Medfield Afterschool Program
Jump Start, Kindergarten & First Grade
January 2018 Newsletter
HAPPY 2018 & THANK YOU
 
Dear MAP Families,

HAPPY NEW YEAR! We hope that 2018 is off to a great start for you and your family! We wanted to thank you so very much for your generous donations toward our Holiday Gift and for the many treats, cards, special messages, and gifts we received this holiday season. It is so nice to be appreciated for something we truly enjoy doing; working with your children.  
 Thank you again!
 
 Sincerely,
 Annette, Meghan, Kim, Mike, Trish, Joanne, Jeanne, Jodi, Terri, Scott, Megan, Carol, and Joey
Important Dates: January 2018
 
Monday 1/1/2018 – Happy New Year!
Tuesday 1/2 – Welcome back to school and MAP!
Monday 1/15 - No School - MAP Closed
 
*** Please keep an eye out for our February Vacation Sign Up. Details below...

Looking Ahead to FEBRUARY:
 
Thursday 2/1 – Early Release Day - What will happen @ MAP?  If   it is your child's normal day to attend MAP, we will be expecting them (*there is no Jump Start). There is no special sign up or extra charge for the extended coverage. If your child will not be coming, please make sure to notify MAP. Annette.map@comcast.net  (508) 359-2165 
 
IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR Half Day Kindergarten Families – F or the remainder of the school year, on Early Release Days, children in AM Kindergarten will not have school & children in PM K will attend the morning session of Kindergarten.
This will occur on the following Early Release Days: 2/1, 3/15, 3/20, 3/29, 5/11, 6/13 – please mark your calendars.

  • Jump Start - NO MAP
  • AM K & PM MAP – Children in AM Kindergarten have NO SCHOOL – Children in PM MAP can be dropped off at 8:30 am and may stay until 2:30 or their usual pick up time.
  • AM MAP & PM K – Children in PM Kindergarten will attend the morning session of Kindergarten and be released to MAP at 11:40. Children may stay at MAP until 2:30 or their usual pick up time.
  • 1st Grade & Full Day K have a half-day, and will be released to MAP @11:40. 
  • All children need to come to MAP with a lunch (and a toothbrush if you gave your permission)

FEBRUARY VACATION
Monday 2/19 – MAP is closed
 
Tuesday 2/20, Wednesday, 2/21, and Thursday, 2/22 - MAP will be OPEN from 8:00 am to 6:00 pm on. This is an optional program. Families sign up and pay separately for these special days. Fun themes and are being planned as well as a field trip! Sign ups will go out in mid-January.
 
Friday 2/23 – MAP is CLOSED for our Program Wide Teacher Professional Day.
A HUGE THANK YOU
to our MAP @The PFAFF FRIENDS

On Friday, December 12, our friends from the Pfaff took us on an amazing adventure on the Polar Express!

The event was filled with hot chocolate, music, dancing, and magic.

THANK YOU Kurt, Stephanie , and their elves... Mona, Cassidy, Emily, Sophie, Arianna, Milena, Sam, and Nora
Jump Start & Half Day Kindergarten

We have had a wonderful month of Language and Culture at MAP! We started with stories from around the world, and we heard stories from Greece, China, Ireland, Holland, France and many more! Some of our favorites were the Legend of Finn McCoul (a legend explaining how the Devil’s Causeway was formed in Northern Ireland), the Empty Pot (a Chinese folktale about honesty) and Something From Nothing (a Jewish folktale about persistence and using what you have). 

The next week was a delicious journey of Food Around the World! We learned that many people around the world cook rice, but it’s all very different. We got adventurous and tried yellow rice. We learned the Legend of the Poinsettia from Mexico and we made Mexican Hot Chocolate and Buenuelos. We also learned to celebrate the differences in food from different cultures from the book The Sandwich Swap, and we made our own hummus.

