2025 Newsletter Term 04 | Issue 02 – Farmhouse Montessori School

Dear Farmhouse Montessori Families

As we come to the close of another enriching and memorable year, I want to extend my heartfelt gratitude to each member of our wonderful community.

This term offered wonderful opportunities for collaboration with fellow Montessori schools, strengthening the sense of community across our wider Montessori network. Our children proudly hosted sports sessions for the Headland Montessori students. We also welcomed children from Cameragal Montessori for a shared day of bushwalking and outdoor activities.

We celebrated the Graduation of our Year 6 students this week. It was a wonderful moment to acknowledge their achievements and the contributions they have made to our school community.We are very proud of each of our graduates and wish them well as they begin their next chapter. Thank you to all the families who joined us in the celebration.

Our Preschool End of Year Celebration, centred on the theme of peace, was another beautiful highlight. The children shared songs with the community and the true work was in the process wherein they explored their understanding of peace, within themselves, with others and with the world around them. Thank you to all the families who joined us and supported the children.

We completed our ACEQUA Assessment and Rating at the Preschool recently, and we are delighted to share that Farmhouse Montessori received an Exceeding rating. This reflects the dedication, professionalism and deep commitment of our entire team to delivering an authentic, nurturing and high-quality Montessori environment.

As we prepare for a well-deserved break, I want to express my appreciation to all families for your support throughout the year. Your collaboration and ongoing commitment to your children’s Montessori journey is deeply valued.

On behalf of the entire Farmhouse Montessori staff, I wish you all a safe, restful and joy-filled holiday season. We look forward to welcoming everyone back in the new year and continuing our shared journey of community.

Warm regards,

Harshitha Ravikumar | Interim Principal

An Education for Peace

Work is the central focus of the child’s day, so we provide learning experiences that children can genuinely get excited about. The environment is filled with rich materials and the children are presented with meaningful tasks that spark curiosity and invite deep concentration. The adults in the community take this work seriously, creating a calm, respectful space where children can explore, create, and contribute with purpose. Work is celebrated not with rewards, but by helping children feel the satisfaction that comes from effort, persistence, and doing something well.

We take time to honour the children’s learning in visible, joyful ways. Children may present their work to the class, take extra time to publish something beautifully, or build a portfolio that shows their progress over time. These moments help them recognise their own growth and share it with others.

Kind Regards,

Chris Deery | Primary School Coordinator

This year the Elouera toddlers have grown in confidence, independence and belonging. Many now enter the room ready to choose their own work, show care for the environment and contribute to daily routines. Practical Life activities strengthened coordination and self-help skills, while Sensorial and early maths experiences supported focus, problem-solving and curiosity.

Social development has been a key part of our year. The children learned to join others, wait, listen and use emerging language to communicate their needs. Grace and Courtesy lessons helped them practise turn-taking and respectful interactions, and we saw strong moments of peer connection during group times, outdoor play and shared projects.

The children have developed a strong sense of belonging across the school. Regular visits to shared spaces, interactions with other educators and time in the big garden helped them feel secure and confident in their wider environment. As we finish the year, we celebrate each child’s progress and thank families for their partnership and support.

Warm regards,

Elouera – Corinne, Nina, Karen, Yuko, Anniebelle.

Celebrating Learning

As the school year draws to a close, we have taken time to reflect on all that we have learned together. One of our favourite experiences began with the story The Tree at Number 43. The children were fascinated by the animals that visited the tree and the foods that grew there, especially the abundance of pears. This simple story became a rich springboard for conversation about nature and food.

When one of our educators shared that in her homeland, people often make pear strudel, the children were intrigued. Together, we talked about recipes, family traditions, and how some foods have special meaning in different cultures. After discussing that one of our friends could not eat pears, the group decided we could adapt the recipe, using apples instead. This thoughtful choice showed care and inclusion, qualities that lie at the heart of our learning community.

The following week, the children peeled and chopped apples, mixed ingredients, prepared the pastry and rolled everything together with great pride. Once the strudel finished baking, they were excited to taste the new dish at the end of the day. Through this experience, the children celebrated not only the delicious result but the learning process itself. They explored new ideas, worked cooperatively and discovered the satisfaction that comes from creating something together.

Warm wishes,

Burbangana educators – Vanessa, Annabelle and Merrill.

Montessori: Celebrating Learning Every Day

At Montessori, we celebrate learning by nurturing independence, curiosity and a genuine love of discovery. Our classrooms are carefully prepared with hands-on materials that invite children to explore at their own pace, follow their interests and develop confidence in their growing abilities.

A big part of Montessori learning is encouraging children to take the lead. Whether they’re practising practical life skills like cooking, cleaning and caring for their environment, or exploring early academic concepts, children are supported by educators and inspired by their peers. This freedom builds resilience, self-reliance and pride in their achievements.

We also recognise that learning extends far beyond academics. Cultural diversity is woven naturally into classroom life, helping children appreciate different languages, foods, music and traditions. These experiences foster empathy, acceptance and a strong sense of belonging.

