Kindergarten...

2012-2013 Kindergarten Registration Kick-Off!
March 17, 2012
Peninsula School District's 2012-2013 Kindergarten Registration Kick-Off! is scheduled for Saturday, March 17, 2012, from 9:00 a.m.-12:00 noon at all neighborhood elementary schools. Thanks to the passing of the Replacement Educational Programs and Operations Levy we are able to continue with our 4-day, All-day Kindergarten program.

What a success!

Our Preschoolers did great and had a lot of fun riding trikes, getting fits for helmets and face painting during our first ever Trike-a-thon last Saturday!

To all our sponsors, thanks for supporting these terrific kiddos-

With your help we raised over $3,000 for our preschool!

"M" is for Mary

July 3, 2008

Parents,

We are going to be talking about Spring in the next couple of weeks. We will be reading IT LOOKED LIKE SPLIT MILK and LITTLE CLOUD. We will be doing some amazing activities that go along with the book. We are still working on letter writing and will soon start on numeral recognition.

Parent- Teacher conferences are scheduled for the 14th and 15th of March, which means that we do not have school on those days. If you would like to schedule a conference please let me know and I will set up a time.

I would also like to thank all my parents you participated in the Trike-a-thon, each and everyone of you made it a huge success. It seemed that everyone one had a great time,so once again thank you.

Miss Mary

"K" is for Kim

Hello Preschool Families!

As hard as it is to believe, many of our students will soon be starting Kindergarten.  We have spent our preschool time preparing our students and their parents for Kindergarten.

First and foremost, parents should always remember that on a daily basis, you are your child’s first and best teacher!  As your child’s most important teacher, simply treating them with love and respect teaches them two important qualities right off.  Also, the examples you set in all areas of daily life teach skills…the way you problem solve, he way you handle frustration, the way you speak and the vocabulary you use, your healthy habits versus your not so healthy habits…everything you do sends an instructional message to your child.  Having said that, no one is perfect, and if you slip up, or are working on self improvement, discuss it with your child at an age-appropriate level.  Let your child see that everyone makes mistakes, but the important thing is learning from our mistakes and trying not to repeat them.

The second most important thing for parents to keep in mind is that at this stage of development, PLAY is the most important learning tool your child has.  So, have fun with your children…laugh and play simple games, you will be amazed how much is learned and retained through this process!  Childhood is such an amazing, but short period…what a great gift you can give by not rushing your child through and letting him or her enjoy each special day.

Thank you for allowing me to spend this precious time with your children!!

Teacher Kim

Trike-a-Thon

Levy Action!

Just a reminder that your ballots for the Levy need to be mailed by Feb. 14th, which is Tuesday.

Replacement Levy 2012 – Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q – What is the Replacement Levy?

A – This is a levy that is voted on by the citizens in a school district that allows the district to collect a property tax that provides funding for the public schools.

Q – Is this an additional levy beyond what we are currently paying?

A – No, this is a replacement levy that will take the place of the levy that was approved in 2009. The 2009 levy will expire after 2012.

Q – How will the passage of this levy affect property tax?

A – It is estimated that tax rates will be $2.14-$2.38 per $1000 of assessed value. The 2012 rate is $1.94 per $1000. Please see slides 21-23 for the rates over the previous 20+ years, in the slide presentation at http://www.psd401.net/staticfiles/psd/documents/2012_Replacement_Levy_Presentation.pdf

Q – How much more will this replacement levy cost the average homeowner?

A – The current levy approved by the taxpayers in 2009 will be assessed at $1.94 per $1,000 of assessed value in 2012. A homeowner with a home valued at $300,000 would pay $582 in property taxes to the Peninsula School District. The proposed replacement levy estimates tax rates to be $2.14 in 2013 or about $642 for a $300,000 home. This would be $60 difference annually, or $5 per month.

Q – When will this replacement levy take effect?

A – Voters are being asked to approve a four-year levy which, if passed, will be in effect from 2013-2016.

Q – What do the levy dollars pay for?

A – Many years ago, when the levy system was initiated, the intent was that levy dollars would be used to pay for extras that a community wanted to provide within their school system.

However, over the years, as other funding sources have decreased, levy dollars have become more and more important as support for basic programs and services. In the Peninsula School District, levy dollars now provide over 20% of the operating budget. Current levy dollars pay for:

· 20% of the cost of classroom teachers · 40% of the cost for custodians, paraeducators and clerical staff · 80% of athletic and co-curricular costs · 100% of the cost of health technicians · 85% of technology staff and equipment · 100% of maintenance projects

· The 4-day, all-day free kindergarten program · 60% of textbooks and instructional materials · Supplemental funding for school security and emergency preparedness

Helping the behaviorally challenging child.....