We wrapped up the month with Toys and Holidays from Around the World. We learned about Hanukkah, Chinese New Year, La Befana (Italy) and stories about Gingerbread Man and his little sister, the Gingerbread Girl. We also heard some of Mike’s family Christmas traditions, including a fantastic story his dad has shared with him, and we made some special wood ornaments – hope you love them!
We also enjoyed hearing the children share their own holiday traditions with the class - what they do that is special to them during this wonderful time of year. We love encouraging the children to share and practice speaking in front of the group. Everyone did such a great job! Thanks for sharing!
AFTERNOONS @ MAP
 
The MAP Holiday Shop was certainly a focus during the month of December, as children figured out how to fit in their shopping and wrapping while still participating in projects, clubs, and gym time! Holiday Shop truly reflects the season of giving and thinking about others. The wrapping table was buzzing with scissors cutting, tape being placed in just the right place, and gift tags being signed by children who are delighted to shop for family members. It is truly a wonderful sight to see!  
 
On a few particularly cold days, the first graders were stuck inside before snack. We played a game of "What's In Your Bag?", MAP's own show-and-tell style game show, complete with theme music and live audience. Quite the crew kept things fun with “Kick the Can” in the gym, proving 20 children can be quiet as mice if they want to!! There were also more & more Marshmallows to make snowmen projects fun!! ⛄️ 
 
Your children are happy and engaged during their time at MAP and we appreciate the time we spend with them.
Session 2 Clubs are ending…
 
MONDAYS
Let's make Sense Club with Trish - We used all of our senses to experiment which of the jars was salt and which was sugar! We used our sense of smell & touch to make cinnamon/apple sauce dough ornaments. We ended Club with smelling, touching, seeing, hearing & tasting Popcorn!! Great job!
 
TUESDAYS
Glow in the dark club with Kim – This club was a lot of fun! The kids were very enthusiastic! Our experiments worked most of the time and our drawings with highlighters were cool. Thank you for such a fun club!
 
Clay Club with Jeanne - Clay Club was lots of fun as we created pots, dishes and creations of our own. It was great having the experience of using self-hardening clay as well as Sculpey. It was wonderful spending time with the children as they sculpted, painted, and enjoyed conversation with each other. Thank you for making club so much fun!
  
WEDNESDAYS
Pinkalicaious Club with Megan S. – T his club has been so much fun and there is still one more surprise to come! The girls have enjoyed making jewelry boxes, cupcake/ice cream ornaments and to top off the fun we recently made pink cupcakes. The girls had fun working together and collaborating on baking the pink cupcakes and taking turns with decorating! Thank you for a great club!
 
Space Alien Club with Terri - We had some fun with the “Hot Alien” game (a version of hot potato)! Cool comets were created ready to zoom through the Medfield air, galaxies were painted to create the space box -we hope you got a peek! Moon sand was made, with little mess I might add, thank you my alien pals! One alien friend shared his meteorite with us, it was retrieved from a crater in Argentina, so cool! We watched cliffhangers from the 60’s TV show Lost in Space-the kids were entranced with the archaic film making methods and the cool carrot monster, YES, there is a vegetable rebellion in space!  👽 
 
THURSDAYS
History Club with Mike - Our young historians have visited the Colosseum, fought off the Persians in the Battle of Thermopylae, ventured to far off lands to raid with the Vikings, dumped tea into Boston Harbor in defiance of King George III, and crossed the Delaware with General Washington! ...and people say that history is boring!
 
Holiday Shop Club with Meghan J. - Well, we shopped till we dropped! The MAP room was busy with children counting their money, shopping, and making decisions about the best gift to purchase for a family member, friend, (and in some cases themselves). Shopping and wrapping all take place while the children have fun at MAP. The wonderful result is that MAP will have money to donate (the children will help choose a charity), and also some funds for extra fun at MAP!
 
FRIDAYS
Holiday club with Jodi – We have been busy celebrating some fun traditional holidays (Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas) and some not so traditional ones! (National Eat a Red Apple Day, and everyone's favorite - National Brownie Day). I hope everyone got to celebrate the fun with the samples on Brownie day! The kids have been great and are always excited to celebrate any holiday with enthusiasm! I want to wish you and your families a wonderful holiday season from your friends at holiday club!
Session 3 Clubs
The children will sign-up for NEW CLUBS THIS WEEK! 
Clubs will begin the week of 1/8/18!

