While temperatures dropped and snow dusted Lake Avenue, the energy inside the Whitby Montessori Children’s House remained vibrant, warm, and brimming with curiosity.

In our Stepping Stones and Primary classrooms, winter isn't just a season of cozying up, it’s a season of profound "work." For our littlest learners, this time of year provided a unique backdrop for exploration. Whether they were refining their fine motor skills through seasonal Practical Life activities or discovering new ways to express themselves in the arts, our students have spent the last few months leaning into the Montessori philosophy of "following the child" with renewed focus.

To celebrate the growth we’ve seen, we’ve gathered highlights from our Single Subject teachers. From the rhythm of the music room to the movement of the gym and the new sounds of a world language, here is a look at what our Children’s House students have been mastering this winter.

Stepping Stones

Movement 

Children continued to explore new ways to move their bodies through dance and imaginative play. They built strength, coordination, and confidence while expressing themselves creatively, and especially enjoyed working with partners, which supported social connection, cooperation, and communication.

Children explored contrasting movements such as stomping versus tiptoeing and moving like a heavy elephant and then a soaring eagle. These experiences encouraged children to try new ways of moving and thinking as they responded to different movement ideas.

Imaginative play was a highlight of the season as children pretended it was snowing, throwing and catching snowballs, gliding on ice skates, pushing on sleds, and climbing to build snowmen. This playful exploration encouraged creativity and engagement through movement.

Freeze dance became a powerful tool for imaginative play as children practiced moving and freezing in shapes such as linear, round, wide, and small. Through “hot” and “cold” movement exploration, children used fast, twinkling fingers to represent heat and shivered while wrapping their arms around themselves to represent cold, discovering how movement can represent both objects and feelings.

Students also developed important movement patterns, progressing from stepping with two feet together to alternating feet with greater control. They practiced this skill during stair work, which built coordination and safety awareness.

Partner dancing brought many moments of joy as children giggled, laughed, and shared smiles. They practiced by asking a friend to dance, shaking hands to begin, and shaking hands again to say thank you, reinforcing positive social interactions.

Each class ended with our cheerful “Good-bye, See You Later” dance, helping children transition smoothly back to their classroom routine. Be sure to ask your child to show you the “Good-bye, See You Later” dance if you want to see something super special and full of joy from our movement time together.

Spanish 

In Stepping Stones Spanish, the children have enjoyed their lessons and are feeling more comfortable with the routine. During the first half of class, everyone gathers on the rug to begin the session. The children join in a circle, and the class always starts with greeting songs like “Buenos Días” and “Hola Amigos.” As a small squeeze ball is rolled, the children repeat “Hola” and say their names. Following the greeting, the lesson begins.

This winter, the focus was on the weather (“Hace Frío”) and dressing a snowman. The children learned basic clothing vocabulary, such as “Gorro,” “Mitones,” and “Bufanda,” using matching flashcards and colored mittens. The class also read “Oso Polar, Oso Polar, ¿qué es ese ruido?” (Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear?) using animal props. The children learned about Arctic animals like the Pingüino, Ballena Beluga, Foca, and Oso Polar. This was practiced further by playing a matching card game with plastic animals, and the children especially enjoyed counting bears and organizing them by color.

In the second half of class, the children begin independent work time. Spanish interaction continues as they choose various activities throughout the classroom.

Art  

This term, our Stepping Stones children explored a variety of fun, sensory art activities that helped develop their fine motor skills and creativity. From finger painting and folded paintings to salad spinner art, squeegee painting, and string prints, children practiced hand-eye coordination, hand strength, bilateral coordination, and control while experimenting with color, pattern, and cause-and-effect.

These activities encouraged toddlers to explore freely, discover how colors mix, and create unique, vibrant artwork, all while strengthening the skills they need for everyday tasks like grasping and pulling. Each project celebrated the joy of making art and the confidence that comes from creating something entirely their own.

Music 

Our little musicians have been busy finding their voices as we explore the foundations of singing! Each class begins with joyful songs, such as” Baa Baa Rainbow Sheep” and “Tingaleo,” where we focus on matching pitch and discovering our "singing voices." We’ve introduced the basics of solfege, using the Curwen hand signs to help the children visualize the notes. It’s wonderful to see them proudly signaling Do, Re, and Mi while they sing, building a physical connection to the sounds they create.

Movement is at the heart of everything we do, as we believe children feel the music with their whole bodies. Whether we are marching to a steady beat of “The Grand Old Duke of York” or swaying and tapping toes, knees, and thighs to the tune “Bonnie Over”, the students are developing their rhythmic coordination and gross motor skills. We use these movement activities to transition into our "instrument time," where the room's energy truly comes alive through active, hands-on play.

The highlight of our recent sessions has been exploring our classroom instruments. The students are learning the delicate touch required for xylophones and practicing bouncing their mallets to make the wooden bars "sing." We’ve also been experimenting with various hand percussion, from shaker eggs to tapping hand drums, to help us keep the beat together as an ensemble. 

Primary

Physical Education

Students have continued to build and strengthen their gross motor skills through a variety of engaging activities. Using scooters has been a favorite way to develop leg and core strength, as students practiced controlled movement, balance, and coordination while navigating the gym. These activities supported strong body awareness and helped students move with purpose and confidence.

Students also explored sport-specific skills by learning the difference between dribbling in basketball and dribbling in soccer. Through these lessons, they discovered how hands are used to control the ball in basketball while feet are used in soccer, strengthening hand-eye coordination, footwork, and overall confidence. In addition, students learned how to move safely around the gym using hockey sticks and foam balls, focusing on spatial awareness and keeping the ball close to their bodies. We especially loved scoring goals!