HELPING THE BEHAVIORALLY CHALLENGING CHILD

“This wonderful class has profoundly changed the relationship with me and my son - my husband,

too. We talk more. He tantrums less. And he feels empowered - he owns the solutions and therefore

works hard to carry it out. Thanks for teaching this class with such passion!” - Emily S

If you are a parent or teacher of a child for whom sticker charts,

rewards and other behavior programs just don’t seem to work, or

your child gets frustrated and melts down or simply puts on the

brakes, this class series will explore these and other issues

through Collaborative Problem Solving* and other positive

communication practices. The presenter brings her personal

experience as well as her experience helping other families and

schools with these challenges.

You will learn:

¨ What’s getting in your child’s way

¨ Why traditional behavior plans aren’t working

¨ Communication methods that will create solutions and foster independence

¨ Common roadblocks and how to deal with them

¨ How to help your child become a flexible, tolerant problem-solver

Presenter Sara Gardner is the parent of a former "challenging"

child, and has been a professional trainer for 25 years. She

teaches parenting classes to parents with children encompassing

a wide range of disabilities, as well as those with typicallydeveloping

children. She has received training from Dr. Ross

Greene, author of "The Explosive Child" at his Center for

Collaborative Problem Solving, and from Stuart Ablon at

Think:Kids. Sara currently serves as President on the board of

directors for the Autism Society of King County, and works at

Bellevue College as Program Advisor for their Autism Spectrum

Navigators program, which she developed.

*Collaborative Problem Solving was originated by Ross Greene, PhD in his

book “The Explosive Child.” For more information on this model, recently

recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics as one of only two

methods that work for “defiant” children, go to Think:Kids – Rethinking

Challenging Kids at www.thinkkids.org.

To register or ask a question contact Sara at 425.298.4409 or

sesgardner@gmail.com. Class outline: www.BehaviorToday.info

2 Saturdays

March 10 &

March 24, 2012

9 a.m. - 1 p.m.

University of Puget Sound

1500 N Warner, Tacoma WA

Weyerhaeuser Hall

room tbd

Saturday March 10th 9:00-1:00

Collaborative Beginners

$45, includes materials and

e-mail consultation

Additional family member

sharing materials, $30

Saturday March 24th 9:00-1:00

Advanced Collaboration

$45, includes materials and

e-mail consultation

Additional family member

sharing materials, $30

BOTH classes for $80, $50 for

second family member

Register by March 4 to

ensure your spot!

www.BehaviorToday.info

Garage Sale....

If you are anything like me, and like to get an early start on cleaning out closets, cabinets and the garage before spring, you might be finding yourself with a pile that's due to donate to Goodwill. Well, I wanted to catch you before you took that trip. The Co-op will be having our annual Garage Sale mid-May and we need those donations. So what I am doing is hanging onto those items I've cleared out and designated a bin in the garage to donate toward the Preschool's garage sale in May- and I hope you do the same! Oh, and I am also telling my friends that I'll take what they have too!!

Not to sound too Martha Stewart-ish, but, "It's a good thing!"

Take care all of you!
Annie
Newsletter Chair

Presidential Address.....

Hello Preschool Families!

I'm excited to take over as co- president with Therise as we finish out the rest of the school year! Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or if you are interested in getting involved with any of the upcoming fundraisers. Thanks for supporting our wonderful preschool!

Stephanie Traugutt
253-677-8226
sktraugutt@yahoo.com


April 20, 2007

Bates Update

Dear Parents,

The phrase “children learn through play” is a one that we Early Childhood Educators toss around freely and often. I suspect that it is not always as well understood as we think. Hopefully the following will help you understand how this concept works in preschool.

·         “Preschoolers are wigglers and doers”. No surprise here. We all know that. That is why it achieves better results to work with children by providing engaging activities than to work against their natures by making them sit still for long periods of time, talking at them, having a rigid structure, and having all the children do the same thing at the same time.

·         “Research shows that young children learn best through manipulation of materials and age-appropriate hands-on experiences.” A quality preschool will be noisy and busy. It may look chaotic to the untrained eye. Further looking will reveal real learning going on as children explore, investigate, manipulate, and try something over and over again. They truly are young scientists figuring out how the world works. If a child figures out something for himself he will remember it much better than if someone just tells him. As I saw on a sign in a preschool, “telling is not teaching”.

·         “In a high-quality preschool, learning is embedded in activities….” This is probably the hardest concept to grasp. Children are learning numbers and letters, for example, just not always with paper and pencil. They learn letters through being read to, seeing words on their cubbies, name tags, place mats, doing letter puzzles, singing the alphabet song, and in general playing in a print-rich environment with many adults to answer their questions and stimulate their intellect.  They learn counting through finger plays, counting how many children are sitting in circle, how many place mats to set at the table, how many blocks to make a tower, how many children are absent that day and on and on. The teachers do provide a curriculum – it just doesn’t look like high school or even elementary school. It looks like play and that is exactly what it should be. “The best early childhood programs use play to get at academics. One doesn’t rule out the other.”

