Preschool News:
This was a really busy and quick month! We talked about our new color (pink), shape (heart), number (6), and month (February). Each day our little “meteorologist” reported the weather and helped us decide what to wear outside to keep us toasty warm. We continue to “find Harmony” each day and talk about her school reminders—she hides in some very tricky places!
We spent the first two weeks talking about and preparing for Valentine’s Day and our class party. The students created lots of Valentine’s artwork, and it was heartwarming to watch them give away the Valentines they had made themselves at home.
Special books we read this month were Pinkalicious by Victoria and Elizabeth Kann, My Love for You by Susan L. Roth, and Pete’s Big Lunch by James Dean.
We also spent the month learning about Dental Awareness and how to keep our teeth healthy. We talked about brushing after breakfast and before bed. Don’t be alarmed if your children beg to brush before bedtime—we learned about the “sugar bugs” that crawl on teeth at night while you’re sleeping if you don’t brush them off before going to sleep! The children learned about flossing, eating and drinking healthy foods, and going to the dentist.
It was a fast and very fun month!
Miss Lori
Pre-K News:
February was a short month in Pre-K, but a very busy one! We have worked hard and had lots of fun.
So far, we have completed work on the letters A–S. We learn each letter’s sound and the lines needed to make each letter. The children are doing a wonderful job with their alphabet work—recognizing each letter and its sound, and forming the lines needed to create each one.
We have also been practicing writing our names again this month and will continue to practice each week for the remainder of the school year.
In keeping with our February theme of Dental Health Month, the Pre-K children have been enjoying our Hide-and-Seek Toothbrush game! I hide 50 toothbrushes around the classroom for the children to find. We hunt for them and then count to make sure we found them all (some are extremely well hidden and tricky to find!). In addition to counting individually and in groups of fives and tens, we sort them by color and size. The children also made their own toothpaste and brought it home to share! We have talked A LOT about brushing AND flossing! Nurturing dental health will serve them throughout their life, have them “practice” flossing everyday. . . even if they don’t do it perfectly, it doesn’t matter. . . it’s the “habit” we are reinforcing! Sometimes it helps add value to the task of brushing and flossing; I made a bet with each of my kids when they were little. . . I promised a $500 bonus on their 18th birthday ; but only IF they had zero cavities. It totally worked! They are all in their mid to late twenties and still, none of them have a cavity (that I know of). Your students also observed a four-day “eggsperiment,” we soaked white eggs in different drinks to see how those drinks affected the once-white shells—needless to say, water was the clear winner.
We also learned about the Post Office this month. The children made Valentines for their moms, learned their street addresses, addressed their envelopes, and “mailed” their letters in the school mailbox—then they magically (we hope!) appeared in your home mailbox.
Our Valentines party was priceless. They LOVED handing out their Valentines, dancing with the disco lights, and playing with balloons after the balloon drop.
It has been a fun month!
Miss Holly
Coming Up:
March is all about Our Solar System!
The classrooms will make huge transformations over the next four weeks. We will not be sending much theme-related artwork home, as we like to decorate the classrooms with the children’s creations. Our school will look very “spacy” when we are done! Our puzzles, books, sensory tables, music, movement, and art will all be focused on Our Solar System. Our solar system song is priceless—I cannot wait for you to hear your little ones singing it. It’s a scream!
Thank Yous
Thank you so much for the donations of soap and paper towels; we go through these very quickly and appreciate your support!
House Keeping
We are almost done with the alphabet—only seven letters left—and just six short weeks between now and April vacation! I’d love to work toward an Alphabet Celebration the week before April vacation. The children have been working very hard learning their letters, letter sounds, and “letter lines.” Past Alphabet Parties have been a big hit; I still hear about them from previous years’ participants, and I hope we don’t disappoint! In the past, the children have decorated t‑shirts with their favorite letter. During the Alphabet Party, we look forward to revealing the last letter—but it hides! They won’t find Z until they are somewhere at your house. I will sneak the letter Z to you; your mission will be to hide it in a place your child checks regularly. Get as creative as you like (tape it to the inside of a closet door, a stairway, or even the underside of the toilet seat!). On party day, they will come home feeling disappointed that the letter Z was not found—just wait until you see their reaction when they discover it at home!
