Extracurriculars and Events: The Importance of School Community at Guidepost
Guidepost is committed to cultivating safe and supportive school communities where families can connect with their child’s learning, and where children are encouraged to fully pursue their interests. In this guide, we share our approach to extracurriculars and events.
Jenna Wawrzyniec
Content Specialist
When touring a school for your child, community offerings like extracurriculars, events and parent resources are valuable to add to your checklist. While health and safety, curriculum, and accreditation are top priorities, it is of significant value to join a school that is community-oriented and aligns with your needs, interests, and overall wellbeing!
At Guidepost, school community is anchored around a few key pillars:
- Trustworthy and meaningful parent partnerships
We nurture this through daily communication and helpful at-home resources - A deep respect for each child as a unique individual
We offer unique extracurriculars on-site to help children fully explore interests and hobbies. - Relevant and convenient opportunities to connect
Our school calendar is designed to meet the demands of busy, modern-day parents, featuring in person or virtual events that genuinely add fun — not work.
Below, we share more about extracurriculars and events as part of Guidepost’s school community. *Please note that extracurriculars and event offerings will vary by location and in compliance with your local community’s most current health, safety and COVID-19 protocols.
Extracurriculars
School leaders carefully research and survey community vendors who can offer a range of activities that are interesting and age-appropriate for the Toddler program, Children’s House, and Elementary program. With a keen eye for developing the whole child as part of the Montessori approach, Guidepost emphasizes extracurriculars that:
- Encourage independence, ensuring the activity will respect each child’s autonomy within a clear structure, not a free-for-all.
- Offer unrestricted access to real-world exploration in the early years, choosing programs with activities that are reality-based, like cooking and robotics, as well as creative programs rooted in realistic imagination, like drama and dance.
- Meet the child where they are in their development, ensuring the vendor offers activities that are neither too easy nor too difficult.
- Nurture intrinsic motivation, partnering with vendors who do not rely on external motivators like reward systems and prizes, and instead, encourage children to experience ownership of their own achievements.
Our on-campus extracurriculars are designed to meet the needs of busy parents with programs built in to the school week. This means you won’t have to worry about another time commitment with another commute because we bring the activity on-site. Extracurriculars are typically offered at the start of Extended Day programming, beginning at 3 p.m., for those who choose to sign up.
Guidepost Montessori Virtual School offers extracurriculars as optional add-ons to your at-home routine, too. Virtual students can access engaging classes from home like Art, Story Time with Movement, Yoga, Baking, STEM, and Spanish.
Other popular Guidepost extracurriculars include art, calligraphy, chess, cooking, dance, gymnastics, drama, martial arts, music, robotics, science, soccer, yoga, and more!
Over in Cedar Park, Texas, local coaches with Amazing Athletes visit Guidepost Montessori at Brushy Creek for weekly games!
In Chicago, Ms. Judy of Make Joyful Sound offers “Music for Montessori” for a happily engaged room of preschoolers and kindergarteners at Guidepost Montessori Schaumburg!
In Southern California, OC Kids Yoga visits Guidepost Montessori at Las Flores every week to lead children in their yoga practice and breathing techniques!
Events
Guidepost events are designed around making it easy to connect with other families, and they also serve to support involvement in your child’s school experience. While events are unique by campus, Guidepost has a few signature annual events.
- Open House: You can experience a Guidepost event even if you’re not yet enrolled. Our school teams plan in-person or virtual open houses where interested families can explore the campus, meet the staff and see the classrooms while children enjoy fun activities, crafts, and story times.
- Silent Journey: If you’ve ever experienced Take Your Son/Daughter to Work Day, consider Silent Journey the reverse! Silent Journey is our annual curriculum night when you step foot inside your child’s classroom to experience firsthand how they learn using the Montessori materials.
- Parent Education Sessions: Toilet training, respectful discipline, positive phrasing techniques — parenthood brings so many milestones and questions. Our Parent Education sessions are aimed at sparking these discussions with the goal of empowering you at home.
Once enrolled, you will have access to a diverse roster of events, ranging from weekend meetups at the park, holiday festivals, picture days, book fairs, and more.
In North Texas, families enjoyed a Fall Gardening event with Guidepost Montessori Craig Ranch.
Animal encounters are so exciting for children! Guidepost Montessori Round Rock families enjoyed petting and feeding the animals at their Fall Festival.
At Guidepost Broadlands, this elementary student organizes their school’s canned food drive to benefit their local community.
For parents of elementary children, you might enjoy attending a play! These Broadlands students made their own script and props, and they assigned themselves jobs to make it come together! Here they are practicing.
Nothing beats outdoor fun. Students at Guidepost Montessori Chantilly enjoyed a Field Day.
A parent at Guidepost Montessori Peoria receives a Practical Life lesson just as her own child experiences it as part of the Silent Journey Curriculum Night.
Carols, hot chocolate, and more! Guidepost Montessori families in North Scottsdale enjoyed their school’s Winter Fest.
Kindergarten graduation is a big deal, especially when it is the capstone year of Montessori Children’s House! Guidepost Montessori at Eldorado held a cap-and-gown ceremony for their recent graduates! Kindergarten Information Nights are regularly held for families trying to understand the difference between Montessori Kindergarten and traditional Kindergarten.
Find your nearest campus here, and opt in for a school tour or open house to see if our community is a mutual fit for your family.
Jenna Wawrzyniec
Jenna is a trained journalist and writer whose parenting journey transformed after implementing Montessori at home with her three children. She is a passionate advocate for bridging Montessori to the mainstream as a means to build community, empower parent-child relationships, and honor learning as the lifelong journey that it is. She holds a Montessori in the Home certificate from The Prepared Montessorian.
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