OCTOBER 2020 NEWSLETTER
IMPORTANT DATES
OCTOBER 12th – COLUMBUS DAY
Little Folks will be closed on Monday, October 12th in observance of Columbus Day.
DAILY HEALTH QUESTIONNAIRE
The Department of Early Education & Care has sent out a new daily questionnaire. They are calling it a Daily Health Attestation. This form must be completed each morning before bringing your child into the school and must be handed to the teacher!! It cannot be in back packs, lunch boxes or filled out later. If you do not have it completed, you will be required to complete one before your child can stay at school. It must be handed to the teacher! We are sending home copies for you to use. Please pay close attention to the directions. If you answer yes to any of the questions, do not bring your child to school.
OCTOBER 30th and 31st – HALLOWEEN PARTIES
Halloween Costume Parties will be held on Wednesday and Thursday, October 30th and31st. Children may dress in a costume. No prizes, no competition. Parents should be sure that the children are comfortable enough to participate in the day’s activities. Please be sure all parts of your child’s costume are labeled with his/her name. If your child stays for lunch on the Halloween Party days, please send in a change of clothes for him/her.
SCHOOL PICTURE DAY
School pictures are tentatively scheduled to be taken on a Wednesday in October. Photos this year will be taken outside on the playground. If your child does not usually attend school on a Wednesday, he/she is welcome to attend for Picture Day. Order forms will be sent home separately. Please complete them, enclose payment and send them into school before or on Picture Day.
FALL FUND-RAISER
This year Little Folks is sponsoring an Uncle Jerry’s T’s fundraiser. This company offers a variety of apparel and gift items that are both useful and affordable. A percentage of sales are given to Little Folks to use for class activities and school equipment. Packets will be sent home with the students next week. Online ordering will also be available. Please return all orders by Friday, November 8th!
BOXTOPS FOR EDUCATION
Again this year Little Folks Day School is participating in the Boxtops for Education Program. This is an easy way to earn supplies and equipment for our school. Just scan your grocery receipt with the items using the Boxtops for Education app and the points will be credited to Little Folks!
CHILDRENS’ RECORDS
All of the children’s records must be updated on an annual basis. Parents must review their child’s records, make any necessary changes, and re-sign and re-date all of the paper work each year. We will be handing the forms to you when you pick up your child and ask that you update them before you leave. If your child started at Little Folks prior to June of 2018, then your child’s records must be updated. Please see one of the teachers as soon as possible. Thank you.
MEDICAL RECORDS
All of the children’s medical records including complete immunization history and date of an annual physical should be on file at the school. If this is your child’s first year at Little Folks and you have not sent in your child’s medical record, it is due immediately! If your child’s current physical is out of date you will be notified by the school and a more recent physical will be needed. All records must be up to date by October 31, 2020 – this is a state law.
SCHOOL CANCELLATION
Little Folks will always be open provided teachers can travel and are therefore available. Provided we do not have to evacuate the area for any reason, we will be here.
In the case of snowstorms or hurricanes, when the weather is particularly bad, use your own discretion in traveling. If a storm hits this area with a great deal of force, the governor may declare a State of Emergency. If this occurs, Little Folks will be closed as will most schools and businesses. We are not allowed to operate during a State of Emergency.
If a State of Emergency is declared in the evening or early morning, the answering machine will inform you of any cancellation. If the State of Emergency is declared after we have opened, we are required to close. All parents of children in attendance will be contacted and expected to pick up their child within the hour.
This policy differs slightly from the one for regular snow days. The Snow Day Policy is printed in the Handbook.
SNACKS
Little Folks provides morning and afternoon snacks for all of the children. Typically, we serve them milk, juice or water (whatever they prefer) and different types of crackers, pretzels, or fruits. Some parents have expressed an interest in sending in snacks for the children and they are welcome to do so. This year any snacks sent in by parents for the class must be packaged – nothing home-made this year! If you would like to provide a snack for the class on any day, please just check with your child’s teacher.
