Our room has been buzzing (and vrooming!) with activity these last two weeks as we’ve explored air and water transportation. Students played pilot in our own mini airplane complete with in-flight magazines, tiny windows, and a flight attendant bringing snack. Last week we learned about boats and then tried to build our own out of recycled materials. Almost all of our boats even managed to float when we finished our discussion of float vs. sink with a real-life test in the sensory table ‘pond’. We have also been busy learning about letters. So far we have learned the name, shape, and sound for Ee, Ff, Hh, Ii, Ll, and Tt. This week we are adding the letters C and U to the list and talking about the curves in the letters. Please continue working with your child on the sound the letters make with Zoophonics. When talking with you child about letters, describe the shape – short lines, long lines, big curves, little curves. We talk a lot about lines here in preschool. We’ve been busy describing shapes as well as letters. We’ve learned triangles have three lines and vertices (corners) while squares have four and circles have no vertices at all. We spend time each week looking for shapes in common objects – the door that is a rectangle, the circle in our person drawing, etc. Your child can get more practice recognizing shapes by looking around your home or the grocery store and pointing out what shapes he or she sees. We have more excitement coming up. We are working on scheduling a visit from either a truck or a school bus to round out our transportation unit. Next week we will have our transportation design challenge where we will be working together to create a project. Nuts & Bolts:If you have not turned in your conference time request, please do so as soon as possible. Times are filling up! Remember to say goodbye to your child before they come into the cubby. For safety reasons, we cannot allow them to run out to you after they’ve been checked in. Library books check out for 2 weeks. Please be sure to return your child’s library book before our next library visit on Tuesday, October 10. Children cannot check out a new book until the old one is returned. Tuition payments need to be turned into the office, not left in your child’s folder. Dates to know:Tuesday, Sept 26: LibraryWednesday, Sept 27: Picture DayMonday, October 2: Parent Teacher Conferences by appointment Book FairTuesday, October 3: Parent Teach Conferences by appointment Book FairWednesday, October 4: Parent Teacher Conferences by appointment Book FairFriday, October 6: End of Fall Fundraiser. All packets due to the office by 4 pm. From the Office:
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/commu
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.
Learning ExtensionsThis week we are focusing on the letters Cc and Uu as well as the number 3, squares, and the color green. Encourage your child to draw or find triangles and then count the sides and corners. The curves in this week’s letters can be tricky for some so extra practice making curvy lines is very helpful. Children can do this by practicing their letters or when drawing pictures of round things such as faces or tires. Thank you again for sharing your children with us! Sincerely, Ms. Kiersten