Throughout the year, we celebrate learning in meaningful way, through art exhibitions, Book Week, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day and Grandparents’ Day, all of which bring families into the heart of the classroom. Our annual science fair gives children a chance to share their curiosity and discoveries, turning their knowledge into exciting hands-on experiences.

One of the most special Montessori traditions is the Birthday Walk, where each child takes a symbolic “journey around the sun” to honour every year of their life. This beautiful ritual helps children connect their personal growth with the wider world around them.

In Montessori, every child is valued, every culture is honoured, and every voice is heard. We are proud to guide children to become compassionate, confident and open-minded individuals, carrying these values with them throughout their lives.

“The real purpose of education is to prepare the orientation for future generations, who will progress to a new plane” Maria Montessori 1946

— Jo, Dawn, Claire, Mireia, Larissa and Claudia.

As we come to the end of another wonderful year at Farmhouse, we reflect with gratitude on all the learning that has taken place beyond our classroom walls. Amaroo, our beautiful outdoor environment, has continued to be a place of exploration, discovery, and connection for the children.

Throughout the year, the children have cared for the garden, observed the changing seasons, investigated insects, built together, and found peaceful moments in nature. These experiences have sparked curiosity, encouraged independence, and nurtured their sense of wonder.

In Amaroo, learning has been hands-on and meaningful—measuring, problem-solving, collaborating, and caring for the natural world. We have watched the children grow in confidence as they embraced challenges and found calm in the rhythms of the outdoors.

Amaroo remains a space where learning is joyful, purposeful, and deeply rooted in respect for nature. We celebrate the many discoveries made there this year and the growth we have witnessed in every child.

Wishing you and your families a wonderful Christmas and all the very best for 2026.

—Dawn & Mireia.

Celebrating Learning

This term in Orana, our Kindy and Year 1 students have enjoyed a wonderful period of exploration and growth. The classroom has been filled with curiosity and calm focus as children engaged in their work.

Across literacy and maths, students have been strengthening early reading, writing, and number skills through hands-on materials. Practical Life and Sensorial activities continue to support independence, coordination, and confidence.

Most importantly, our classroom community has flourished. The children are helping one another, celebrating each other’s achievements, and showing pride in their learning. We are so proud of their efforts and look forward to more discoveries next year.

Have a wonderful holiday break.

Warm regards,

Laura & Bruno.

“The greatest sign of success for a teacher is to be able to say, ‘The children are now working as if I did not exist.’” – Maria Montessori

Aikya Families,

As we reach the end of Term 4 and look toward Christmas, we pause to celebrate the learning that has unfolded in our classroom—not only the achievements, but the effort, curiosity, and joyful “toil” your children bring to their work each day.

In Montessori education, learning is not delivered; it is invited. This term, we have seen children take ownership of their learning in remarkable ways. Our Young Architects incursion became a powerful example of collaboration and problem-solving: children negotiating design choices, testing stability, and refining ideas together. It was learning that grew naturally from purpose and shared excitement.

Across the classroom, students proudly presented research projects—from animal reports to maps and poster boards. These presentations strengthened confidence, organisation, and communication, and reminded us how deeply children engage when their work has meaning.

Our walk to the local post box was another highlight, giving purpose to handwriting, spelling, and addressing our letters to pen pals at Montessori East, Bondi. Sending real letters created genuine enthusiasm and supported literacy through an authentic experience.

Mathematics this term has been hands-on and thoughtful. Whether working with golden beads, bead chains, bead bars, or geometry solids, children showed persistence and concentration, often teaching one another and checking their own work with quiet pride.

Each Friday, our Celebration of Learning has become a treasured ritual. Children select work for their portfolios, share their achievements with the group, and respectfully celebrate the efforts of their peers. This practice strengthens reflection, pride, and community—and makes learning visible in a joyful, collective way.

As the school year comes to an end, we invite you to see these moments behind the scenes—the growth, effort, and intrinsic motivation that define Montessori learning.

Thank you for your partnership and trust this year. We wish you a restful, joyful Christmas and look forward to a wonderful 2026.

Warm regards,

—The Aikya Team – Toby & Chris.

This term, celebrating learning has taken on a very real (and very edible) form in Yani. Our going outs to Coles has given students the freedom to plan menus, compare prices, and navigate the aisles with the confidence of seasoned shoppers. However, the true celebration takes place back at school, where their cooking is shared with peers. For most students, the pinnacle of the entire experience isn’t the shopping or even the cooking – it’s the moment someone takes a bite, smiles, and says, “Whoa… this is actually good!” In Montessori, celebrating learning means valuing initiative, independence, and contribution to the community, and for Cycle 3 students, it’s the moment they realise their skills are genuinely useful and can be applied to real-life situations.

The same energy shows up in their big projects. When a student becomes obsessed with fungi, or cartography, or the French names for planets, the classroom turns into a buzzing academic ecosystem. The real magic is when they take these passions and teach them to younger children from other rooms. Whether demonstrating a material, running a mini-lesson, or explaining their research with TED Talk-level conviction, Yani students are learning that knowledge isn’t something you keep – it’s something you launch into the world.

— Thomas, Ella & Bruno.