·         “When learning through play, progress isn’t gauged in terms of a right or wrong answer.” Preschool activities are usually open-ended. So a three year old may use the same materials, do some of the same activities or read the same books as a five year old, yet get something totally different out of them. Even children of the same age will be at different levels of developmental. Some four year olds recognize all the letters of the alphabet while others may recognize only the one at the beginning of their names. As long as children are in a rich environment with skilled adults, they will learn what they need to succeed. A love of learning and an excitement about life are more important to success in school than knowing particular facts or skills.

I have been involved in early childhood education for over twenty five years. Many things have changed in the field since I started, but the message that children learn through play has not changed.

If you have questions or concerns about your individual child and/or about the curriculum, talk with your teacher or me. Let’s keep doing what is best for children and let them play.

Carol

The words in quotation marks are from a Tacoma News Tribune article “Preschool Students Learn Best Through Curiosity-Building Play” from a Parent to Parent column by Betsy Flagler written a few years ag

February LIfe Lines.....

February is National Heart Health Awareness Month. Heart disease is the number one cause of death for both men and women in America. The most common type is Coronary Artery Disease. This form causes a narrowing of the coronary arteries that supply the heart with oxygen and nutrients. So, let's support our kids by helping them develop healthy habits now. We can start by being good role models and keep things positive. Kid’s don’t like to hear what they can’t do, tell them what they can do instead. Keep it fun and positive. Everyone likes to be praised for a job well done. Celebrate successes and help your children develop a good self-image. Try limiting time in front of the television, encourage physical activity and make dinnertime family time.
February is also National Children's Dental Health Month. The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry suggests that children visit the dentist by their first birthday. Once a child’s diet includes anything besides breast-milk, erupted teeth are at risk for decay. The earlier the dental visit, the better the chance of preventing dental problems. Children with healthy teeth chew food easily and smile with confidence. Start your child now on a lifetime of good dental habits.

SmileMobile is coming to:
VAUGHN
March 21^st- 25^th, 2012
Vaughn Elementary School
17521 Hall Road Vaughn, WA 98394
The SmileMobile:

¨ provides dental care to children (birth through high school) with limited family income

¨ accepts State of Washington Services Card (Provider One) and sliding fee scale based on family income

To schedule an appointment or for more information, please call:
Jennifer Bunch at 253-272-1101before March 15^th.
Appointments must be scheduled before March 21st

The SmileMobile is operated by Washington Dental Service Foundation in partnership with Seattle Children’s Hospital. This event/activity is NOT being sponsored by the school district and the district assumes no responsibility for the conduct of or safety of the event/activity. In consideration for the privilege to distribute these materials, the school district shall be held harmless from any cause of action, claim, or petition filed in any court or administrative tribunal arising out of the distribution of these materials, including all costs, attorney’s fees, and judgments or awards.

"K" is for Kim

Hello Vaughn Families!

I am hoping that all of the inclement weather is behind us, or at least the kind of weather that prevents us from having preschool!  We will be making up some of our days here at Vaughn on March 14, 15 & 16^th.  We will also be moving our year end picnic to Friday, June 8. 

We will be talking about family and love during the weeks leading up to Valentine’s Day.  We will be doing some shape and color patterning along with learning Mat Man from our Handwriting without Tears curriculum.  I will be working with each of the children individually over the next few weeks to gather some data to see what areas I may need to be working on a little more.  I want to make sure that all of the children who are going into Kindergarten are ready.

I will be sending home more information on the Trike a Thon soon, if you have any questions in regards to this fundraiser please do not hesitate to contact me!  Don’t forget to be talking to family members and friends to “sponsor” your child J

Thank you so much for all of your support, our classroom would not be what it is without you!!!

Take Good Care,
Teacher Kim

Trike-a-thon March 3rd 10-11AM

Our first ever Trike-a-thon! This event will be held Saturday, March 3rd 2012 at 10-11am at the Vaughn Civic Center. The children will ride a tricycle, that the Co-op provides, for 5, 10 or 15 minutes......however long they are willing and able! The preschoolers will raise money by asking their family or friends to sponsor them. (any amount) Example: If each child collects just $10 for their sponsorship, with 40 students we'll raise $400.00 !! There will be prizes for top earnings, games, pictures and fun! Mark your calendar!

Need YOUR vote!

Reminder to vote/send in your ballots by February 14th!

Levy Regarding Kindergarten...

Replacement Educational Programs and Operations Levy Fact Meeting:

For Preschool and Kindergarten Families

Residents of the Peninsula School District will be asked to vote on a replacement levy.  This levy was developed by a task force of the school board, district staff and community members that prioritizes additions for technology, capital projects, teachers and support staff.

