Jubilee Academy

Summer session is in full swing at Jubilee Academy! ☀️ Our students have been soaking up the sunshine, exploring the world around them, and getting plenty of outdoor playtime. 🌿

The absolute highlight of the week? Finding (and devouring!) these delicious, ripe blackberries right on campus. 🍇✨ Nothing beats nature's candy!

Practical Life isn't just a category of work—it’s the heartbeat of the Montessori classroom. 🏫✨ These activities provide the foundation for independence, coordination, and a deep sense of "I can do it myself."

Yesterday, our Primary class put these skills into delicious practice by preparing banana bread! 🍌🍞 While it might look like simple baking, it is actually a multi-layered lesson in several developmental areas:

Mathematics: Measuring and leveling ingredients requires precision and an early introduction to volume and quantity.

Order & Sequence: Following a recipe teaches children how to complete a cycle of work from start to finish.

Fine Motor Skills: Mashing bananas, pouring liquids, and stirring batter builds the hand strength and coordination needed for writing.

Social Responsibility: Preparing food to share fosters a sense of contribution to the classroom community.

The best part? The classroom smelled amazing, and the pride on their faces was even better than the bread itself.

Over the past two weeks, our classroom community has been deeply engaged in caring for and cultivating our garden. The children have taken an active role in planting a variety of fruits and vegetables, including squash, lettuce, peppers, tomatoes, strawberries, cantaloupe, and watermelon. Through this hands-on work, they are experiencing the Montessori value of connecting with nature while developing responsibility, patience, and a sense of wonder.

In true Montessori fashion, the children are not only observing growth but participating in it. They’ve been watering, checking soil, noticing changes in leaves, and excitedly discussing what each plant might need to thrive. This kind of purposeful work fosters independence, concentration, and respect for living things.

One of the highlights of our garden has been creating a “frog hotel,” tucked beneath the peach trees. The children thoughtfully built this small habitat to welcome frogs and other helpful garden visitors. Each day, they eagerly check to see if any “hoppy friends” have stopped by—encouraging observation skills, curiosity, and a deeper understanding of ecosystems.

Here are a few fun facts we’ve been exploring together:

1) Frogs are excellent garden helpers—they eat insects like mosquitoes and pests that can harm plants.

2) Strawberry plants can produce fruit year after year when cared for properly.

3) Watermelons are about 90% water, which helps them grow big and juicy in the summer sun!

4) Squash plants grow large leaves that help shade the soil and keep moisture in.
Tomatoes actually start as small yellow flowers before turning into fruit.

This experience has been a beautiful example of how children learn best—through meaningful, hands-on exploration. We’re so proud of their care, enthusiasm, and teamwork as they nurture our garden and observe the life within it.

Happy Earth Day! 🌎

Today in our Montessori primary classroom, the children engaged in a meaningful and hands-on exploration of the natural world through a nature scavenger hunt. Rooted in Montessori principles of observation, independence, and connection to the environment, this activity encouraged the children to slow down, notice details, and develop a deeper appreciation for the Earth around them.

Each child carried their own journal as we walked outdoors, giving them the opportunity to independently document their discoveries. They carefully observed their surroundings and chose what was most meaningful to them—some were drawn to the beauty of trees, flowers, and plants, while others focused on the fruit-bearing bushes and trees in our garden, including blueberries, blackberries, and peaches. Many children showed great curiosity about living creatures, recording insects and animals such as bees, butterflies, dragonflies, squirrels, and turtles.

Through this process, the children practiced important Montessori skills such as classification, observation, and self-expression. They translated what they saw into drawings and early writing, strengthening both their fine motor skills and their ability to communicate their thoughts.
After filling their journals with observations, we returned to the classroom where the children expanded on their work. They reflected on their findings by adding descriptive details, thinking critically about what they saw, felt, and experienced. To extend their learning artistically, they also began painting their Earth books, reinforcing their connection to nature through creative expression.

This experience supported the Montessori philosophy of fostering a sense of wonder, respect, and responsibility for the environment. By allowing the children to follow their interests and engage directly with nature, they are building not only academic skills, but also a lifelong appreciation for the world around them.
It was a beautiful day of discovery, creativity, and connection to our Earth.

