Ms. Piper’s Class Newsletter 9-27-16
Hello, preschool families! We hope this message finds you well. This is the classroom update for the month of September. We are looking forward to seeing everyone at conferences next week!
What We’re Learning
From Sep. 5-Oct. 12, our STEM Unit is Pets. The children have enjoyed telling about their pets from home (thanks to those who sent photos!), stories featuring pets, and a visit from Freddie the Hamster. We have incorporated the Pets theme into our centers, including a pretend Vet Clinic, and into our math and literacy activities, which have included drawing and writing about pets, counting dog biscuits, and patterning with pet counters.
Our PATHS Social Emotional Curriculum has focused on the four basic feelings: Happy, sad, mad, and scared. We teach these using puppets, with everyone’s favorite being Twiggle the Turtle. We have been working on identifying what these emotions look and feel like, and that ALL feelings are okay.
In literacy, we have been working on making and drawing a Mat Man (which teaches the skills needed to draw a person, which is a precursor to writing). We have also focused on identifying and writing the letters L, F, E, H, T, I, U, and C.
In math, we have been incorporating counting into our daily routines, such as having the children figure out how many children are in our class each day and singing songs that use counting. We have also begun identifying shapes in our environment and exploring the attributes of shapes in our pattern blocks.
On Oct. 15, we will begin our new STEM unit: Weather.
Important Dates
· Sep. 28: Parenting Class with Cheryl Hamilton, Family Whisperer 6:30-7:45
· Oct. 2: Count Day—attendance extremely important!
· Oct. 2-4: Parent/Teacher Conferences
· Oct. 5: PBIS Reward–Bubble Party
· Oct. 10-11: Hearing and Vision Screenings
· Oct. 11-12: Spirit Day- Dress like a Superhero
o no weapons or masks
o $1 to wear Superhero costume all day (PTO)
· Oct. 16: Non-student Contact Day
· Oct. 19: Parenting Class with Cheryl Hamilton, Family Whisperer 6:30-7:45
· Oct. 27: Trick or Treat Street Family Activity 4:30-6:00
Important Spark! Info
Community Resources: We have information to connect families with local agencies regarding mental health, child nutrition, physical fitness, food bank, child find, medical and dental resources, in several locations:
1) In a notebook in the front office,
2) In our parent flyer stand at the front entrance
3) On our school website at http://sdpk.svvsd.org/
4) The black table at the front of the school also has activity packets for parents to take in English and Spanish (when possible)
Use of Interpreters for Families Speaking a language other than English
Spark! Discovery Preschool takes reasonable steps to ensure families with limited English proficiency have meaningful access and an equal opportunity to participate in their child’s education, activities, and programs. Our district uses district-approved language translation services for translation of written communications, such as newsletters, Individual Education Plans, and so on.
Interpreters at Spark! Discovery Preschool will provide support for parents who may need this. An interpreter is available daily in our school’s front office. Additional interpreters are available for:
● Ice Cream Social
● Child Development parent classes (when requested)
● Parenting classes (when requested)
● Special Education meetings
● Child-Find Meetings
● Parent-Teacher Conferences
Referral Processes: If families would like to make a referral to a specialist, please discuss this with the School Special Education Facilitator. We host a Child Find satellite office at Spark! Discovery Preschool, to handle questions or concerns about child development, behavior, or mental health. If you have questions about your child’s health, you should call our health clerk. She will answer your questions or forward you to a SVVSD nurse.
Child Find at Spark! Discovery Preschool: For children ages birth to five (who are not attending a district preschool already), developmental screenings and evaluations are provided by a District Child Find Assessment Team at Spark! Discovery Preschool (555 8th St., Frederick). This Child Find Assessment Team may be comprised of School Psychologists, Speech and Language Pathologists, Occupational Therapists, Physical Therapists, a School Nurse, and Early Childhood Special Education Teachers. Autism and Culturally/Linguistically Diverse Specialists consult as needed.
Other Plans for Academic or Behavioral Assistance: A Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) is a systemic, continuous improvement framework in which data-based problem-solving and decision making is practiced across all levels of the educational system for supporting students. A Multi-Tiered System of Supports helps our school to organize resources through alignment of academic standards and behavioral expectations, implemented with fidelity and sustained over time, in order to accelerate the performance of every student to achieve.
Ms. Piper and Ms. Sherry