Please attend a levy fact meeting to get information about how the levy supports our current four-day (all day) kindergarten program.

Date:            Tuesday, January 24th

Time:            6:00pm—7:00pm

Location:      Purdy Elementary School Library

Address:  

13815 62nd Avenue NW

For additional information call (253) 530-1001 or email to levy@psd401.net.

Recap of Fundraising Meeting.....

Hi All! Thank you very much to the families who came to the FUNdraising Meeting this week! Your support, suggestions, and time were greatly appreciated! During the meeting, we talked about the upcoming Comedy Night. Super excited - the Comedy Night is ON this time! Now, we need your help in selling the rest of the tickets so we can make the most of the night. We are way below our fundraising goal for the year, but this could be our opportunity to get back on track. (We've only raised 15% of the amount raised last year.) Let's maximize this party and sell 100 more tickets before the night of the show!!! With almost 40 families... if we all get involved... we can do it!!!

Reminder - Show's on January 28 at 8:00 p.m. at McCormick Woods Clubhouse in Port Orchard. Tickets are $15 each in advance or $20 at the door. But...if you are looking for good deal... here's one for you! Get your friends and family together for a super fun-filled night out and reserve a table of 10 for only $125! That's a $25 savings! And did I mention there will be some great items raffled off that night, too!

Check out the attached flyer for all the details. (Pssst... print out the flyer and hang it up at work or around town, if you can!) If your friends, family, co-workers, neighbors, closest enemies, long-lost relatives, dog's Godparents, or Facebook buddies want to go, tell them to make their check payable to KP Co-operative Preschool. Put any money collected into the Tuition box with your name and how many tickets purchased. Then your tickets will magically appear in your child's cubby!

Call me if you have any questions. Thank you all so much for your help in making this a great night!

Best wishes,
Megan
(360) 362-2358

Bates Updates

Dear Parents,

Welcome back to preschool! I hope that all of you had a wonderful and restful holiday. These last few months I have truly enjoyed getting to better know you and your children. That process will continue as I will be doing parent shares this month. (Please check dates below.) I will have chocolate and you will earn a parent ed credit. Of course there will be opportunity for your questions and sharing with your fellow parents.

Believe it or not, while we are still enjoying and working hard on this year, it is time to start thinking about the next year. Soon we will be selecting new board members and enrolling for the next school year. If your child will be “graduating” begin exploring ways to facilitate that process. (Take advantage of the Bates Kindergarten Panel - info below.) While you continue to get the most out this year, start planning on what will be happening next. Think about joining the board if you really want to understand the workings of your school and to make the most out of your participation. Ongoing information about what will occur will be coming in the days and weeks ahead.

Mark your calendars with these upcoming dates:

Parent Shares - during class

Vaughn 2-day and Evergreen

Thursday, January 19

Vaughn 3-day

Friday, January 20

Bates Parent Ed.

“Getting School Ready”

Come and visit the informational Kindergarten Fair,

featuring a panel discussion with local public school

kindergarten teachers.

Jan. 18, 7-8:30 p.m., Bates South Campus Auditorium

If you have any questions, feel free to call me @ 680-7517 or cgulczynski@bates.ctc.edu

Carol Gulczynski/ Bates Home and Family Life Instructor

Go ahead and get messy. Well, dry messy that is!!!!

All you need is some dry rice or beans - add some cups and animals and you have hours of fun at your child's fingertips. We use our coffee table that has sides, but a large tote or tub will do the trick too! My 2 and 4 year old love it!

"M" is for Mary

Parents
I hope you all had a relaxing and wonderful vacation.
In the month of January we are going to be discussing the Season of Winter. We will be making snowmen and snow flakes. We will read many exciting winter books and do many fun activities that go along with the books
We will also be visiting the artic. We will play with dogsleds and Eskimos, we will see what it is like to live in and igloo. Ask your child about these things when you are asking about school.

Thanks again for sharing your children with me

Miss Mary

"K" is for Kim

Hello Vaughn Families!

Happy New Year to you all!!  I hope that you have had a wonderful, restful Holiday with your loved ones!  I am so happy to be back in the classroom, I have missed everyone!

We will be talking and learning about Snow, Snowflakes and Snowmen during the next few weeks.  We will be “walking on snow” as a classroom activity and making some snow in our sensory bins.  We will continue to talk about numbers, letters, colors and shapes to make sure our upcoming Kindergarteners are ready!!!

Please make sure to send your child in a coat, the weather has gotten cold, and we go outside everyday….as long as it is not raining too hard.

Please continue to keep in touch if you have any questions and/or concerns!!!

I wish you all a wonderful New Year!!

Teacher Kim