 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
OCTOBER HAPPENINGS
We have a very busy month planned for the children in October. It is hard to believe it is autumn already, which happens to be our unit this month, Awesome Autumn! We can already start to see the leaves changing to their vibrant reds, oranges and yellows. The colors are reflected in the children's artwork hanging on the bulletin boards in the classrooms.
As the leaves start falling and the temperatures are dropping, it is important that your child has warmer clothing for outdoor play. Please make sure to label all clothing items as many children have the same type/brand/color of clothes.
|
 |
|
 |
SCHOLASTIC BOOK CLUB
We are continuing our Scholastic Book Orders with the Inchworm, Honeybee and Early Childhood Reading Club. Book orders can be dropped in the basket at the front desk or ordered online. Please submit your orders by October 4, to insure we will have the books by Halloween. Be sure to grab the coupon for a free book with your order of $10 or more.
|
 |
LENDT'S PUMPKIN PATCH
On Wednesday, October 19, the preschool children will travel by bus to the pumpkin patch in Wyoming with the Coon Rapids center. Parents are welcome to volunteer! The bus will leave at 9:30 a.m. The children will go for a hayride to pick their own pumpkins and Indian corn. We will also get to see beehives and have a little lesson on bees and how they make honey. After playing in the play area and having a picnic lunch we will return to the center at approximately 1:00 p.m.
|
 |
HALLOWEEN CELEBRATION
On Monday, October 31, the children may come to the center dressed in their Halloween costumes. We will have a special breakfast consisting of pumpkin pancakes and sausage links. In keeping with the color of the day celebration, orange of course, we will add orange slices, orange juice and milk. After breakfast we will have a Halloween parade through the shopping center.
|
|
|
|
|
INFANT AND TODDLER CLASSROOM NEWS
We've had a successful transformation of our toddler classroom into our new older infant/young toddler classroom! Some of our older toddlers have been enjoying their new temporary space out in the preschool classroom. We look forward to the completion of the older toddler classroom next door!
|
|
|
PRESCHOOL CLASSROOM NEWS
Our preschool classrooms have completed our unit My World and Me. They particularly enjoyed discussing what makes themselves special and learning what makes us unique!
The children will start their Spanish lessons with Dan on Wednesdays in October. He recently completed a training with the O'Neill Language Academy for teaching Spanish to young children.
|
|
|
 |
PICTURE DAY
Lifetouch preschool portrait studio will be here on Friday, October 21. Flyers can be found on the parent counter. Sibling pictures will also be taken at your request. Picture taking will begin at 7:30 a.m.
|
 |
LOOKING AHEAD
Conferences will be held in November. Each class will have a sign-up sheet on the parent counter. If none of the available times work for you, please see Linda to make other arrangements.
We will be closed Thursday, November 24 and Friday, November 25 for the Thanksgiving holiday.
|
|
|
|
|
 |
| Angie Williams |
|
INTELLECT, THEN ACADEMICS
Every child is, by nature, an intellectual being--a curious, sense-making person, who is continuously seeking to understand his or her physical and social environments.
- Peter Gray, Ph.D
An intellectual mind is one that seeks to understand meaning through questions, observation and analysis. As children grow, their innate intellects develop--they are always trying to make sense of the world around them and their own place in it.
Academic skills
are those geared toward a correct answer; they are learned through practice, memorization and formulas. Academic skills can aid in intellectual pursuits, and they become necessary as children enter their school age years. But research shows that for young children, fostering the intellect through play-based learning curriculum first is vital to the development of lifelong skills in all areas.
Clancy Blair, Professor of Cognitive Psychology at NYU, has studied a neurobiological model of school readiness. He has found that "preschool programs are best when they focus on social, emotional and intellectual goals rather than narrow academic goals. On the basis of his model, an intellectually rather than academically focused approach is most likely to yield desirable 'school readiness' as well as longer term benefits." (Lively Minds: Distinctions between academic versus intellectual goals for young children, Lilian G. Katz, PhD).
Young children who are exposed to environments that stimulate their intellectual curiosity through play, investigation and social interactions enjoy the learning process because it stems naturally from the way their minds work. And when children begin to attribute meaning to academic concepts, they will find more long-term success in mastering those concepts. For instance, they may think, Why does science matter, and what makes it interesting? It helps me to figure out what my mind is naturally curious about (e.g. Why is it cloudy today? Will it be cloudy or sunny tomorrow?)
Furthermore, learning environments that emphasize emotional and social development help children to acquire lifelong skills such as resilience, self-regulation and initiative that are tied to school and work success:
"
In many studies, behavioral self-
-
regulation contributes to achievement even after controlling for initial achievement levels and other background variables such as child IQ, age, ethnicity, and parent education level."*
At Especially for Children, our goal is to create learning environments that support intellectual, social and emotional development first. We then introduce academic concepts in a developmentally appropriate way so that intellectual and academic development can support one another.
For more information on this important topic, read:
Angie Williams
Marketing Director
*School Readiness: Integrating Cognition and Emotion in a Neurobiological Conceptualization of Children's Functioning at School Entry, Blair
|
|
TWIN CITIES
FAMILY EVENTS
10/22-10/30 (wknds) ZooBoo, Como Zoo, Saint Paul
Apple Orchards & Pumpkin Patches
|
|
|
|
|
These amazing directors have been with Especially for Children for over 20 years! We are incredibly grateful for their hard work, dedication to children and families, senses of humor, commitment to the staff at their centers and so much more.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
 |
|
 |
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