MONDAY
Frozen Club with Jodi - Frozen Club will be just like it sounds.....cold! If we're lucky enough to have plenty of that white fluffy stuff we'll be getting out to enjoy it. There will also be plenty of other cold adventures and crafts - it's not just about the movie! (But we may sneak in a little bit of Frozen fun! I do love Olaf!)
 
TUESDAY
Papier Mache Club with Jeanne - The definition of papier mache is, shreds of paper mixed with glue or paste, that can be molded into various  shapes when wet and becomes hard and suitable for painting when dry. If you consider yourself to be adventurous, come along and join papier mache club. We will be making maracas, a bowl and a piggy bank. I look forward to seeing the wonderful creations you will make.
 
Color My World Club with Meghan J. – Everyone has been so into this new coloring trend, so we’ll make some exciting new projects using color. We’ll also make time for some colorful experiments, games, and maybe even some cooking!
 
WEDNESDAY
Rock Band Club with Mike - Get VIP access as we record a few classics and make our own music video! If anyone asks what you're up to, just remember to tell them, "it's ok...I'm with the band."
 
Building Club with Kim - Building club is going to be so fun. Every week I will provide the kids building materials and challenge them to create different structures. One week it could be a bridge using popsicle sticks and play dough or a tower from marshmallows and tooth picks. I can't wait to see all of the creative ways the kids build!!
   
THURSDAY
Fun & Games Club with Trish – This club is going to keep us moving in January! Board games, gym games & brain games will be so much fun!
 
Minute to Win It Club with Scott - Each week we will engage in two challenging tasks that will test your quick thinking, quick moving, and total concentration.......... but don’t worry, it’s only for 60 seconds. Each Thursday we will be in the MAP room from 4-4:45. Sometimes the easiest thing becomes twice as hard because you only have a minute. I guess we will find out if you can win it, in a minute.
 
FRIDAY
Spy Club with Megan S. - SPY Club- Are you ready to put on your detective hat and use your magnifying glass to find all sorts of hidden clues at MAP? Then you’ve come to the right agency! Every Friday will meet and do all sorts of fun spy/detective like activities. We'll create secret agent ID cards, do fingerprinting science activities and maybe even crack a secret code! Looking forward to solving mysteries with our young super sleuths.
Dear MAP Families,
 
Happy New Year! While it seems like the next school year is very far away, we’ve started planning and preparing for our 2018-2019 Jump Start & Kindergarten Program.
  
MAP will be having a Parent Information Night on Tuesday, January 16 @ 7 p.m. to introduce families to our Jump Start Program (an enrichment program for children ages 4 & 5), and our program offerings for families with children entering Kindergarten in the fall of 2018.  
 
MAP families have often shared with us how much their children have enjoyed and learned during their time at MAP. We hope that both current & former families would be willing to share that with friends and neighbors. If you have the chance, some MAP facts worthy of sharing are: 
 
  • MAP has been serving the Medfield community since 1989 (29 years!)
  • MAP offers flexible scheduling (sign up for 1 or more days) & has great teacher-child ratios.
  • Teachers have varied backgrounds & degrees, are experienced, and have longevity in the program.
  • MAP provides a safe and nurturing environment for children to grow socially, emotionally, and learn while having FUN! Children learn & explore through projects, play, clubs, thematic group times, outside play, cooking, games, drama, and more!

Please help MAP spread the word, you are our ambassadors! If you have a friend/neighbor that has a future Jump Start or kindergarten student, let them know that MAP is having Parent Information Night on Tuesday, January 16 at 7:00 p.m.   We will also be available during the Kindergarten Parent Information Night @ Memorial School.
 
Please feel free to direct them to Gaye Shannon @ gayeshannon@verizon.net or call, 508.359.0003.