“This simple act reminds us that we are called to serve one another with love ❤️.”

Today at Jubilee Academy, our littles and toddlers stepped into a beautiful moment from the Gospel of John. By recreating the story of Jesus washing his disciples’ feet, our students explored the power of humility and gentle care.

Seeing these tiny hands take turns serving one another was a powerful reminder of the grace we can find in simple, purposeful actions.

✨ From Ms. Yanet and Mrs. Monse:

"The children explored warm water and soft cloths while we modeled gentle care. With slow, purposeful movements and hands-on learning, the children took turns washing each other’s feet."

Today in our Montessori primary classroom, one of our wonderful students worked with the sandpaper letters to practice their letter sounds. As an extension, we introduced a tactile sand activity, allowing the children to trace the letters directly in real sand. This student, who thrives on sensory experiences, was very engaged with this activity. They explored multiple sand buckets, carefully drawing each letter, and successfully formed most of them. This hands-on approach reinforced the students letter recognition and sound association while providing a rich, sensory learning experience.

We had a beautiful start to our Holy Week at Jubilee Academy as our students explored the meaning of Palm Sunday. There is something so special about seeing the world—and faith—through their eyes.

Ms. Yanet shared:
“Our little friends were introduced to Palm Sunday through simple hands-on experiences like exploring palm leaves and listening to a gentle Easter story. Although they are little, they are beginning to understand who Jesus is and what this day means.”

✨ Happy Monday! We hope your week is off to a peaceful and joyful start.

Happy Friday, Jubilee families! 🌿 It has been such a joy-filled week here on campus!

Our Primary students kicked things off by transporting us to a different realm! They spent the week building a magnificent castle and lost themselves in hours of imaginative, collaborative play. 🏰✨

Meanwhile, our Infants and Toddlers have been soaking up every bit of this beautiful spring weather. From practicing their growing independence by using their own cups during water breaks to the pure excitement of waving hello to every truck that rumbled by—it’s been a week of big milestones and simple wonders. ☀️🥤🚛

We hope you all have a restful weekend! We can’t wait to see those smiling faces again on Monday.

Today during our outdoor work time, the children were introduced to a variety of open-ended “loose parts,” including wooden planks and PVC pipes with connectors. In a Montessori environment, loose parts encourage creativity, problem-solving, and collaborative exploration, as they have no single intended outcome.

The children naturally began constructing together, thoughtfully combining materials to create structures of their own design. Over time, their work evolved into a castle, demonstrating not only spatial awareness and engineering skills, but also cooperation and shared vision.

As their structure took shape, the children began engaging in imaginative play connected to their creation. One student identified himself as the king, another as the queen, and the remaining two as knights riding horses, all working together to defend their castle. This type of play reflects the integration of social development, language expansion, and symbolic thinking.

Through this experience, the children were able to follow their interests, collaborate with peers, and bring their ideas to life—an excellent example of child-led learning and the Montessori principle of fostering independence, creativity, and meaningful peer interaction.

What a beautiful week of growth and discovery we’ve had here in Jubilee! From the first steps of friendship to mastering new skills, our students have been busy exploring the world around them.

In our Primary Class:
The energy has been electric! Our students were thrilled to utilize brand-new works and have been working so diligently on their literacy skills using the Sandpaper Letters. 📚✍️

In the Infant Space:
Ms. Yanet and Mrs. Monse share that our tiniest explorers are thriving:

"Our little friends have been loving their time outdoors... even though they are little, it’s beautiful to see how much they enjoy God’s creation."

They’ve also been busy taste-testing a rainbow of fresh fruits 🍓🍎 and building their very first friendships. As the teachers noted, "Seeing how they interact with each other reflects God’s presence with all our little friends."

In the Toddler Space:
Mrs. Vijji is beaming with pride at her group’s focus and independence:

"Our toddlers are engaged in their work. They are learning through hands-on activities and developing their skills beautifully."

We are so intentional about creating a space where every child can grow "in their own natural way." We can't wait to see what next week brings!