BIRTHDAYS
We will celebrate all of the children’s birthdays. Parents are welcome to send in packaged cookies, brownies (no nuts), or small cupcakes, etc. for their child’s birthday.
BLANKETS
Blankets are required for all children who nap or rest during rest time. Parents may purchase a blanket from the school for the one time price of $10.00. The school will launder this blanket each week and you may keep it when your child leaves the school. If you wish to send in your own blanket, that is fine, the blanket will have to be brought in on a daily basis in a back pack or bag.
PRE-KINDERGARTEN –MRS. DONAGHEY, MS LINDA and MS SARAH
The past month has been exciting for the children – making new friends, meeting new teachers, and for those who have never been in school before, experiencing this type of environment. Our theme for September was apples. The children learned how apple orchards were started by Johnny Appleseed (Chapman). He planted apple sprouts along his journey, so that travelers would have the fruit for food. We also learned how apples grow. Did you know that they start as a flower and that there is a certain way to pick them off the tree? (twist and pull). We conducted a taste test between three different varieties of apples: Golden Delicious, Granny Smith and Macintosh. Using our taste test graph, Granny Smith won! One of the books we read this month was called, “The Little Red House”. This house was very unusual. It had no windows or doors, but something special was inside. Ask your child what it was. I’ll give you a hint, we used it to make our apple prints. Some of the other books we read this month included: A Day At the Apple Orchard, How Do Apples Grow?, Apple Trouble and Under the Apple Tree.
It’s hard to believe that the spooky month of October is already here and Halloween is just around the corner. We will be decorating our room with pumpkins, ghosts, spiders, bats, Frankenstein and black cats. The leaves on our tree will be changing colors. We will also learn about Christopher Columbus and how pumpkins grow.
Academics This Month: SHAPE: Triangle; COLOR: Orange; NUMBER: 7; LETTERS: Bb, Cc, Dd and Ee.
Our Halloween Parties will be on Wednesday and Thursday, October 28th and 29th. Children may wear their costumes to school. Please be sure that all costumes are labeled with your child’s name. If your child stays for lunch, please be sure that they bring a change of clothing. If any parents would like to send in some goodies for our parties, please let one of the teachers know. Wrapped treats to send home in goodie bags are always appreciated along with a few packaged baked goods.
PRESCHOOL – MS. STEPHANIE and MS ANGELEE
The spooky month of October is here! September went by so fast. The preschoolers were busy meeting their new teachers and making new friends. We have been working really hard also. We have been learning to recognize the color red and the circle shape. The numbers 1 to 10 are being introduced. We are also starting to recognize the letters of the alphabet. Each week the teachers will introduce a new letter. We learned about the number 1. We have been busy learning about Fall. We have talked about the leaves changing colors and the weather turning cooler.
We are looking forward to October!
The color for October is orange and the shape is the triangle. We cannot wait to start decorating for Halloween! We have some great activities planned – candy corn, pumpkins, bats, spiders, witches, Frankenstein and ghosts. We will also be making some prints using our Halloween cookie cutters. We will be learning two spooky Halloween poems: “Jack-o- Lantern” and “Five Little Goblins”. There will still be a strong emphasis on curriculum. We will continue with our letter recognition. We might even carve some pumpkins. Some special Halloween books we will be reading are: Where’s the Halloween Treat?, Popcorn, The Spooky Old Tree, Witches Four, and Clifford’s First Halloween.
Our Halloween parties will be held on Wednesday and Thursday, October 28th and 29th. Children may wear their costumes to school. Please be sure that all costumes are labelled with your child’s name. If your child stays for lunch, please be sure that they bring a change of clothing for the afternoon. If any parents would like to send in some goodies for our parties, please let Ms. Stephanie know. Wrapped treats to send home in goodie bags are always appreciated.
Just A Reminder—– With the cooler weather approaching , please make sure that all coats, hats, mittens, boots, backpacks, etc. are labeled with your child’s name so they can be returned to you if left behind. Thank you!
Happy Hauntings!!!
