WELCOME
Key Peninsula Co-op: is a parent participation preschool that provides a quality, developmentally appropriate, learning experience for children ages three to five. Through collaboration among teachers, parents, Bates Technical College and the Peninsula School District, it makes available a stand alone classroom at the Vaughn site and an inclusive classroom at the Evergreen site. To find out more about this unique preschool, please give us a call To Register: 253.884.5535
www.keypeninsulapreschool.org
www.keypeninsulapreschool.org
1.29.2015
Ladies Night at the Blend Wine Shop
LADIES NIGHT AT THE BLEND WINE SHOP
Saturday, February 7th 2015
6:30pm-8:30pm
TICKETS ON SALE NOW - FEB. 6TH
$20
(Place ticket money in tuition box w/name and # of tickets wanted)
Come to create personalized Valentine's Day Cards and enjoy some time out with the ladies. The card presentation will be hosted by Co-Op mom Anna Bradshaw from our Evergreen class. The Blend Wine Shop is located in Key Center across from the market. All proceeds will go to the preschool.
Invite your friends for a great time!
1.15.2015
Teacher's Update January 2015
EVERGREEN FAMILIES We are starting our winter theme. We have just read THE MITTEN, we have
acted it out and the children are helping me retell the story. We will be
doing a lot of fun activities regarding winter. We will be starting to
practice writing and learning the letters of our name. I want to than each and every one of you for letting me enjoy your children,
I believe that I learn just as much from them as they do from me. Miss Mary
VAUGHN FAMILIES
Welcome Back Everyone! I hope that you all had a wonderful winter break spending time with your families!
I enjoyed time with my boys and family over the holidays, but I sure was
ready to get back into a routine. This has been a great first week back,
the children picked up right where we left off!
This month we will be exploring Snow, Ice, Snowflakes and Snowmen. We
have explored ice and snow so far and will continue to talk about Winter.
Our vocabulary words this month are the number 1, White, Hot Cocoa and Snowman.
We will read the stories Dream Snow, by Eric Carle, The Missing Mitten Mystery
and The Snowy Day. We will even be painting our feet and walking on "snow". We have been having a lot of fun with different healthy snacks...Last month
Daddy Zak brought in a wagon full of fruits and vegetables so we could make
yummy smoothies! Mommy Joanna brought in fruits and vegetables that we could
create a turkey with! Thank you so much everyone for helping to make this such
a great year!! Happy New Year! Kim
1.09.2015
More Rainy Day Fun for the Family
Young children are naturally curious and born to explore. Their natural languages are creativity, exploration and movement. Winter weather, illness or other reasons can restrict families to the house. Creative activities that we can plan for during these times promote language skills, nurture imagination, and reduce stress of both parents and children.
Thoughts on activities at home: When seen as an opportunity to break from routine and spend some family time; bad weather can be a good thing. Messes are easier to clean up than handling a child bouncing off the walls. If I am prepared with a few activities to do with my child, then I can feel better about needing time to do the other essential chores. I feel so much better when I allow my children to create and explore an activity, than when I turn on the television. Some days can be about both of us without me needing to leave home.
1. Play in old cereal or beans, etc. ~ Set out buckets, funnels, measuring cups, spoons, and bowls. Then fill the buckets with rice or old cereal, etc. The kids are happy to "play cook".
2. Play doh or any comparable knock-off, is cheap and versatile. There is a recipe in the Bates “Song Book”. Using household utensils are favorites. Older kids get might enjoy making it for the youngers. Plus, you can find recipes that harden in the oven for painting.
3. Paint ~ Watercolors are fine, and washable paint is okay. But any acrylic craft paint can be washed off if caught in a relatively short period of time, and the colors are so much more bright and vivid. Simply “painting” with water on colored paper, including boxes, cardboard, etc. shows results quickly, then dries for use another day.
4. Shaving Cream Paintings ~Mix shaving cream in a bowl with the desired food coloring. Then they can spread the colored fluff all over a page to make intricate designs that bleed into each other. Shaving cream does a great job of cleaning surfaces like tables and counter tops. Let the kids spread it all over the place, and when it is wiped off, the table is shiny clean. Cookie sheets, the fridge, and windows LOVE shaving cream!
