled to both Science Central and the History Center where they used experiential learning to compliment their science and humanities work.
At Science Central, students explored exhibits and interactive pieces, including dissected frogs! In this very hands-on experience, students learned the physiology of major organs, determined if their frog had developed a batch of eggs, and even saw what remained of their frog's last meal!
At the History Center, students discovered the development of the local community and region, especially the Miami Tribe whose homeland was the Three Rivers area. The story of Fort Wayne connects to their humanities work in local and state history.
Want to know more? Like us, Follow us or Shoot us a message anytime!
Email: nalbright@oakfarmschool.com
Website: www.oakfarm.org
Location: 502 Lemper Road
Phone: 260.897.4270
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OakFarmMontessori/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/oakfarmmontessori/
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCR3mGPicpeNcMAF8kOoXhyQ