Dates to Remember: Sept 2 – Labor Day! NO SCHOOL!! Sept 7 – UCD Garage Sale Sept 11 – Patriot Day / Boomer visits! Sept 15 – Easton’s Birthday! Sept 19 – Talk like a Pirate Day! Feel free to dress up like a Pirate or Princess for school! Sept 29 – Elena’s Birthday! Themes: Sept 3-6 – Apples Sept 9-13 – School Buses Sept 16-20 – Pirates & Princesses Sept 23-27 – Seasons: Autumn Show-and-Tell: Sept 6 – Something RED or something to do with APPLES! Sept 13 – Something YELLOW or something to do with BUSES! Sept 20 – Something PINK or something to do with PIRATES or PRINCESSES! Sept 27 – Something BROWN or something to do with AUTUMN. Super Student of the Month:
Starting in September, I will be choosing one student each month to be my Super Student of the Month! This is a special reward for student’s good behavior and/or achieving a hard-earned goal. If chosen, your child will get a spotlight in our newsletter and blog, and be given the opportunity to design and decorate the outside of our second classroom door! How do you do this? There are a few options! Some parents prefer to decorate a poster with their child at home, then bring the poster here to hang up on the door. Or you could bring your materials in and I will release your child from their daily activities to spend some creative quality time with you so you can decorate the door itself! Children love seeing pictures of themselves, so I recommend using several of your favorite pictures and basing door decorations off their favorite things (for example, if a child likes sports, you could go with a sports theme). This project is not meant to be complicated or stressful so please do not hesitate with any questions you may have! September's Super Student of the Month:
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Dates to Remember: Aug 1 – Enrollment Night, 5:30 PM Aug 9 – UCD CLOSED for cleaning Aug 19 – Last day of optional enrollment – 1st day of school! – All About Me! homework due Aug 26-30 – Testing Themes: Aug 5-9 – Rules Keep Us Safe Aug 12-16 – Colors and Shapes Aug 19-23 – All About Me! Aug 26-30 – Testing/Superheroes Show-and-Tell: Aug 2 – Something you would take on a PICNIC. Aug 9 – No Show-and-Tell! UCD CLOSED! Aug 16 – Something that is my FAVORITE COLOR. Aug 23 – My FAVORITE TOY! Aug 30 - FREE CHOICE! About Ms. Rachel: I wanted to take a moment to introduce myself! My name is Rachel Johnson and I am the Lead Teacher in the Kindergarten Readiness room, as well as UCD’s Assistant Director. My work schedule is Monday-Thursday, 7:30 AM-5:30 PM. I have been working with children since September 2002 and have been a Preschool teacher since June 2009. I attended Highland Community College and received my CDA (Child Development Associate Credential) in 2015. My husband and I have been married for 17 years and we have one daughter, Aislynn, who will be 6 this coming January! I am one of the few people out there who can honestly say that I LOVE MY JOB! Nothing brings me more joy than watching a child learn and grow! It probably doesn’t help that I’m really just a big kid myself. I still love Superheroes, Scooby Doo, watching cartoons with my daughter, singing silly songs, and just plain acting goofy! About Kindergarten Readiness...
Our Curriculum Here in Kindergarten Readiness we use the Handwriting Without Tears curriculum. This curriculum prepares children for kindergarten in a developmentally appropriate way. Young children are not ready to sit still and focus for long periods of time. They learn best when they move, manipulate objects, build, sing, draw, and participate in dramatic play. In a nutshell – when they have fun! But don’t worry, we’ll be learning how to sit quietly, too. As the year progresses we will begin adding more “sit down” time to help our children get set for school. "Journaling" is encouraged and has many advantages in the classroom; learning that print can be read and has meaning, turning pages from front to back, one at a time, following print from top to bottom and left to right, communicating thoughts with words, proper crayon grip, demonstrating positive self esteem, and much more. Each child will also be given their very own workbook that will help them to develop coloring, drawing, counting and beginning writing skills. Bathrooms It is best for your child to be completely potty trained before moving into Kindergarten Readiness. Students go to the bathroom independently with little-to-no assistance from the teachers. This includes wiping and changing their clothing. Teachers will, of course, step in if a child is struggling, but we encourage children to at least try before asking for help. As learning to dress oneself is part of becoming self sufficient, this may mean that every once and a while your child will come home with their pants on backwards or their shirt inside out. If you have questions or concerns about