5. Build a Fort ~The only drawback of turning the couch or the beds into a fortress is how often they'll want to do it in the coming days. Having small, cozy places to hide and stay is wonderfully comforting to a toddler. It may serve as inspiration to make a cozy reading nook in their room. If you can allow it to be left up awhile, it is more fun for the kids.
6. Throw a Party~ This can be especially fun if you know that the next day is going to be unpleasant and you want to turn the tides by setting up a morning surprise. Put up streamers, hang balloons, bake a cake, play dance music, set up simple games. Have a theme of the day such as beach day and turn up the heat for an hour and make tropical smoothies.
7. Music Time~ Getting the family together to sing is engaging and very good for child development. If you're not musically inclined, look at it as an opportunity to learn along with your child. Get a used guitar, buy a book, and learn some children's songs. Check out some good children’s music that won’t drive you crazy. There are companies who will make a DVD/CD/book with your child’s name in it.
8. Dress-up ~Collect a dress-up kit full of old clothes, aprons, sunglasses, Halloween
costumes, and the like. It's great to pull out on rainy days.
9. Bake something ~ It’s a lot of fun for kids, especially if they know they're going to get to eat it
later. You may want to separate out theirs from the rest of the treat.
10. Tunnel ~ Move your sofa or table away from the wall far enough to make a crawl space -
this is your 'tunnel'. Put a chair at either end that your toddler can crawl through. Now drape 1 or
2 sheets over the chairs and stretching along the tunnel's length.
11. Find The Timer -Hide a kitchen timer that ticks loudly enough to be heard, and your toddler
looks for it. Be careful not to make the hiding place too hard - go with your child if you think she
might get frustrated by this activity. For younger toddlers, hide the timer in the same room.
12. Housework Ideas~ Sort out all your clean laundry, while making it into a game for your
toddler. Get him to put all socks, trousers etc in different piles. He can then match up all the
socks. Toddlers who are not scared of the sound of a vacuum cleaner can 'help' you vacuum
up by sweeping. Wiping, dusting, unloading are important skills.
13. Outdoor play ~ As long as they are dressed for the weather; provide shorter, frequent
times for outdoor exploration. It’s good for everyone!
14. Bring outdoor activities indoors~ roll the ball into a basket/box/tunnel, etc. Use some
summer outdoor equipment in the house/garage such as the wading pool or slide. Make a ball
pit, pillow pit, fluffy pit, etc. Wad up newspaper/socks/fabric/etc. for tossing into targets that are
OK such as laundry baskets, boxes, tubs, etc.
15. Recycle! Kids love the left over junk…boxes of any kind or size, sacks, containers, paper
tubes, tape, packaging, etc. They will learn sorting, combining, categorizing and much more.
16. Empty/Fill ~ toddlers like to “help” and carry things around. Provide bags, purses,
containers with handles, etc. for filling and taking out and carrying around.
17. Kitchen cook~ since kids like the “real” things you use, designate a safe spot for kitchen
gadgets, pots, pans, containers of all types so they can whip up something while you do!
18. Rotate toys ~ moving toys to another location promotes new problem solving, creativity
and language skills. Try it for 2-3 weeks at a time. Reducing the number of toys available can
be an advantage also.
19. Sensory bins ~ anything you want to put in a large bowl or shallow tub can turn into a
sensory activity. Put it on a floor cloth and fold it all up at the end and take it outside to clean
up. Try: large aquarium gravel, sand, cornmeal, cornstarch, shells, water, feathers, cotton
balls, paper shreds, paint with marbles in the bottom, etc.
20. GO OUT! Visit play areas at the malls~ Children’s Museum of Tacoma.org for Play to
Learn programs ~ Odyssey I ~ play dates with friends ~ neighborhood walks/visits ~ Pt.
Defiance Zoo appeals to all ages ~ find a warm swimming pool.
Thoughts on activities at home: When seen as an opportunity to break from routine and spend some family time; bad weather can be a good thing. Messes are easier to clean up than handling a child bouncing off the walls. If I am prepared with a few activities to do with my child, then I can feel better about needing time to do the other essential chores. I feel so much better when I allow my children to create and explore an activity, than when I turn on the television. Some days can be about both of us without me needing to leave home.