Because the weather changes so quickly, it is most helpful for us to be ready for anything. Your children need to wear waterproof boots to school and are welcome to bring a change of shoes. Our nature walks will get very muddy as the snow melts.
If you call during school hours and we do not answer, please do not worry. We generally do not interrupt our day to answer the phone unless one of us is readily available. We check the answering machine as soon as someone can step away from the classrooms. The most efficient way to reach us is the Brightwheel messaging app, which appears directly on each of our cell phones.
Awesome job being on time for drop-off and pick-up! With the amount of snow, there is simply nowhere to go when cars are early or late. Please remind Nanas, Papas, babysitters, nannies, and friends of our drop-off and pick-up times.
A quick note on our “social” lessons: we continue to build on the expectations we have been working on since September. We are seeing wonderful progress with eye contact, reciprocal greetings, relevant back-and-forth conversation, using someone’s name to get their attention before speaking, and always practicing the school “do’s.” Our next social lesson will focus on the art of conversation. Some children are naturally “gifted” socially—they ask thoughtful questions, seem to know what is appropriate to discuss, offer compliments, and connect with ease. Others need a little more support.
One of the best ways to help young children build social skills is to teach them how to ask questions. Your children are used to me asking them many questions each day, but I purposefully ask them the same two questions every time they come to school: (1) What was for breakfast? and (2) What was your favorite part of school today? These repeated questions give them practice thinking back, recalling details, and formulating more than a one-word answer—great exercise for their brains. I especially love the second question because we share a brief “history” of the day, so I can help prompt them if needed. By the time our preschoolers are in Pre-K, their responses are detailed and fantastic! Currently, all of the children are used to my “two questions” and answer them beautifully. Soon I will add a third layer: after they respond, I’ll ask, “Don’t you want to ask me what I had for breakfast?” or “Would you like to know what my favorite part of the day was?” My goal is to nurture curiosity and teach them how to show interest in others.
I am very mindful of how I answer their prompted questions. I model what I hope to hear from them—responses that are brief, positive, specific, and sometimes include how something made me feel. If your little one starts “returning” questions at home, please praise them! One of my favorite questions is, “What do you think?” This question gives them a chance to hypothesize or solve a problem independently. There are no wrong answers; it simply offers another opportunity for their developing brains to practice problem-solving. Good luck!
Child Development Ditty 101:
Fine and Gross Motor Development
This is a big topic, so here is the condensed version. Two important points to remember are: first, every child develops at their own pace in every area of growth; and second, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends at least one hour of physical activity per day, broken up over several intervals. Personally, I think an hour a day isn’t enough, at all. For more information, this website is very helpful: http://kidshealth.org/parent/nutrition_center/staying_fit/exercise.html#
Fine motor development refers to the small muscles of the hands. At school, we offer many opportunities to build hand strength and coordination—puzzles, cutting, play dough, putty, finger painting, building manipulatives, drawing, dressing skills, droppers, clothespin “pinching,” and more.
Gross motor development involves the large muscles of the body. Some children have a strong need to move and are naturally very physical, while others are less interested in movement. For our “high movers,” our job is to help them find safe, appropriate ways to meet that need. For children who prefer not to move as much, we work hard to discover any physical activities they enjoy and make those choices available as often as possible. Creating fun movement opportunities can be challenging in the winter months, but activity doesn’t need to be highly structured: shoveling snow, gardening, or pushing and pulling things around the yard all count. One of my favorite activities for young children is going to the beach; the deep sand creates an uneven surface that strengthens their core and leg muscles, and digging is wonderful exercise for fingers as well as a rich sensory experience. Put on snowsuits and visit even in winter—you’ll have the beach to yourselves and may find the best sea glass! Here is another resource on the health benefits of playing outside: https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/six_ways_nature_helps_children_learn
Physically, children develop from their core outward to their limbs. A strong core leads to strong arms and legs, which in turn support strong hands and feet. A strong body is important: strong children have more stamina in all areas, not just in the classroom, and they often recover from illness and injury more quickly. Strength does not have to mean being athletic or involved in organized sports.
I hope this is helpful in bringing awareness to the importance of supporting the whole child—physically, cognitively, socially, and emotionally. No single area is more important than another; all are interconnected and depend on one another as our children grow, day by day, into strong, thoughtful, problem-solving, friendly, and happy adults.