this, please feel free to talk to us! Schedule Kindergarten Readiness operates under a structured schedule that includes Group Time and Small Groups, as well as free choice Center Time. This allows children to work together in a large group, learn to function in a small group, and choose where and how long they would like to play at the individual centers. We try to keep this schedule as consistent as possible for the children’s sake. Nap Time For nap time we require all bedding, including pillows, to fit into a zipped book bag that the child can pack on their own. This is to reduce the spread of communicable diseases, such as lice. When making mats, we highly encourage our children to be self-sufficient and at least try to put their sheet on their bed by themselves. Help is given as needed and once they have shown that they have tried. No-Toy Policy To prevent conflicts between children and eliminate distractions, we have a No-Toy policy in Kindergarten Readiness. Children are allowed to bring one “Snuggle Buddy” for nap time, and we ask that their buddy remain in their cubby until needed. Please note, special items used for transitions and security (comfort objects, such as a blanket or stuffed animal) are OK to bring to ease the child. Show-and-Tell We have Show-and-Tell every Friday and we use it to reinforce the current week’s theme. Please note, because we use Show-and-Tell as a learning tool, if a child brings an item to school that does not correlate with the theme, they will not be allowed to show it. Having said this, we set aside one week a month as FREE CHOICE, for those items that children are excited to bring, but yet do not fall into any particular category. Parent Communication We use an app called Remind to help bridge communication between teacher and parents. Parents are not required to download the app and can access their messages through text and email once they are connected. We use this app regularly to make announcements, remind parents of upcoming events and send out small reminders (such as what to bring for Show and Tell). Remind also allows parents to message Ms. Rachel at any time during the day and allows her to do the same if necessary. And finally... Discipline Policy/Reward System To help the children comprehend that destructive or disruptive behavior is unacceptable, we use a reward system that is very visual for them. The two most important tools to this system are located in the classroom: a bulletin board that reads “Good Days” and a Dixie cup full of colored sticks, one for each student. The system works as follows: A “Good” day - no offenses. At the end of the day the child is allowed to choose a sticker for their own personal sticker book, and on Fridays they may choose an alternate reward from our treat box. First offense – the child receives an oral warning and redirection. Second offense – the child loses a YELLOW stick. They must pause and talk to a teacher to discuss their actions after each stick loss (to make sure they understand why the stick removal was necessary) before they are allowed to return to their activity. At the end of the day, if 1 stick is all that the child lost, the child will still receive a sticker/treat and they are praised for “fixing” their offense. Third offense – the child loses a GREEN stick and is removed from their current activity. They must sit and talk to a teacher to discuss their actions. No sticker/treat is received at the end of the day, and the child is encouraged to try again next time. Fourth offense – the child loses a RED stick, is removed from their current activity, no sticker/treat is received, and parents will be notified of their behavior. The only time this policy changes is if the offense is dangerous or physical, such as running off or hurting someone on purpose. If one of those things happens, a stick is automatically lost, as we do our best to discourage violence and unsafe behavior. Summer Schedule: Mondays – Messy Monday Tuesdays – Splash Day (on hold until further notice) Wednesdays – Walk Together Wednesday Thursdays – Splash Day (on hold until further notice) Fridays – Fun Fridays As our summer program continues, parents will need to keep a close eye on our schedule so that you will know what is in store for your child on any given day. Our summer activities include:
Dates to Remember: July 3 - Walking field trip to Boswell Park July 4-5 – No School! Happy Independence Day!! July 10 - Walking field trip to the Washburn waterfall July 12 – Trike-A-Thon, 10:00 AM July 17 - Walking field trip around Washburn campus (it's a Sculpture hunt!) July 24 - Walking field trip to Boswell Park July 31 - Walking field trip to Boswell Park Themes: July 1-5 – Stars & Stripes July 8-12 – Bicycle Safety/Trike-A-Thon July 15-19 – Opposites July 22-26 – Sports July 29-Aug 2 – Picnic Show-and-Tell: July 5 - No School July 12 - No Show-and-Tell! Trike-A-Thon! July 19 - FREE CHOICE! July 26 - Something to do with SPORTS! Aug 2 - Something you would take on a PICNIC! Trike-a-Thon:
Our students will be joining St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital in the fight against childhood cancer by participating in a Trike-a-Thon the week of July 8-12! This is a week-long event and it teaches our students that they have the power to help others. They will also learn trike safety through fun lessons. We’ll end the week with a celebration on Friday, July 12, and you’re invited to come! This event is extremely important to me personally, as my daughter Aislynn lost her best friend Ariya to cancer just last year, 3 days before she would have celebrated her 6th birthday. We’ll be riding for Ariya, and we encourage you to choose a loved one or family member to raise money for in their honor. Your involvement is a big part of making this fundraiser a success, and participation is easy! REGISTER at stjude.org/trike
Summer Schedule: Mondays – Messy Monday Tuesdays – Splash Day Wednesdays – Walk Together Wednesday Thursdays – Splash Day Fridays – Fun Fridays Dates to Remember: June 5 – Field Trip to the Topeka Zoo June 12 – Boomer & the Library Lady visit, 10:00 AM June 17 – Father’s Day Celebration June Themes: June 3-7 – Zoo Animals June 10-14 – Life on the Farm June 17-21 – Summer Fun June 24-28 – Under the Sea Show-and-Tell: Fri, June 7: Something to do with ANIMALS! Fri, June 14: Something to do with a FARM! Fri, June 21: FREE CHOICE! Fri, June 28: Something to do with the OCEAN! A Peek at our weeks: As our summer program starts, parents will need to keep a close eye on our schedule so that you will know what is in store for your child on any given day. Our new summer activities will include:
Nap Time:
Starting in June we will be decreasing nap time for our future-Kindergarteners by half an hour every two weeks. This will aid in preparing them for new schools with little or no resting time. Children not preparing for kindergarten will be keeping the same nap schedule. Dates to Remember: May 1 – Spring Pictures! May 2 – UCD Annual Meeting, 5:30 PM* May 6-10 – Testing week May 8 – Boomer & the Library Lady visit, 10:00 AM May 12 – Mother’s Day May 13 – Muffins with Mom* May 17 – KR Graduation, 4:00 PM* May 24 – Last Day of School! May 27 – Memorial Day! NO SCHOOL!* May 28 – 1st Day of Summer care Themes: April 29-May 3 – Outer Space May 6-10 – Testing May 13-17 – Bugs & Insects May 20-24 – Pond Life May 27-32 – Camping Show-and-Tell: May 3 – Something to do with OUTER SPACE! May 10 – FREE CHOICE! May 17 – Something to do with BUGS or INSECTS! May 24 – Something to do with FROGS or POND LIFE! May 31 – Something to do with CAMPING! Upcoming Events: UCD Annual Meeting: Our Annual Meeting will be held on Thursday, May 2nd at 5:30 PM. As shareholders of UCD, all parents are encouraged to come to the annual meeting. We will be voting on the slate for new board members and reviewing the year and our goals for the upcoming year. Please let us know if you will be attending and if you will need child care for the meeting. Muffins with Mom: Calling all Moms!! Come enjoy a tasty breakfast with your son/daughter to celebrate Mother’s Day! Monday, May 13, 7:35-9:30 AM. Graduation: “Everything I Need to Know I Learned from Disney” Kindergarten Readiness Graduation will be at 4:00 on Friday, May 17th in the Fellowship Hall (gymnasium). All children that will be attending Kindergarten for the 2019-2020 school year will take part in the graduation ceremony. The entire KR class will be performing a few songs and a skit, so please come and support our graduates! Memorial Day: UCD will be CLOSED Monday, May 27th in observance of Memorial Day. Upcoming Changes at UCD: A Note from Ms. Alex: We have a few changes coming up in the next couple weeks that I wanted everyone to be aware of. Miss Maddie R and Miss Alicia will be leaving UCD and their last day will be May 3rd. This year we have a couple staff members graduating, as well as one leaving UCD to do an internship. Miss Nicole's last day will be May 10th, Miss Maddie S's last day will be May 16th, and Miss D'Mya's last day will be May 24th. We are very sad to see them go but they all have great reasons for leaving and will all leave on good terms. Miss D'Mya might be back this fall but she is unsure at this moment. If you have any further questions, please feel free to ask. Thank you and have a great day! Alex Renyer Super Student of the Month:
Dates to Remember: Apr 8-12 – The Week of the Young Child / Take 5* Apr 9 – Happy Bear visits, 11:00 AM Apr 10 - Boomer and the Library Lady visit, 10:00 AM / Crosby’s birthday! Apr 18 – Easter Egg Hunt at Washburn* Apr 19 – UCD Closed for Teacher Inservice Apr 23 – Track and Field Day* *See "What's New at Superhero Headquarters" for details. Themes: Apr 1-5 – Weather Apr 8-12 – Plants/Seeds Apr 15-19 – Easter Apr 22-26 – Recycling/Earth Day Apr 29-May 3 – Outer Space Show-and-Tell: Apr 5 – Something to do with the WEATHER! Apr 12 – Something to do with PLANTS or SEEDS! Apr 26 – FREE CHOICE! May 3 – Something to do with SPACE! What's New at Superhero Headquarters: Can you Take 5?? The week of April 8th-12th is the Week of the Young Child. WOYC is an annual celebration sponsored by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) to recognize the importance of the early childhood years. As part of our celebration we will be giving parents the opportunity to “take 5 minutes” to spend with their child in the form of a short activity to do together each afternoon at pick up. We will end the week with Pancakes for Parents on Friday, April 12th. If you are free please join us! If you have any questions about the Take 5 activities please contact the school office at (785) 232-0263 or email us at ucdpreschool@sbcglobal.net. Easter Egg Hunt We will begin taking donations of pre-filled plastic easter eggs starting the beginning of April. Our all-school Easter egg hunt will take place on Washburn campus on Thursday, April 19th. Don't forget your easter basket! Track and Field Day UCD’s annual Track and Field Day is Tuesday, April 23 at Washburn’s Yager Stadium. Please dress your child in weather-appropriate, easy to be active in clothing. Tennis shoes with socks are important, too! Super Student of the Month:
Dates to Remember: Mar 4 – Bruce’s Birthday! Mar 13 – Boomer and the Library Lady visit, 10:00 AM Mar 14-15 - CLOSED for Spring Break Mar 15 – Lennox’s Birthday! Mar 17 – St. Patrick's Day Mar 19 – Isabelle’s Birthday! Mar 20 – First day of Spring Themes: Mar 4-8 – Dr. Seuss Mar 11-15 – St. Patrick’s Day Mar 18-22 – Rainbows Mar 25-29 – Spring Show-and-Tell: Mar 1 – Something to do with DR. SEUSS! Mar 8 – FREE CHOICE! Mar 15 – Something GREEN! Mar 22 – Something COLORFUL! Mar 29 – Something to do with SPRING! What's New at Superhero Headquarters: That’s a BIG Hat! In celebration of Dr. Seuss’ Birthday (March 2) the UCD classrooms take part in a little competition throughout the month of March. We place the head of the Cat in the Hat (minus his hat) on the bulletin board in the hallway and invite parents to help us make his hat grow! How do you do that? By reading to your child at home! We will be sending slips of red and white paper home with each family to fill out every time a book is read. After the slips have been filled out, bring them back to school for us to hang on the hallway bulletin board! Spring Break: Washburn University’s Spring Break is the week of March 11-15. UCD will close only that Thursday and Friday. Super Student of the Month:
Dates to Remember: Feb 13 – Boomer and the Library Lady visit, 10:00 AM Feb 14 – Motor Development – Valentine’s Day Party, 3:30 PM Feb 18 – UCD Closed for Parent/Teacher Conferences Feb 19 – Motor Development Feb 21 – Motor Development Themes: Feb 4-8 – TESTING Feb 11-15 – Valentine’s Day Feb 18-22 – Dental Health Feb 25-Mar 1 – Dr. Seuss Show-and-Tell: Feb 1 – Something to do with DR. SEUSS! Feb 8 – FREE CHOICE! Feb 15 – Something RED or something to do with VALENTINE’S DAY! Feb 22 – Something WHITE or something to do with TEETH! What’s New at Superhero Headquarters: Staffing changes – As many of you know, Ms. Jennifer is no longer with us. In her absence Mr. Bruce Davies, Ms. Sammy Strecker, and Ms. Rachel Frakes will be my rotating Assistant Teachers. Mr. Bruce, whom we have already nicknamed “Batman,” is a new to UCD, but Ms. Sammy and Ms. Rachel are familiar faces and the children are adapting well to these most recent changes! Parent/Teacher Conferences – Parent/Teacher Conference appointments will be pre-arranged by Ms. Alex and I. If you cannot make your appointment, please see one of us and we can get you rescheduled! Motor Development – Each year the KR room pairs with Washburn University’s Motor Development class for an hour of physical education fun! Motor Development takes place from 9:30–10:30 AM on campus in the Petro building, so a short walk is necessary. Due to February’s cold mornings, we ask that all children are dressed warmly, in clothing easy to move in, with coats/hats/scarves/gloves etc. and wear tennis shoes and socks. Super Student of the Month:
Dates to Remember: Jan 1 - UCD Closed! Jan 16 - Boomer and the Library Lady visit, 10:00 AM Jan 17 - Jack's Birthday Jan 19 - Aislynn's Birthday Jan 21 - UCD closed in observance of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Themes: Dec 31-Jan 4 - Things that GO! Jan 7-11 - Friendship Jan 14-18 - Dinosaurs Jan 21-25 - Diversity Jan 28-Feb 1 - Kansas Show-and-Tell: Jan 4 - Something to do with TRANSPORTATION! Jan 11 - A small GIFT to share with a FRIEND. Jan 18 - Something to do with DINOSAURS Jan 25 - FREE CHOICE! Feb 1 - Something YELLOW or something to do with KANSAS. Notes from Ms. Rachel