1. Play in old cereal or beans, etc. ~ Set out buckets, funnels, measuring cups, spoons, and bowls. Then fill the buckets with rice or old cereal, etc. The kids are happy to "play cook".
2. Play doh or any comparable knock-off, is cheap and versatile. There is a recipe in the Bates “Song Book”. Using household utensils are favorites. Older kids get might enjoy making it for the youngers. Plus, you can find recipes that harden in the oven for painting.
3. Paint ~ Watercolors are fine, and washable paint is okay. But any acrylic craft paint can be washed off if caught in a relatively short period of time, and the colors are so much more bright and vivid. Simply “painting” with water on colored paper, including boxes, cardboard, etc. shows results quickly, then dries for use another day.
4. Shaving Cream Paintings ~Mix shaving cream in a bowl with the desired food coloring. Then they can spread the colored fluff all over a page to make intricate designs that bleed into each other. Shaving cream does a great job of cleaning surfaces like tables and counter tops. Let the kids spread it all over the place, and when it is wiped off, the table is shiny clean. Cookie sheets, the fridge, and windows LOVE shaving cream!
5. Build a Fort ~The only drawback of turning the couch or the beds into a fortress is how often they'll want to do it in the coming days. Having small, cozy places to hide and stay is wonderfully comforting to a toddler. It may serve as inspiration to make a cozy reading nook in their room. If you can allow it to be left up awhile, it is more fun for the kids.
6. Throw a Party~ This can be especially fun if you know that the next day is going to be unpleasant and you want to turn the tides by setting up a morning surprise. Put up streamers, hang balloons, bake a cake, play dance music, set up simple games. Have a theme of the day such as beach day and turn up the heat for an hour and make tropical smoothies.
7. Music Time~ Getting the family together to sing is engaging and very good for child development. If you're not musically inclined, look at it as an opportunity to learn along with your child. Get a used guitar, buy a book, and learn some children's songs. Check out some good children’s music that won’t drive you crazy. There are companies who will make a DVD/CD/book with your child’s name in it.
8. Dress-up ~Collect a dress-up kit full of old clothes, aprons, sunglasses, Halloween
costumes, and the like. It's great to pull out on rainy days.
9. Bake something ~ It’s a lot of fun for kids, especially if they know they're going to get to eat it
later. You may want to separate out theirs from the rest of the treat.
10. Tunnel ~ Move your sofa or table away from the wall far enough to make a crawl space -
this is your 'tunnel'. Put a chair at either end that your toddler can crawl through. Now drape 1 or
2 sheets over the chairs and stretching along the tunnel's length.
11. Find The Timer -Hide a kitchen timer that ticks loudly enough to be heard, and your toddler
looks for it. Be careful not to make the hiding place too hard - go with your child if you think she
might get frustrated by this activity. For younger toddlers, hide the timer in the same room.
12. Housework Ideas~ Sort out all your clean laundry, while making it into a game for your
toddler. Get him to put all socks, trousers etc in different piles. He can then match up all the
socks. Toddlers who are not scared of the sound of a vacuum cleaner can 'help' you vacuum
up by sweeping. Wiping, dusting, unloading are important skills.
13. Outdoor play ~ As long as they are dressed for the weather; provide shorter, frequent
times for outdoor exploration. It’s good for everyone!
14. Bring outdoor activities indoors~ roll the ball into a basket/box/tunnel, etc. Use some
summer outdoor equipment in the house/garage such as the wading pool or slide. Make a ball
pit, pillow pit, fluffy pit, etc. Wad up newspaper/socks/fabric/etc. for tossing into targets that are
OK such as laundry baskets, boxes, tubs, etc.
15. Recycle! Kids love the left over junk…boxes of any kind or size, sacks, containers, paper
tubes, tape, packaging, etc. They will learn sorting, combining, categorizing and much more.
16. Empty/Fill ~ toddlers like to “help” and carry things around. Provide bags, purses,
containers with handles, etc. for filling and taking out and carrying around.
