First Church Preschool
January 2009 Newsletter
Happy New Year to you all! I hope you had a joyous holiday and relaxing vacation during the many December
“home days”. Be aware that a less intense version of September’s separation issues may again occur, so be
patient and consistent with returning to school schedules. We hope everyone had a chance for a conference
with teachers in the past weeks and we will reschedule any that were cancelled now that the holidays are over.
We all learn so much together in that more focused exchange of information! During the mid weeks of January
we will be providing an opportunity for parents to come in and observe in our classrooms, perhaps to see some
of what we all have been talking about. A sign up sheet will be going up for those of you who are interested.
Thank you all ever so much for your support during such a trying time for me and my family. Your outpouring
of well wishes and prayers made a tremendous difference. I also want to extend a sincere thank you to our
teachers and Board for their flexibility and help in picking up the slack and in coming together as a team to
cover the classes, get the bills paid and keep track of the mail. I have to also thank Janet and Jon Blake and
Marlena Soble for covering the 5’s room during lunch and doing bus duty during my absence. Being able to be
with my family was so important to me and to them. Our prayers also go out to the Jacarouso family.
Winter is upon us and we have already had our share of disrupted schedules and routines. I have to tell you,
after the repeated storms in Seattle, I have already had enough snow. I am sure the children would love some
new snow, so they can get back to their outdoor sledding and building fun. Please continue to come dressed
for winter each day with labeled coats, snow pants, boots, hats and mittens regardless of whether or not there
is snow on the ground. Remember that we go out as a whole group every day except in severe weather, so it is
not an option for a child to stay in because of a cold or not feeling well. In those cases, rest at home, away
from the group would probably be best.
We will be using our outside-inside footwear procedures from now on since it is often muddy and sloppy
outside, so it’s best to have slip-on snow boots or heavy outside shoe boots that are warm and can get dirty for
use on the playground. Upon entrance back into the building we all shed this outside footwear for easy slip on
inside shoes, (Velcro) sneakers hopefully, thus keeping mud contained and socks dry. Children will get quite
skilled at recognizing their own things if their items are labeled and consistent. It is impressive how efficiently
they become at getting dressed in full gear with daily practice. We have set up some entry and exiting
procedures to help us with the amazing task of dressing and undressing 36 children in full gear each day with
“divide and conquer” as the key element. The Four’s class will undress with their boots etc. down the big
hallway outside the double doors, and store boots, mittens, hats there to dry at the end of the morning, when
coming inside. The Three’s class will shed boots and mittens at the top of the entrance hallway on the rug
when coming in to keep floors (and therefore socks) dry. The 5’s Room group also goes out each day and will
need a change of clothes as well as their full winter gear for here,. Their boots, hats, and mittens will be kept
at their coat hook area. The afternoon group will also take off boots and leave them at the top of the entrance
hallway at the end of the day. You will find each group’s clothing in these three areas as you search endlessly
for missing items. Please be sure to restock clothing bags with extra dry socks and pairs of pants! We try to
spread mittens out to dry and eventually they get added to the school mitten basket when they are not
reclaimed. Always feel free to search those baskets and neighboring cubbies for missing pairs that have
gotten misplaced.
Just a reminder, we are closed for Martin Luther King Day on Monday, January 19th. Children in the 4’s and 5’
s rooms especially, may be asking questions about this holiday and person. They are often intrigued or
anxious with the information of his being shot and killed as the incident is broadcasted or discussed. We try to
tread carefully around the violence issue and concentrate on Martin Luther King’s life and goals, but guns and
death are hot topics for young children trying to understand good and bad. You may need to expand on this
discussion at home and talk with teachers about any sensitive issues that arise.
Registration for next year is in full swing. The 5’s room morning class is already full. January begins open
registration so if you need to make any changes please let me know as soon as possible.
In February we will be closed on Monday, February 16th in observance of President’s Day. The following days,
February 17-20 are part of Cheshire Public School’s winter vacation week and are considered “optional days”
for us, with our regular program closed. No one has been charged for any part of that week in your regular
program tuition payment. If you are interested in child care on that Tuesday through Friday, please complete
the bottom form and return it to me by Friday, February 7th so we will know who will be here and when, so we
can plan the appropriate coverage. We do need a minimum of 5 children enrolled daily in order to be open.
During that optional week we use only the big 4’s room and have a combined group with a mixed ages of three,
four, and five year olds supervised by Cristina, and Brenda and Nicole covering our regular hours of 8 AM to 5:
30 PM each day. You will be charged for the specific days you sign up for and a separate payment is due at
the beginning of the week. Optional days here are pretty relaxed and low key with special group projects
planned appropriate for the different age groups. If you have questions please see me.
Finally, we have already weathered our first snow day and delayed opening. I will just repeat this information
one last time. We are also closed if Cheshire Public Schools close for a snow day. We are also only delayed
for one hour, even though the public schools are delayed 90 minutes. Early morning children may begin
arriving at 8:30 am and Morning Program children at 9:30 am to ensure that everyone will not arrive all at once
and to give enough time for the parking lot and sidewalks to be cleared. Please listen for Cheshire closings
and delays on radio or TV in the early morning. If the weather worsens during the day, we will call for parents to
come and pick up children as soon as safely possible!
Have a happy, healthy new year! We look forward to the new additions expected to be born in our
1st Church Preschool community over the next few months and wish those families all the best.
Dawn