February Newsletter

In February, at Athena, we educate our learners on the powerful contributions of various Black leaders throughout history. We do this by sharing childrens’ books, listening to Black musical artists, learning about foods that came to America from Africa, and having conversations during our circle time gatherings. We also have photos in all our classrooms centering Black lives and celebrating Black joy. Each classroom has a slightly different approach, books that are special to them, and ways of celebrating. Stay tuned to your child’s class newsletter and to Transparent Classroom to see how Black history is honored and celebrated at Athena.

While it is imperative that we continue to educate on historical figures throughout Black History Month, and all year long, we also feel that it is equally as imperative to feature and highlight current and lesser known contemporary Black leaders, some of them quite young! This provides an opportunity for the children to learn about relatable people and ultimately, this instills an understanding that black history is an integral part not only of our history but also our future.

Athena Montessori Academy acknowledges that we still have a long way to go in our city, in our state, in our country, and in the world, to eradicate the systems of oppression and intentional marginalization that plague our Black communities. We can’t solve racism and the structure that upholds it, but we can be an intentional and evolving Antiracist and Antibias early childhood school. If you are enrolled here, you are part of that journey and that intention. Thank you, it takes all of us.

Happy Black History Month from all of us at Athena Montessori Academy!

Valentine’s brings several weeks where our school focuses on love and kindness! These are topics our children know well and it is a joy to center love and kindness. Your child’s classroom will let you know soon if not already the details of how they are celebrating the special day. As a school, we have veered away from children bringing individual Valentine cards for their classmates. Each child is invited (not required!) to bring one homemade Valentine that represents their love for their class community. Some children make posters, collages, or other fun ideas they drum up with their families. The children will get a chance to place their Valentine somewhere special in the room. If you have any questions, please reach out to your child’s teaching team for more details. Have fun celebrating love and kindness with us.

Step right up to Athena Montessori Academy's Annual Fundraiser—it's going to be a high-stakes evening you won't want to miss!

Click the link down below and secure your spot for a night full of

dazzling games, thrilling prizes, and fun!

Want to know more about our fundraising goals? Take a moment to read a letter from our founder—it's your backstage pass to the heart of our mission.

✨ Make the Night Even More Spectacular!

Feel lucky? Use the link below to donate an item or service to our SILENT AUCTION—your contribution could help raise the stakes for our cause!

✨ Volunteer & Roll the Dice

Stay tuned for a Signup Genius link to help make this Casino Night a jackpot of success. Volunteers are the real VIPs of this event, and we’d love your help to ensure the evening runs smoothly!

We can't wait to celebrate with our community!
Don't forget your lucky charm (and your dancin' shoes)!

Let’s make this night a winner for Athena Montessori Academy!

Current Athena Parents, we have a very exciting offering coming up at Athena! Embracing Equity is hosting a two-hour virtual workshop for our families in February. You can read more details in the flyer below. Embracing Equity is an extraordinary organization that we have had the privilege of working with this school year; both the admin team and our teaching staff have worked with their gifted professionals. If you find yourself with the desire to create family values that include equity, inclusion, and practices that are age appropriate and thought provoking, but feel overwhelmed and ill equipped, then this is the perfect workshop for you. It’s good to know that you are not alone, many of us parents feel that way. We can have the best intentions, but also struggle where to begin or where to find the right resources. The presenters from Embracing Equity are so knowledgeable, they are skilled at creating a loving and nurturing environment for adults to learn and grow. We would love to see all of our families jump on the zoom and participate in this learning alongside us. We will not be recording this workshop, we are hoping since we are getting the word out there early, that many of you can block out the time in your busy schedules. We hope to see you all there!

Get ready to preserve this year’s memories with our upcoming Yearbook Fundraiser! Starting in April, we’ll be collecting orders for our school’s yearbook, packed with photos, highlights, and memories that will last a lifetime. Stay tuned for more details on how you can order your copy and support the creation of this year’s yearbook. Don’t miss out on capturing all the moments that made this year unforgettable!

We wanted to send a big thank you to Nora Deveny-Valiela with Blooming Willow for hosting the Schooling Beyond Athena workshop this past December. If you are in need of support with choosing a school after Athena, we highly recommend Nora’s services.

Our recent parent workshop focused on strategies to help children develop independence. self motivation, and how to create an environment where children can practice and grow these skills. Our Movers and Tots Lead Guides discussed ways to identify signs that a child is ready to take on more responsibility and how to support them in taking those next steps—as well as the importance of creating boundaries and the role of modeling and consistency in routines.

We want to thank Morgan, Lina, Zach, Alicia and Meghna for such an informative workshop!! And thank you to all those that attended!

We’re halfway through the school year and excited to mark the 100th Day of School on February 6th! It’s a great time to reflect on all the learning, growth, and fun we've had so far. Get ready for exciting activities, special projects, and a celebration of all things 100! Here's to 100 days of success and many more to go!

Current Families
Sibling enrollment for next year is underway! You can expect to hear from Joy by the end of this month if you have an eligible sibling with an application on file.

If you have any younger children you hope to enroll at Athena at any point in the future, please be sure to complete an application for them if you haven't already.

Waiting Pool Families
We are fully enrolled for the 2023-24 school year. Should any spots become available mid-year, our Admissions Director will be in touch with individual families.

Enrollment for the 2024-25 school year is well underway, with sibling enrollment wrapping up this month and general waiting pool enrollment beginning. You will hear from Joy if she is able to offer your child a spot, as well as with updates as to where we are in the process. Our goal is to complete enrollment by the end of March, but it is not uncommon for rolling admissions to occur up to August.

Our continued goal in the admissions process is to be as transparent as possible, and we strive to give you the most accurate information we can during each step of the deliberate process of enrollment. We respect that decisions related to your child's education are important and timely ones, and we will continue to send you general enrollment updates via this monthly newsletter. Thank you for your continued interest, and we encourage you to reach out with specific questions related to your child's enrollment at any time.

Please direct admissions & enrollment questions to our Admissions Director, Joy Jacobson. You can email her directly at Admissions@AthenaMontessoriAcademy.com.

Purchase a custom brick for the Athena pathway in front of the breezeway!

Bricks are custom-made and may include a special tribute to your child's guides, your child's name and/or signature, or your family's name! Need inspiration? Visit our brick path today.

If you are interested, please stop by the office to fill out the order form OR click to download below.