Monday, 2 October 2017

October Newsletter



What a great first month of preschool we have had! We were lucky enough to play outside most days, and explore the changing of the season. We gathered leaves, listened to the wind, crows and crunching leaves. Our children experienced this by using their senses, allowing them to see, feel, hear and even smell fall. Some of you might have heard your child singing our German song “Herbst ist hier”. We will now start, keeping an eye out for geese flying in a V shape, and leaving for warmer places.

HOW DO YOU FILL A BUCKET?
This month we will read a variety of books that talk about  How To Fill a Bucket”.  We already see many of our children  “filling buckets” every day by using their gentle hands, using kind words, sharing and taking turns. If we catch them “scooping” instead of filling their friend's buckets, we provide them with tools and teach them how to “refill a bucket”.  Reflecting on our own behaviour or choices, and saying  “sorry” can sometimes go a long way! J
Over the last few weeks, we took pictures of our students during playtime as they were sharing, taking turns, picking up toys, inviting each other to play and having fun together. Please come and take a look at our “bucket fillers”! Their pictures are hanging  on our bulletin board in the hallway!

OCTOBER THEME: FALL and THANKSGIVING,
Many of our October activities will revolve around “FALL” and “FRIENDSHIP”. Our students will learn about the changes in season. We will cut open pumpkins and apples to explore the inside. Often times our fall activities will include counting, sorting and classifying different nature items such as pine cones, sticks, leaves etc.
The kids really enjoy our “nature sensory bin” and like to cover up (pretend) ladybugs with leaves.
Thanksgiving Holiday is coming up next weekend and we will take the opportunity to think about what we are thankful for. Our care partners from grade 3/4 will visit us and make a little “friendship” craft with our pre-schoolers.

FIELD TRIP to DUTCH GROWERS HAY MAZE: OCTOBER 27th
All of our classes will be going on a chartered field trip to Dutch Growers Greenhouse Hay Maze.
We will need helping hands for this day. If you can join us, please let us know. There will be a sign up list hanging in the hallway. Thank you in advance for volunteering your time!



FIELD TRIP SCHEDULE
Our bus will be leaving at 9:10 a.m. and we will be back at the school by 11:00 a.m.
·      Children will be dismissed at their regular end of class time. Please inform your teacher if you are taking/picking up your child earlier (e.g. after the actual field trip) that day.
·      Snacks will be provided on our field trip day. However, if you would like to bring a special snack to share with our class, please let us know.

Costumes
      -  M-W-F students are welcome to wear a costume on the day of their field trip (Oct 27th).
      -  T-Th students will have a chance to dress up on:
           Tuesday, Oct 31st: We will have a little Halloween Party.
           (On either day costumes are optional but not required.)

LETTER RECOGNITION
We will be introducing our students to the letters of the alphabet throughout the year. The most exciting activity for each child is to identify the letters in their own name. Many of the children already recognize some letters in their name.
LINES and CURVES
We have introduced all of our children to the terms “lines” and “curves” and played around with wooden lines and curves. All letters of the alphabet are made of curves and lines! Here is one way to get excited about letters. Have your child look at his name and spy for letters that have long lines, short lines, big curves and little curves.
“Hase” our bunny in the magic hat, will pull wooden lines and curves out of his magic hat every week.  He shows the children how to form the letter of the week and also introduces the sound of it. Don’t be surprised if your child is having snack at home and starts to stutter  “b-b-b anana”! Banana starts with a “B”. Yippie!

BATHROOM
Thank you for taking your child to the bathroom before class starts. We have had way more playtime and less bathroom traffic lately. Please remind your child to let us know if he/she needs to go the bathroom.

CARE PARTNERS
We are very fortunate to provide care partners for our little ones. Each of our pre-schoolers will have his/her own care partner. These are Brevoort Park School students from grade 3/4. Usually, our care partner friends will come and visit us once a month. Sometimes they will help with a special craft, read a book or simply play with their assigned pre-schooler.


SHOW & TELL: 11:30 – 11:40 a.m.
We will start with Show & Tell this month. Each day one designated student will get to bring one item from home. It could be a special toy, a picture, a souvenir or simply something from nature. You can support your child by preparing him/her to say a few sentences about their “special item”.
If you (or someone else from your family/day care staff member) would like to watch your child for the 10 minutes of sharing, please join us at the end of the day.
Sharing will usually be at the end of class. However, if 9:00 a.m. works better for you as a parent to join us, we are happy to accommodate you.

LAST CIRCLE TIME: 11:40 A.M. – 11.45 A.M.
After show & Tell is done, ALL parents/care givers are invited to come into the classroom and join us!
We will provide you with information about your child’s day and upcoming events and activities for the week.

THANK YOU’s
·           Thank you for teaching your child how to get dressed for outside. We see many of your children trying really hard to do it “all by myself”. 
·           Thank you for teaching your child how to cover their sneeze and coughs with their sleeve (not with their hands).
·           Thank you for always checking your mailbox after class.
·           Thank you for taking off your (and your child’s) wet footwear when you walk inside the building.
·           Thank you to Mrs. Masiowski for taking care of our monthly book orders from Scholastic.

DATES TO REMEMBER (please mark your calendar!)
Our school follows the Public School calendar. All statutory holidays, professional Development Days (PD days) and breaks are observed.

October

Mon/Tue Oct 2/3           Scholastic book orders are due
Wed, Oct 4                    Picture Day M-W-F class
Fri, Oct 6                       PD - no school
Sat, Oct 7                      German-English Family Story Time
                                      with Frau Hecker @ Mayfair Library from 2-2:30 p.m.
Mo Oct 9                       Thanksgiving Day Holiday (no class)
Thu Oct 26                   T-Th class Field Trip to Dutch Growers Hay Maze*
Fri Oct 27                      M-W-F class Field Trip to Dutch Growers Hay Maze*

(*We will need 6 parent helpers/chaperones for each class!! There is a sign up list hanging in the hallway.)
Mon, Oct 30                  Picture re-take day
November
Thu, Nov 9                       PD - no school                 
Fri, Nov 10                       STA Convention – no school
Mon, Nov 13                    Stat. Holiday Remembrance Day – no school
Fri, Nov 24                       Regular class for MWF class!

December
Nikolaus Celebration  (mark your calendar!)
Nikolaus will visit our class. All families are invited to join us for a traditional Nikolaus celebration and a special children’s performance
Tue, Dec  5   (T-Th class)                 Nikolaus Celebration from 10:00 -11:45 a.m.
Wed, Dec 6  (M-W-F class)              Nikolaus Celebration from 10:00 -11:45 a.m.
                      
OKTOBER “GERMAN HERITAGE MONTH”
In December 2016, the Canadian Parliament officially declared October “German heritage Month in order to “recognize the contributions that German-Canadians have made to Canadian Society.
There will be a variety of events happening in the Province during this month. Please find the poster hanging in the hallway or go on the SGC website www.saskgermancouncil.org
On this website you will find many important dates and special events that are happening within the German-Canadian Community. You can also sign up to receive the SGC monthly newsletter.

As always, feel free to contact us if you have any questions or concerns.

Sincerely,
Uli Hecker, Larissa Lorenz

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