GOOD SHEPHERD NURSERY SCHOOL
October 2007 Newsletter 
 

Director Notes

We hope you enjoyed the field trip to Tougas Farm in Northborough.  It’s always exciting to ride on a school bus!  Picking apples from short trees and choosing a pumpkin from the pumpkin patch are great hands-on experiences for the children.  It was fun to include everyone on the hay ride this year!

We were pleased to see many of you at Parent Information Night last week.  We hope you enjoyed the presentations and opportunity to meet other parents; any feedback you would care to give would be much appreciated.  If you were unable to attend and would like a copy of the text of the presentations on social skills, the role of teachers, our learning environment, and the concept of process versus product, please let me know.  You may also borrow a copy of the DVD featuring your children at school.  I have attached an article about how to talk with your child about their art work, and an article about teaching social skills to young children.  I hope you find them useful.

Before we know it, winter will be here!  Our inclement weather policy is detailed in your parent handbook.  Over the years we have found it very useful for the children to keep a pair of slippers here at school.  That way, you won’t have to remember to pack sneakers or slippers on the days that your child wears rain or snow boots.  These also come in handy if your child’s shoes get wet at the water table.  If you choose to send in a pair of slippers, please mark them clearly with your child’s name.

We apologize for recent problems with the telephone line, which we hope  have now been corrected.  If you have trouble getting through in the  future, you may also call 508-533-5482 or 508-533-6401 (these numbers go through  to the church office and can be transferred to GSNS).  Remember that there  are times

when I may be unable to get to the telephone because I am working with  a child or talking with another parent.  I will return your message as soon  as I am free.

--Miss Cathy

CALENDAR NOTES

The Good Shepherd Curriculum- Learning through Play

As you know, our school has four rooms for the children to explore during Free Play time.  Each room has several different learning centers.  The teachers meet weekly to brainstorm ideas and plan the weekly curriculum, giving careful thought to each different learning center.  This monthly newsletter will keep you informed of the skills the children are learning and practicing as they “play” at each center, using their imaginations and power of choice to become independent, inquisitive learners.

CIRCLE  TIME

The children begin and end their day with circle and story time.  These important small group times provide a comfortable opportunity for a consistent group of 6-8 children to learn from each other important group skills such as sitting, listening, and waiting for a turn to talk as we share information and stories about our weekly theme (and whatever else the children have on their minds at the time!).  We begin each circle with a prayer, a review of the children’s job chart (every child has a job every day), and a weather report from the “weather person”.   Once a week the  primary children take turns bringing in the red “show and tell” bag, while the Pre-K students learn about each other through the “All About Me” bag.  Pre-K students also take turns bringing  in the letter bag to help us learn the sound of  our “letter of the week”.  Our recent discussion themes included:

Welcome to School:  we sang songs and played games to help us learn each other’s names.  We also talked about the school routine, and practiced the proper method of hand washing.

School Rules:  We talked about why we have rules (to make sure everyone stays safe) and brainstormed a list of rules

including using “indoor voices”, “walking feet” and “keeping our hands to ourselves”.

Making Friends:  Puppets like “Buzz” the bumblebee acted out scenarios to help teach how to introduce yourself, how to join in where others are playing, how to share toys, ask and wait for a turn, peer problem solve and more!   

Farm Life:  We made predictions about and then reviewed what we might see and do on a farm like Tougas’ Farm.

Autumn:  We marveled together at all of the beautiful changes taking place outside our windows, and praised God for this special season. 

Pets: We are currently looking at pictures and laughing over stories about  each other’s pets, or fantasizing over the pets we’d like to have! 

We’ll end the month talking about Fire Safety. 

Circle time is also the time to discuss what’s new at each learning center, think about and make a plan, and segue confidently into our day!