Parachute play was another exciting highlight of our winter PE classes. Through parachute activities, students worked together to create waves, lift and lower the parachute, and play cooperative games. These experiences supported teamwork, communication, upper-body strength, and listening skills, while reinforcing the importance of working together toward a shared goal.

Spanish 

Primary students have been very busy with engaging winter lessons. The unit began with “El Clima” (The Weather), where students learned basic vocabulary such as “Hace Frío,” “Está Nublado,” “Está Soleado,” and “Está Nevando.” Flashcards were used to help visualize each weather type, and the song “¿Cómo está el clima hoy?” was introduced at the start of each lesson to make vocabulary practice and pronunciation more enjoyable. Activities included a matching game, a weather reporter role-playing exercise, and a worksheet for tracing new vocabulary. During the winter holidays, the children also enjoyed counting plastic cookies and creating decorated paper-cutout crafts.

The class read “Ricitos de Oro y los tres osos” (Goldilocks and the Three Bears) using felt props to discuss characters and ensure comprehension through guided questions. Another featured book, “Un Día de Nieve,” focused specifically on winter weather themes.

The lesson “La Ropa” (Winter Clothing) was a particular favorite. Students learned vocabulary such as Chaqueta, Suéter, Gorro, Bufanda, Pantalones, Mitones/Guantes, and Botas. They took pride in identifying the colors and items of their own daily clothing out loud. To reinforce these terms, flashcards were passed around the circle during a game of “Pasa, Pasa, Para” (Pass, Pass, Stop), where the child holding the card repeated the word. This was followed by a clothing-matching game and a descriptive worksheet. Additionally, after reading the book “El Mitón” with popsicle-stick props, the children identified each animal as it entered the mitten.

Finally, the students enjoyed a festive lesson for “Día de San Valentín.” An estimation jar was used to count pink and red hearts, and flashcards helped students recognize various heart colors. The children practiced Valentine’s vocabulary, completed a matching worksheet, and created a chocolate heart craft. All of these hands-on activities are designed to strengthen math skills, listening comprehension, and critical thinking while allowing students to apply new Spanish words in context.

Chinese

Students have been actively building their Mandarin skills through engaging songs, stories, and hands-on activities. The term began with a review of key Chinese vocabulary and sentence structures learned before the break, helping students refresh their memories and rebuild confidence.

The curriculum expanded as students worked with larger numbers (10–50) and learned new vocabulary related to fruits and drinks. Important everyday phrases, such as “please open it” and “please take it out,” were introduced to encourage practical communication within the classroom environment.

Young learners also explored the names of countries, including China and the USA, and enjoyed listening to picture books like “The Three Bears” in Chinese to strengthen comprehension skills. Continuous review reinforced previously learned topics, such as animals, action words, colors, and numbers. Additionally, students learned vocabulary for family members, allowing them to describe their own lives and relationships. A special focus was placed on animals and their movements, helping students describe actions using simple Mandarin phrases. Interactive songs, including a traditional Chinese New Year’s Eve song, further integrated movement into the learning process.

In preparation for upcoming cultural studies, students were introduced to the horse (mǎ), an important cultural symbol. This lays the foundation for an exploration of the “Year of the Horse.” To deepen this understanding, students participated in a creative coloring activity to make the concept more memorable.

Finally, the Lunar New Year was celebrated with a joyful in-class experience. Students listened to a story about the holiday, created traditional red envelopes through a hands-on craft, and played a “transforming firecracker” game to experience the festive spirit in an engaging, age-appropriate way.

Art

Our Primary students have been busy exploring color, shape, and pattern, while building important fine motor skills! They cut and glued squares and rectangles to create vibrant grids inspired by Piet Mondrian, practiced short, controlled brushstrokes and layered colors like Alma Thomas, and used oil pastels to bring snowy scenes from Snowmen at Night to life. Along the way, children strengthened their hand-eye coordination, pencil and brush grip, scissor control, and overall hand strength.

They also experimented with resist techniques and monoprinting, learning how to manipulate paint, push colors with their fingers, and create one-of-a-kind prints. Each project encouraged creativity, problem-solving, and careful observation, while giving students the freedom to express their unique ideas. This trimester has been full of colorful experimentation, joyful learning, and growing confidence as young artists!

Music

In our music classroom, we are embracing the Orff Schulwerk approach by treating music as a playground for discovery. Our students are finding their unique singing voices through folk songs and playful call-and-response games. One of the class favorites is “Che Che Kooley,” in which students respond with their voices and specific movements. To bridge the gap between hearing and seeing music, we’ve integrated solfège with the Curwen hand signs. This tactile, Kodály-inspired method allows children to "hold" the notes in their hands, turning abstract sounds into a physical experience they can see and feel.

Movement is the heartbeat of our lessons. Following the Montessori principle of grace and courtesy through movement, students practice expressing rhythms with their whole bodies. The “Robot Song” and “Head and Shoulders 123” these activities help sharpen their internal metronome. This physical expression ensures that, when they eventually pick up an instrument, the rhythm is already within them.

The classroom is energized during our instrument exploration time. Using Orff-style mallet techniques, the children are learning to play the xylophones with a relaxed, "bouncy" motion to produce a clear, beautiful tone. We have been learning hand percussion and teaching students to listen to one another and play as a unified group. Their favorite is a story of the 10 little mice who invite their friends, the squirrels, rabbits, snakes, horses, and elephants to a dance party.