Cold weather: January is notoriously cold in Kansas, but there may days here and there where we will still be going outside for recess. Unless the temperature dips below 32 degrees (including wind chill) we are required by law to take the children outside for at least 30 minutes in the morning and 30 in the afternoon. It is a good idea for children to have not only their coats, but whatever layers you feel would be appropriate (i.e. hats, gloves, scarves, etc.) Reminders: Please make sure your child has two complete sets of clothes in their cubby/basket at all times (2 shirts, 2 pants, 2 underwear, 2 socks). Every Friday is Show-and-Tell. Show and Tell almost always has to do with the current week’s theme. See above or check the calendar outside our classroom to see what the next theme is! Please take home your child’s bedding, water bottle, and hand towels every Friday and bring back clean on Monday. Dates to Remember: Dec 1 - Date Day, Noon-4:00 PM Dec 4 - Santa visits, 10:00 AM Dec 5 - Boomer and the Library Lady visit, 10:00 AM Dec 7 - Christmas Program. Dec 14 - Date Night, 5:30-7:30 PM Dec 21 - Movie, Pajama Day, and Book Exchange! Dec 24-Jan 1 - UCD Closed for Christmas Break Themes: Dec 3-7 - Twas the Night Before Christmas Dec 10-14 - Seasons: Winter Dec 17-21 - Christmas Dec 24-28 - No School! Closed for Christmas Break!! Show-and-Tell: Dec 7 - Something to do with CHRISTMAS! Dec 14 - My favorite winter HAT, GLOVES, or SCARF! Dec 21 - FREE CHOICE! Upcoming Events: Date Day - Got some Christmas shopping you still need to do? Sign up for Date Day, Saturday, December 1st from Noon-4:00 PM! Price of Date Day childcare is $30/1st child, $15/additional child and will include lunch, nap, and entertainment until pick up. Christmas Program - Friday, December 7 is the big day! UCD's annual Christmas Program, in which the Kindergarten Readiness class are always the stars! Together with the Toddler and Preschool classes, we will be performing an adaptation of Twas the Night Before Christmas by Clement Moore. What you need to know: The program will start at 6:00 PM, so please drop your child off (in costume) in our classroom no later than 5:45 PM. Family members can then head to the church sanctuary to find their seats. Costumes are winter pajamas and slippers (unless otherwise stated in the memo sent home.) Refreshments will follow the production in the gymnasium. Movie and Pajama Day - December 21 is a special day here at UCD! Children are encouraged to wear their pajamas, bring their favorite snuggle buddy, and spend a day relaxing with their friends while we watch Christmas cartoons! Book Exchange: This year our school will be participating in a Holiday Book Exchange activity during our pajama party. If you would like your child to participate, please send a wrapped, gender-neutral book to school no later than Friday, December 21. No purchase is necessary, however, should you choose to buy a new book, please do not spend more than $5. The gift tag should be signed, “To: A Friend / From: (Your Child’s Name)” At the pajama party children will exchange books with their classmates. Every child will take home a new book. Notes from Ms. Rachel
Cold weather: As the weather continues to get colder, I wanted to remind everyone that unless the temperature dips below 32 degrees (including wind chill) we are required by law to take the children outside for at least 30 minutes in the morning and 30 in the afternoon. It is a good idea for children to have not only their coats, but whatever layers you feel would be appropriate (i.e hats, gloves, scarves, etc.) The Elf on the Shelf: Every Christmas I sit down with my students and read to them, "The Elf on the Shelf" by Carol V. Aebersold and Chanda A Bell. For those of you who are unfamiliar with this story, it is an interactive holiday hide-and-seek tradition. We start by reading the book and naming our stuffed toy elf. Our elf then sticks around the classroom magically moving to a different lookout every day because, as the story goes, he flies back to the North Pole to report to Santa Claus every night and then flies back by morning. The kiddos love looking for his new hiding place every day and it becomes a favorite game until our elf "goes home" on Christmas Eve. As I have worked in childcare for many years, I understand that not every family celebrates Christmas in this manner. Having said this, please do not hesitate to let me know if your do not wish your child to be encouraged to believe in Santa Claus. It will only take a few moments a day for me to pull your child aside and remind them that we are just pretending. It will not mess up or interfere with our fun tradition and will allow me to help reinforce your own family's traditions. Thank you! |
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