Bear Cub Facts June 10, 2018
Dear Parents,

We are excited to announce that last week the church chose a contractor for our Renaissance Project and construction will begin on Monday.  The first phase of the project involves the youth room which is located above the preschool office building and Hensley Square which is located behind the preschool office building.  The upgrades will include an outside staircase, a balcony off of the youth room and a fenced in outdoor play space behind Miss Angela and Miss Mandy's rooms.

Construction fencing will be put up around the west side of the preschool playground to ensure that we are protected from potential construction debris.  We would ask that you please park on the east side of the Clark Avenue parking lot and use the gate by the elementary school picnic tables to enter our facility.  We will use the TK room (Room 120) for am/pm care.

While there is no danger to the children, we felt that the noise might be too much particularly for afternoon rest so we have been working with a number of state agencies to set up classrooms on the other side of campus off Arbor Road in Rooms 101, 103 and 104.  For those of you who are familiar with our campus, these are the Kindergarten Rooms and the room used for Webby Dance.





Our schedule for the day will be:

6:30 a.m. free art and center time in Room 120
8:00 a.m. outside time on our playground
8:30 a.m. restroom, wash hands and movement to rooms 101, 103, and 104 for class time
8:35 a.m. snack
8:55 a.m. calendar, helpers, and Jesus circle
9:15 a.m. outside play activities on our playground
10:15 a.m. restroom, wash hands, and movement to rooms 101, 103, and 104 for class time
10:20 a.m. enrichment circle
10:40 a.m. art and center activities
11:25 a.m. closing circle
11:30 a.m. wash hands and have lunch
12:00 p.m. restroom, wash hands, read book
12:15 p.m. book time
12:30 p.m. rest time
2:00 p.m. restroom, wash hands, and table activities
2:30 p.m. circle time
2:45 p.m. art and center activities
3:30 p.m. restroom, wash hands, and have snack
3:50 p.m. outside time on our playground
5:00 p.m. restroom, wash hands
5:15 p.m. circle time
5:30 p.m. free art and centers in Room 120
6:00 p.m. close
 
(Please see your child's classroom for any modifications to this schedule.)

The new playground equipment for our playground has been ordered and we should know more this week on specific dates for demolition and installation.  We are anticipating this phase of the project will begin on July 9 at which point we will use our gym for gross motor play.

Please don't hesitate to call, e-mail or stop by if you would like a tour of the classrooms that we are using this summer.

We hope that you will come back to join us for Vacation Bible School  June 18-22 from 5:30-7:30 p.m.

In His Service,
Mary Wolfinbarger
Bethany Lutheran Preschool
562-429-7335 
 
http://www.bethanylutheran.org/ 
Dates for your calendar:
       
June 18-22 5:30-7:30 p.m.  Vacation Bible School

This week in Jesus Circle: 

God is  Always with Us - Jacob's Troubles (Genesis 27-28)
Discovery Points
Law:   Sometimes the consequences of sin are scary.  We feel bad and may even want to run and hide.
Gospel:   No matter what sinful things we do, Jesus forgives us and is with us.
Sanctification:   Through the power of the Holy Spirit, we can trust that Jesus comes to us in His Word and Sacrament and strengthens our faith.
Bible Words:   "God is with you wherever you go."  Joshua 1:9
 
Connections for home: (from One in Christ, Preschool B 2013 CPH)
Encourage your child by speaking often of God's constant care and protection.  Mention this in the morning when you first get up, thanking God for being there all night and sending His angels to be with you.  Learn more about God's care of Jacob by reading pages 68-73 in The Story Bible.

Close each day by praying with your child.  Listen to yoru child pray.  Also, let your child listen to you as you pray for him or her.  What a comfort to fall asleep in the peace and love of Jesus.  Say a prayer such as:

Lord, send Your holy angels
To watch my sleeping child.
We thank you that you've blessed us
With grace on us you've smiled. Amen.
Snack for the week of June 11-15

Monday:  
AM apples, Cheez-Its & water
PM beans, tortilla & water

Tuesday:  
AM bananas, graham crackers & water
PM Saltines, American cheese & water 

Wednesday: 
AM string cheese, pear & water
PM Cheerios, milk 

Thursday: 
AM Go-Gurt, Goldfish crackers & water
PM Nutri Grain fruit bars & water

Friday: 
AM sunflower seeds, raisins & water
PM tangerines, Ritz crackers & water

From Our Handbook - Welcome

We welcome you and your children to Bethany Lutheran Preschool, and we pray that our Lord and Savior will bless our efforts as we work together for the spiritual, emotional, cognitive, social, and physical growth of your children.
We thank you for selecting our preschool and we pledge to you our support and cooperation. We are aware of our great responsibility: we are dealing with the souls, minds, and bodies of children; people precious to you, to us, and especially to our Savior.
The purpose of this handbook is to familiarize you with our purposes, objectives, policies, and regulations. In addition to this handbook, we are regular in our communication with parents through newsletters and other means, and we attempt to keep our online version of this handbook up-to-date. You may view this on our website: www.bethanylutheran.org.   Please read all information carefully.

