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Greetings!
GOODBYE, KINDERGARTENERS
Towards the end of August, we will bid a fond farewell to the children who are starting Kindergarten. We have loved getting to know you and being part of your early childhood years. We know you have a lot of fun memories of our school and we look forward to hearing about your continued adventures in Kindergarten. Best of luck to all of you! We hope you will stop by and visit us!!
For those children going off to Kindergarten, we will be having Pre School Graduation on
Tuesday, August 20
, at 4:00. All graduates’ families are invited to join us for a ceremony and snack.
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FUN DAYS IN JULY
Tuesday, August 6
- Bring something Smelly
Wednesday, August 7
- Bring something that makes noise
Tuesday, August 13
- Wear Green
Friday, August 16
- Bring a Dinosaur
Tuesday, August 20
- PreK Graduation
Wednesday, August 21
- Crazy Hair Day
Friday, August 23
- Splash Day
Thursday, August 29
- Pajama Day
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CENTER CLOSED DATES
EFC will be closed on
Friday, August 30
, for our Staff In-service Day, as well as
Monday, September 2,
for Labor Day. By closing the center for a staff in-service day, EFC’s goal is to provide our staff with time to complete a portion of their in-service hours required by Licensing, and to let them know they are valued employees. Have a fun, safe holiday weekend!
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SCIENCE EXPERIMENT
Try this fun science experiment with your child to talk about the life cycle of a plant as well as what a plant needs to grow and flourish!
Materials needed:
·
4 small plastic cups
·
4 stalks of celery
·
4 different food-colors
Directions:
1.
Add 10 drops of food coloring to each cup (1 color per cup), then add ¼ cup of water to each cup.
2.
Place 1 stalk of celery in each cup. Notice how the color begins to leak up the celery almost immediately!
Let the celery soak overnight, then take a peek in the morning to see the changes!
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SING, SING A SONG
As I approach a milestone birthday this fall, I have a greater awareness of the changes that come with the middle-age stage of life. Recovering from long runs takes more time than it did a decade ago, and there are a few more forgetful moments when I ask myself, “what was I doing again?” Not to mention the additional “love lines” that raising children in a busy season of life adds to one’s face. In terms of memory, however, I have always been astounded by the mind’s ability to remember music. I can still recall all the lyrics to countless songs learned throughout my childhood and young adulthood—even songs I have not heard in many, many years. It’s no wonder that we learn our ABC’s with a song—putting together words and a tune makes things stick.
Music is a powerful tool with many benefits. We have
written in the past
about how music supports math concepts such as patterning and special awareness through rhythm, beat, and repetition. A recent article in the
Exchange
early childhood magazine titled, “Music is for Everyone,” describes additional benefits of music-making: there are social and emotional and benefits such as promoting prosocial behavior, reducing stress hormones, and cultivating the pleasure of dancing and singing together. In addition, music-making has cognitive benefits around language development and, as alluded to above, preserving aging brain function. I would add to this list that exposure to a variety of music can increase cultural awareness and understanding.
I recently took a flight out of MSP and in the terminal, they placed a piano at which anyone is welcome to sit and play a tune. A young man was at the bench playing a beautiful song; it had the effects of decreasing my stress level and making me feel a connection with him and the strangers around me who were also enjoying his music.
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The value of music in our lives is immeasurable, and as parents it is easy (and fun!) to support our children’s participation in music-making. (Active participation, and not merely passive listening, is important in order to fully realize music’s benefits.) We don’t have to have any special talent for music, nor do we need a particular goal for ourselves or our children around musical skills. We just need to model music-making and join in with our children when they are singing, drumming, or dancing to music. The title of this article is from a song I remember from my childhood; the lyrics that stick in my head the most are: “Sing, sing a song, sing out loud, sing out strong!” In spite of my inability to carry a tune, these words are my own call to action with my children today.
Resources: “Music is for Everyone,” by Anne Sailer and Lili M. Levinowitz,
Exchange
, July/August 2019
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Angie Williams
EFC Marketing and Finance Director
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TWIN CITIES
FAMILY EVENTS
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Especially for Children
8885 Evergreen Blvd
Coon Rapids MN 55433
Lisa Ward
Director, EFC Coon Rapids
(763) 784-0901
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