THE LEARNING ROOM

The Learning Room is the room we try to keep as the quietest room.  It contains the book corner, the flannel board, puzzles, the Listening Center where there are books on tape, and the “Quiet Cube”, which is a comfy place to rest.  Another active learning center in this room is the Snack Table, where the children learn to pour their own drink, open and spread out a napkin, clean up after themselves (including spills), practice manners, and use names and words to ask for items to be passed.  They also learn to try new foods and food textures as they watch their peers enjoy foods they may previously have thought they wouldn’t like.  We do encourage the children to give the school snack a try, and usually find they ask for seconds!

THE CREATIVITY ROOM

The Creativity Room has three centers, not including the bathroom, which is a learning center in itself where we practice proper hand-washing and important self-help skills.

Playdough- Developing fine motor muscles and social skills such as sharing, negotiating, and conversing with peers are all skills being practiced at the playdough table as the children create with playdough or floam (a unique microbead sculpting compound).  Rolling pins, scissors, plastic knives, and seasonal cookie cutters add to the fun! 

The Sensory Table  is another place for social and cognitive development as well as providing a fun sensory experience.  We began the year with scoops, shovels, pails and sifters in play sand.  Then, to go with our farm theme, the children enjoyed burying plastic farm animals and manipulating small tractors and bulldozers through wood shavings.  Next will be water, which is a very soothing activity, and will also provide the opportunity to practice pouring and measuring. 

THE DRAMATIC PLAYROOM

A refrigerator, sink, stove and microwave with play food, cooking and eating utensils, are always available in this popular room as well as vacuums, brooms, telephones and tool boxes.  Baby dolls and clothes, a changing table, strollers, high chairs, baby food and bottles, and of course a variety of “adult” dress-up clothes and accessories are also available.  These materials allow the children to “try on” a variety of adult roles through imagination and make-believe.  The room comes alive with moms, dads, princesses, secret agents, cooks, and cleaners to name a few!  Through role play the children gain understanding and control over emotions and events they may have experienced or witnessed.  Deciding on a role provides opportunities for problem-solving, language development, and building friendships.  The children learn to take turns, share and be patient - all important social skills. 

This room is also home to the Writing Center and the Computer Center.  The children practice a variety of skills at the Computer Center including eye-hand coordination, patience while waiting for a turn, conversation and co-operation as the children help one another figure out what is required to play.

At the Writing/Language Center we began the year with “Puzzle Pairs”, a game that teaches word association, matching and eye-hand coordination as the children piece together two pictures that go together, such as paint and a brush, socks and shoes, etc.   A memory game was out next, where players turn over two cards at a time and try to find a match.   This is excellent practice for developing memory, concentration and recall skills as well as vocabulary, as the children discern the differences in the pictures. 

Currently out is a game called “What on Earth” where the children use their observation and problem-solving skills to find and then fix what is wrong in each picture.  This game also promotes lots of laughter and a sense of pride and confidence as the children correct the silly mistakes!

THE ACTIVITY ROOM

The Block Area teaches our future engineers and architects about balance, gravity, shapes, planning, problem-solving, and cooperative play.  This area also contains cars, trucks, plastic people and animals to enhance the block play.  Near the wooden blocks there is also a Lego table and a vertical Lego base mounted on the wall, providing a different building perspective.

The Free Craft Area is another “creation station”, with a wide variety of supplies for the children to explore and use as they wish including tape, scissors, glue, markers, crayons, paper of various sizes and colors, and unique collage materials.  Here is where they unwittingly learn about such concepts as colors, shapes, lines, textures, size, etc.   It is also a great place for meeting friends and making conversation!

The Toy Shelf contains manipulative toys which, like the materials at all of the other centers, rotate every two weeks.  These toys help teach eye-hand co-ordination, cause and effect, and co-operative play, as well as strengthen the fine motor muscles which are necessary for pencil control when learning to write.

In the Science Area this month the love of magnets contributed to the joy of prediction and discovery.  A variety of items were available for the children to try to pick up with various sizes and styles of magnets.  Next the children continued to use their skills of observation and discovery as they explored our classrooms with a selection of  magnifying glasses and binoculars!  To enhance our discussions on Autumn, the science center is now host to a variety of fall leaves, acorns, pinecones, and a hollowed out pumpkin, helping the children gain an understanding of God’s beautiful outdoor world. 