Extracurricular Activities: 

Bethany Lutheran Preschool offers Webby Dance and   Play Sports on Mondays.   For more information, please see the sign up forms in the preschool hallway.  
Conscious Discipline Tip:  Why does everything turn into a power struggle?
 
People create power struggles when they feel powerless. With young children, power struggles often occur after giving the child a command or when the child is tired, hungry or otherwise stressed. Power struggles are such a prominent concern that I have recorded an audio lecture CD titled Preventing Power Struggles to empower parents and caregivers to better prepare for and respond to this particular kind of conflict. Knowledge of child development, connection and active calming will help you to lessen power struggles.
Child Development: Before age six, children process information 12 times slower than adults. We must slow down our speech and give only one or two commands at a time. If we speak at a normal pace and say, "Finish your snack, get your crayons and go color in the TV room." The child may only process bits of information, hearing "crayons color the TV."
Young children cannot conjugate the word "don't." When we say, "Don't touch the lamp," they hear, "Touch the lamp!" They look at you with a smile and touch the lamp. We think, "You wicked child, you deliberately defied me," and enter power struggle territory. Instead of using "don't," pivot and tell the child what to do. "Don't touch the lamp," becomes, "Hold my hand (offer your hand) so you can learn how to touch delicate things softly." "Don't run," becomes, "Walk slowly like this."
Children under age seven also lack mature inner speech. Adults use inner speech to rehearse choices and outcomes before we act. Instead of inner speech, children encode information in pictures. So, we can use pictures to guide children's behavior and avoid power struggles. Use your body as a picture by modeling what you want, use your words to help paint pictures of what you want, and put up actual pictures that show what to do. Instead of, "Walk in the house," say, "Walk carefully with each foot going like this through the house." Not only do you get better compliance (fewer power struggles), you also build language and literacy.
Finally, the brain is a pattern-seeking device. The more consistent your routines, the easier it is for the brain to pick up the pattern. If there is a consistent routine, the brain picks up the pattern, the child feels safe, and his neurological resources can be used for learning and exploration rather than for protection, and power struggles lessen.
Connection: Research indicates that the motivation to behave comes from being in relationship. Research also indicates that five minutes a day of focused play with children ages five and under reduces power struggles by 50%. Ten minutes of my  I Love You Rituals per day will improve a child's motivation and willingness, and decrease power struggles. If you don't use  I Love You Rituals, be certain to make time daily for specific, focused bonding activity you can share.
Active Calming: Finally, the absolute key for staying in control of yourself and helping to avoid power struggles is active calming. In Conscious Discipline, I call it "being a S.T.A.R.," which stands for Smile, Take a deep breath, And Relax. Three deep breaths will turn the stress response off in the body. Once you are able to regulate your inner state through deep breathing, you obtain access to the highest centers of your brain. While you are taking these deep breaths, affirm to yourself, "I'm safe. I feel calm. I can handle this." These words are chosen based on research: They unhook you from the survival center of your brain and plug you into the rational part of your brain. Now you can respond calmly in the face of a power struggle, and access your inner wisdom to come up with solutions rather than entering into the fray. Practice active calming in your life and teach it to your children. Read  Shubert is a S.T.A.R. over and over so this deep breathing technique becomes second nature. Demonstrate being a S.T.A.R. when you're having a difficult time, and help your child learn to do the same!  

Bethany Lutheran School News
 
Bethany Lutheran School follows a similar calendar year to Bethany Lutheran Church Preschool.  Keep up with our elementary and middle school students in our     
Bear Facts.