17. Kitchen cook~ since kids like the “real” things you use, designate a safe spot for kitchen
gadgets, pots, pans, containers of all types so they can whip up something while you do!
18. Rotate toys ~ moving toys to another location promotes new problem solving, creativity
and language skills. Try it for 2-3 weeks at a time. Reducing the number of toys available can
be an advantage also.
19. Sensory bins ~ anything you want to put in a large bowl or shallow tub can turn into a
sensory activity. Put it on a floor cloth and fold it all up at the end and take it outside to clean
up. Try: large aquarium gravel, sand, cornmeal, cornstarch, shells, water, feathers, cotton
balls, paper shreds, paint with marbles in the bottom, etc.
20. GO OUT! Visit play areas at the malls~ Children’s Museum of Tacoma.org for Play to
Learn programs ~ Odyssey I ~ play dates with friends ~ neighborhood walks/visits ~ Pt.
Defiance Zoo appeals to all ages ~ find a warm swimming pool.
1.07.2015
20 Fun Toddler activities and Games
Toddler activity 1: Paper bag puppet
There's plenty of fun to be had turning a simple paper bag into a simple puppet that toddlers can get creative with and decorate.
Toddler activity 2: Indoor basketball
This is a fun game for toddlers and boosts their eye/hand coordination. All you have to do is get a bin or bucket and some rolled up balls of newspaper and try and get the 'balls' in the bin.
Toddler activity 3: Leaping lily pads
This easy activity turns your lounge room into a fun frog pond. Place cushions around the room and get your toddler to leap like a frog from one to the other.
Toddler activity 4: Make a foil crown
Let you toddler become a little prince or princess they are with some everyday items. Take some cardboard and tin foil and whatever else you can find to bejewel your creation. Fun to make and then fun to play with.
Toddler activity 5: Cardboard box car
A small cardboard box is all you need to make a fabulous car for a favorite bear or doll. Take a bigger cardboard box and turn it into a car for your toddler!
Toddler activity 6: Balloon bop
All you need is a couple of balloons, then get your toddler to bounce, throw, hit the balloon across the room without it hitting the ground. Fun and great for hand/eye coordination.
Toddler activity 7: Pillow jump
Toddlers love nothing more than jumping on pillows - so why not create a playground full of them? .
Toddler activity 8: Treasure hunt
Distract your child while you hide some 'treasure' around the room for your child to find. Your toddler will love the game of finding it!
Toddler activity 9: Table tent
A simple table tent will have kids occupied for ages. Create your own campsite indoors and you can pretend to sleep under the stars, sing around a camp fire or just hide out in the 'tent'.
Toddler activity 10: Musical jars
Spark the inner musician in your toddler with by making these easy musical jars.
Toddler activity 11: Cotton tip painting
Pour out some paints and forget about the brushes, instead use cotton tips to create a different type of artwork. Your toddler will have great fun experimenting with art.
Toddler activity 12: Ringing phone
Toddlers love 'talking' on the phone, so with a few ordinary household items make one for your child.
Toddler activity 13: Trail's end
Take a roll of toilet paper and create a trail for your child to follow. Tie a little surprise at the end for your toddler to find.
Toddler activity 14: Binoculars
Go on safari in your lounge room and create a pair of binoculars for your child. They're fun to make and then your toddler can create a whole imaginary world to use them in.
Toddler activity 15: Color collage
Watch your child paste and create his own masterpiece with this fun activity. Great to boost imagination.
Toddler activity 16: Indoor cubby house
A few cushions and a sheet will make the perfect cubby house. A fun place to hide out in and then it can be a base for countless role-play games, from a hospital to a school.
Toddler activity 17: Pretend cooking
All you need are a few bowls, wooden spoons and saucepans and get pretend cooking. Whip up a feast to whet your toddler's imaginary appetite.
Toddler activity 18: Rainy day box
A fresh and fun rainy activity for your toddler is to create a rainy day activity box.
Toddler activity 19: Butterfly paintings
Amaze your child by teaching them to make their own beautiful butterfly! All you need is a few bits and pieces to get painting.
Toddler activity 20: Egg carton treasure box
This egg carton treasure box makes the hidey-hole for your toddler to store all those little treasures he
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