At the Math Center  classification, sorting by size, color, shape, function and counting were explored as the children sorted a variety of small plastic farm animals by color, shape, or likeness.  Next, animal dominoes provided lots of fun and contributed to the animal matching theme, as well as teaching cause and affect when the dominoes were lined up and knocked down!  The “Itsy Bitsy Spider” game currently out is a fun way to practice counting and turn-taking.

The Craft Table features one special craft per week which all children are encouraged to try, and is designed to help us provide and observe a variety of experiences and skills.    The craft often coincides with our weekly theme.

Beaded Necklaces-  During the first week of school the children enjoyed stringing beads to make unique necklaces, some with repetitive patterns, working on fine motor, eye-hand coordination and patterning skills.

Self Portraits-  The children used observation, memory and fine motor skills as they thought about and then drew a picture of themselves as well as some family members and family pets.

Coffee Filter Art-  With this craft the children had fun mixing colors and building fine motor muscles as they squeezed eye droppers and watched liquid water colors drip and spread onto the coffee filter. They are proud of their colorful “stained glass” art displayed throughout the school.

Cookie cutter stamping-  Cookie cutters like apples, oranges and leaves were used with red and yellow paint to create fall paintings.

Paper plate creations-  The children used pieces of tissue paper, glue and brushes to decorate paper plates and further explore Fall and their own unique creativity.  We definitely have many artists among us! 

THE LARGE PLAYROOM

The large playroom is our ”Indoor playground”, complete with a climbing cube, slide, bikes, balls, basketball and soccer nets, balance beam, jumpolene, and a variety of other items which change regularly and help build skills such as teamwork, coordination and balance, as well as strengthen the large motor muscles. 

                                                                                                                                         
This room is also where we gather  as a whole group and enjoy Music and Movement, helping to build language skills, motor skills, eye-hand coordination, as well as awakening the senses to start the day! Recent songs included:  Old McDonald, Wheels o the Bus, 5 Green Apples, What Does the Cow Say, Share his Love, Love is Patient, Shake your Sillies Out, Apples & Bananas, Twisty Freeze, I took a Bath in a Washing Machine, Wiggle, Wiggle, and My Dog Rags to name a few!   We can provide the words if you’d like- just let us know.

QUOTES

Every day we are amused at the clever and funny things that the children say!  We try to write down or remember as many as we can, and hope you enjoy these examples:

Child:   “Little babies aren’t big.”

Child at the Snack Table- picked up her cup and plate and stood up, heading for Dramatic Play:  “I’m going to eat mine in the kitchen!”

While playing with floam at the playdough table:
Miss Meg:  What does it feel like?
Child:  "It feels like the moon!

Reviewing the "Rules of Friendship" poster:
Miss Meg:  Does anyone know what the word "jealous"  means?
Chilld:  The stuff you put in your hair?   (Referring to "gel") 

Child 1, with his friends dressed in suit coats, ties, & hats:   “We’re not Child 1, Child 2 and Child 3 anymore, we’re Doodle, Noodle and Spy.”
Child 2-  “Ya, and we speak American.”

Child:  “Miss Maryann, you should come to my house.  It’s the cleanest ever.
Miss Maryann:  “Why is it so clean?”
Child:   “A guy came with a big vacuum thing!” 

Child:   “Next I’ll  be 5, then 6, then lots more and I’ll be all done with birthdays!”

Miss Kelly at snack- “I’m going to put some gel on your hands.”
Child- “My Dad puts gel on his hair!”

We are grateful for the opportunity to learn and grow with your children, and look forward to a fun-filled year!  May God bless you during this beautiful season.  

Miss Brenda-PK!, P2       Miss Kelly-PK2, P1

 Miss Maryann-PK1, P2    Miss Meg-PK2

 Miss Andrea-P2             Miss Nancy- P1

             Miss Julie-P1

The best education is the one that creates a desire for more.