We are starting a special group just for you!  Please contact Jennifer or Tabbitha at blclbmops@gmail.com or call 562-429-7335.  
Opportunities to Worship Faithfully, Form Spiritually, Serve Passionately, Give Proportionately, and Share Intentionally:

  • Follow Bethany on Twitter @RevKevBethany and  www.facebook.com/Bethany.Long.Beach 
  • Renew your Ralphs Club cards each year after August 31 using our Bethany NPO # 83441.
  • Box Tops, Box Tops, send in your Box Tops!  Please save your Box Tops and start sending them in now.  
  • Home Bible Study Groups are now forming.  Contact Pastor Seth, Pastor Kritzer, or Karl Fink for more information.
  • Lazy Acres contributes 4% to Bethany.  Make sure to show your Lazy Acres Community Card. 
  • Griefshare meets on Sundays at 1 p.m. in the Conference Room.  Contact kfink@bethanylutheran.org for more info.
  • Challenge yourself to read the Bible in 2017.  The study is posted on our blogspot www.bethanylutheran.blogsport.com.
  • Do you have Kohl's charge?  You can buy Kohl's Care Fundraising Gift Cards from Scrip to pay your bill.
  • Men's Bible Study Fellowship www.bsfinternational.org  meets every Monday evening from 6:55-8:50 p.m. in Bethany's choir room.  Contact Don Baldwin at 562-596-0489 for more information.
  • Living Way Bible Study meets starting October 4 at 7 p.m. following ReFuel workship.  Contact kkritzer@bethanylutheran.org for more information.
  • Bible Discovery is held every Sunday at 9:30 a.m. and includes ages preschool - adult.  We are looking for volunteers to assist and donations of Lego bricks.  Contact Kayleigh or Pastor Seth for more information.
  • Women's Thursday Morning Bible Study in the Parish Lounge from 9:15-11 a.m.
  • Reserve your  tickets for the game on May 29th for the LA Dodgers game.  Contact smoorman@bethanylutheran.org for more information.
  • Bethany's Women's Retreat is set for October 12-14 at the Aldersgate Retreat site in Pacific Palisades.  Cost will be $250 per person for two nights and 4 meals.
  • Men's Retreat is scheduled for September 28-30 at Luther Glen Retreat Center in Oak Glen.
  • VBS is set for June 18-22.
  • My Fair Lady Command Performance for Mission India will be held August 2 at the Long Beach Playhouse.  Tickets $30.  More information coming soon.  
  • Raise a Glass for Student Success.  Save the date Saturday, September 29, 2018.
At Bethany, worship is a celebration of what God has done for us in His Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior-His initiative in our life, His saving events throughout history. Worship is a remembrance, a reenactment-if-you-will, of God's redemptive acts for all people throughout history; it is also a joyful reception through faith, by God's people now, who live to proclaim His redeeming grace to all the world. The Lutheran understanding of "Gottesdienst" or "God's service to us" and "our service to God" are foundational to all that we do in worship. God first comes to us, and we respond in confession, joyful praise, prayer and humble faith. 

Worship Service times are: 
Sunday at 8:00AM, 9:30AM and 10:55AM (convergent/blended style) 


  Bethany Bullet   

SCRIP

Are you purchasing SCRIP?  If not, you are passing up an easy way to help with your tuition payments and to help Bethany.  SCRIP is simply gift certificates.  You purchase them from us, and use them as you would any gift card.  Since Bethany is able to purchase the cards in bulk, the gift cards cost less than their face value; and the profit is divided between your tuition and funds for various groups at Bethany.  If you have any questions about the Scrip program contact Carol Grudt, 420-7783 x58 or cgrudt@bethanylutheran.org.

Helpful Websites and Links for Parents and Children:


Let's Be Disciples
Do You Know Who Jesus Is?
Sharing Your Faith
Learning to Pray
The Easter Story
The Christmas Journey
The Bully

Preschool play websites:
  
Websites and links for parents:

Devotions:
 
Ideas you can use at home:
 Numbers - HWT
Gross and Fine Motor Activities from Chancy and Bruce
Mental Health Chancy and Bruce

Healthy snacks for kids:
10 tips to decrease added sugars
Healthy celebrations
Frozen yogurt
In Our Prayers:

Thank you for your continued prayers for the loved ones connected to our center. If there is a need in your family and you would like to add someone to the prayer list, please let me know.  

+ Please join the Board of Evangelism in praying for Lutheran Braille Workers, Thrivent Financial, Lutheran Women's Missionary League, and Lutheran Bible Translators.
+Miss Mandy's niece, Evelyn, who is having procedures done as they are concerned with brain development
+Miss Leticia's father, Jose, who will undergo knee surgery soon
+ Kishan's aunt
+ Debbie Lang-Preuss on her move to Nebraska
+ Jessica Zuniga on her move back home
"The cheerful heart has a continual feast." Proverbs 15:15
STAY CONNECTED:
Bethany Lutheran Preschool | 562-429-7335 | Email |   www.bethanylutheran.org