9/9 Classroom Update!

It has been such a wonderful first week! I have so enjoyed getting to know our preschoolers better as they learned all about our classroom. Our main focus this week was to learn our basic classroom routines, as well as to learn each other's names.

We read the story The Kissing Hand this week, and talked about how our Mommy's and Daddy's love comes with us to school. During center time, we made Kissing Hands for loved ones at home, as well as made our own Chester Racoons (displayed in the hallway). We also explored many of the new toys and materials in our classroom during this time.

Here are some of the great books we read during circle time this week:

     

Next week, we will be learning even more about each other during our "All About Me" theme! We will read lots of books celebrating what makes us special, and have opportunities to share more about ourselves with our classmates. Our Spanish skill for the week will be learning how to say "My Name is...." in Spanish (Me llamo....). We will also get to explore the sensory table, play with shaving cream, and paint self portraits!

10/4 Field Trip: We will be visiting Schwallier's Country Basket to pick apples and pumpkins, as well as pet farm animals on Tuesday, October 4th. The morning class will be leaving promptly at 8:30 pm, and the afternoon class will be leaving promptly at 12:30 pm. If you are interested in joining us, please add your name to the driver's list on our bulletin board outside our classroom and fill out a volunteer form using the link below. If you will be transporting children other than your own, you will need to stop by the office to fill out a self-reporting form and provide proof of your insurance, driver's license, and registration. The field trip costs $5 per child and will be billed to your monthly preschool account. Adults attending can pay their $5 upon arrival at Schwallier's.

Volunteer Form: There will be many opportunities to volunteer in our classroom throughout the year, including attending class field trips. If you are interested in participating in future classroom activities, please fill out the volunteer form here.

Scholastic Book Orders: If you would like to order books through Scholastic, you can order books online by completing the steps below. You may also turn in your paper order and payment to me and I will input it for you.

1. Go to the Scholastic Reading Club Website here.
2. Click Connect to your Teacher and enter our class activation code: PJFBX.
3. Then click to order from this month's flyer. Our default flyer is the "Early Childhood" flyer; however, you may order from any of the fliers. You can view more details about each book and add them to your cart by clicking on them in the flyer. 
4. After selecting your items, click on the cart to create an account or sign-in to your existing account in order to check-out.  
5. December Orders need to be placed by Thursday, September 22nd.

I'm looking forward to another wonderful week! Have a great weekend!

Welcome to the 2016-17 School Year!

Welcome!

Welcome! I hope you all had a wonderful and relaxing summer. I am so excited to get to know you and your children better as we discover the world of 4 year-old preschool together! We will meet new friends, learn classroom rules and routines, and discover Woodcliff Early Childhood Center.

Posted below is the schedule of our typical day. Occasionally our schedule will change due to special events, visitors, field trips, etc. We will also have Music class once a week every other week starting in September.

Daily Schedule:
Arrival Activities
Circle Time
Projects/Literacy Stations
Story Time
Snack
Book Look
Free Choice
Clean-up
Outside Play
Closing Circle/Dismissal

Morning classes run from 8:30-11:15 am, and afternoon classes run from 12:30-3:15 pm. Doors will open up five minutes before the start of class. Please pick your child up outside the classroom promptly at 11:15 or 3:15.

Please check back on the blog often! I will put up information about the upcoming week, important dates, extension activities for at home, and pictures of classroom happenings.  I will also send out a reminder link after each post as soon as I collect everyone's email addresses.

If you need anything, please do not hesitate to email me at kbillmei@egrps.org, or you may call the office at (616) 235-7595.

Preschool Open House: Preschool Open House is this Thursday, September 1st from 4-6 pm. Open House is a great opportunity for our preschoolers to come see our classroom, meet some of their classmates (and me!), and to feel more comfortable on the first day of school.

I cannot wait to meet you all at Open House and to get this year started!

End of the Year!

It's hard to believe it's already the end of the school year! It seems like yesterday that I was just meeting our little ones for the first time! This week, we reflected on all the fun things we had done over the course the year, and visited many of our old favorite centers. Below are pictures of our favorite memories from the year (please excuse my drawing skills!):

AM Class

PM Class

We also spent some time this week getting ready for Father's Day on Sunday, June 19th. We read books about Dads, talked about what dads do best and what we like to do with our dads, as well as made Father's Day Presents. Here is what our preschoolers said dads do best:

AM Class

PM Class

 Thank you again for sharing your children with me this year. They are all so special and loved, and I am so excited for all the wonderful things the future will bring for them. They will be very missed! I also feel so lucky to have worked with such wonderful and supportive families this year.

I hope you all have an amazing summer!