St. Paul's Preschool

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For Parents

Click here to view or print our Parent Handbook. The United Way Did you know that if your employer participates in the United Way Campaign, you can designate the funds you donate to go to St. Paul's Preschool? Simply obtain a United Way Contributor's Choice form from your employer and specify our preschool's code, 941482, and the monthly or annual amount you wish to contribute. GETTING READY FOR SCHOOL Soon you will be getting ready to send your child to preschool. Whether it is the first time your child is attending or a “repeat performance,” the child may experience some separation adjustments. First-time preschoolers need unhurried time to explore their new environment and meet their teachers. Children who have attended Child Care will be adjusting to new rooms, activities and people. Developmentally, children expect things to remain the same as they left them. New teachers, classmates, rooms and schedules may cause temporary adjustment problems. “Old-timers” need a period of adjustment to new friends, new teachers and new activities. With this in mind, we have arranged special time schedules and added staff to help our students during this time of adjustment. For our two’s, we have found that shortening the length of the day by ½ hour allows the children to enjoy the program without getting tired. During the first weeks of school we have extra staff available. This enables the teachers to spend individual time with any child who needs attention. The information on your Permanent Record form is read and recorded by teachers. This gives the teaching staff information about what the child enjoys. Mentioning the name of a pet or special person listed on this form helps the child feel secure and welcome and makes the transition go smoothly. Allergies are posted, and health problems and special needs are addressed. Communication between parents and teachers is very important. Please alert your teachers about any and all concerns throughout the year. HOW YOU CAN PREPARE YOUR CHILD FOR SCHOOL You will receive a class roster along with a roster of teachers and staff. Talk about the teachers by name. The class roster will also help if you are arranging a car pool or trying to find the name of someone near you. Plan a time to get together before school starts. Talk about the activities you know your child will enjoy. Do not promise that they will be available every day. Talk about all the things you will be doing at home during the time the children are in school. Make it all the boring things that children don’t mind missing. Share your positive attitude with your child. They will adjust much more quickly if they know you are confident that they will do well (if you have questions, call or come in so you will have no doubts about their success). The teachers and director will be available to help you. Help your child pick out sturdy, comfortable, washable clothes for school. Tennis shoes are appropriate for our active schedule. We will play outside on good weather days. Let your child bring a special toy or possession. This helps bridge the gap between home and school. Make sure that you label the item with your child’s name so it won’t become mixed with the preschool’s toys. Each class will have a bulletin board with each child’s picture and pictures of their teachers. Tell your child to look for it. Be sure to give us a current picture of your child for the bulletin board if you haven’t already done so…we don’t want your child’s photo missing! Make sure your child’s immunizations are up to date. Be sure we have received your child’s most current Health Report. We look forward to meeting and talking with you and your child! TOGETHER TIME FUN Star Magnets Display your child's artwork using these personalized star magnets. Kids will be proud to have their artwork from preschool hung for all to see. What you'll need: 3" Wooden flat star 5" Decorative ribbon (1" wide) Craft paint Glitter glue pens Markers (to write names on stars) Scissors Hot glue gun Very strong magnet (as large as you can fit behind the star) How to make it: 1. Paint your star the color desired and let dry. 2. Using a colored marker, write the child's name and any other words on the star. Ideas: "My Artist Did This" " A Masterpiece by" "— Did This" "Look What — Did!" 3. If you mess up on the lettering, just repaint over the star. 4. Using a glitter glue pen, draw a thin line all around the outside edge of the star and let dry. 5. Take your piece of ribbon and fold it in half lengthwise. 6. Starting at the end of the ribbon, cut at an angle toward the folded edge. You should have a "V" shape cut out of the ribbon. Repeat for other end. 7. Fold the ribbon in half. Slightly angle the ribbon so you will see both pieces. 8. Hot glue on back of star with edges showing below the bottom of the star. 9. Hot glue the magnet on the back of the star. Peekaboo Apple Paper Plate Kids will love this colorful back-to-school craft. Make a bright red apple with a friendly worm that pokes through to say hello! What you'll need: Paper plate Red acrylic or poster paint Green construction paper Brown chenille stem, preferably bumpy chenille 2 small wiggle eyes 1 miniature pom-pom Scrap of yellow construction paper (optional) White craft glue Black marker How to make it: 1. Paint the paper plate red and let dry. Add a second coat if desired. Make sure the paper plate has dried completely . 2. On green construction paper, draw a simple worm shape similar to the shape of a boomerang. Cut worm out. 3. Choose which end will be the worm's head and glue the wiggle eyes and nose (miniature pom-pom) to create its face. 4. Draw on the worm's smile with the black marker. 5. Optional: Cut a small bowtie out of a scrap of yellow construction paper. Glue under the worm's mouth. 6. To create the top of the apple, start at the top of the plate and draw a concave line going down to the center circle of the plate. Starting where you ended the first line, draw another concave line in the opposite direction going upward. Cut out this curved triangular section from the plate. 7. Using a craft knife or scissors, cut a slit, about 1 ½" long, into the apple at the location you want the worm to poke through. 8. Insert the tail end of the worm into the slit so the top half of his body is poking out. 9. Cut the first "bump" off of the bumpy chenille, or about 3" of regular chenille stem. 10. Turn the plate over and glue the chenille just below the "V" point at the top. Let dry. Tips: · To keep the worm still when not in use, secure with a paper clip. · Play with the worm by having your child move it back and forth through the slot by grasping the tail end of the worm at the back of the plate and wiggling it up and down. · Instead of painting the plate, you can have the child color it with red markers or crayons. *Apple Smiles Recipe* Make a fun snack with this apple smiles recipe. Ingredients: Apple Peanut Butter Miniature Marshmallows Preparation: Cut apples into wedges. Smear peanut butter on one side of 2 wedges. Stick a few marshmallows on the peanut butter on one of the apple wedges and top with the other apple wedge - peanut butter side down. When you look at this it looks like a smile (the red part of the apple are the lips and the marshmallows are the teeth!) Draw a Map Materials: Paper Pens or markers Directions: Help your child draw a simple map of her neighborhood. Include familiar and personal landmarks on her map: the mailbox, the store, the playground, her friend’s house, the fire station. Take this map with you on your walks and point out the landmarks as you go. On your walk, collect natural materials, such as acorns and leaves, to use for an art project. At home, map the location where you found these items. You can also draw maps of your yard, your house, or your child's bedroom. Alphabet Book This is a long-term project that is great for rainy afternoons. Materials: Small notebook or loose sheets of paper Crayons or markers Old magazines Scissors Glue Photos of friends and family (optional) Directions: Help your child print a letter of the alphabet on each page of a small notebook, or use loose sheets of plain or colored paper. Your child can draw a picture of something that begins with that letter, cut pictures from old magazines and glue them onto each page, or use photographs of friends and family members. Listen to the World This activity can be done inside or outside. Sit beside your child or back-to-back, and close your eyes. Concentrate on listening to all the sounds around you. Listen to the world. Is the refrigerator humming, a plane flying overhead, the dog barking, or telephone ringing? Say what you hear. Can your child identify all the sounds? Are there any soft sounds? High sounds? Take turns being very quiet and then share what sounds you can hear. *Bedtime Race* Preschoolers love a challenge, and you can use that to your advantage at bedtime. Materials Small timer Directions 1. Set a small timer for 15 minutes as a signal for your child to run for the bedroom, change clothes, brush her teeth, and hop into bed. Your child wins if the timer has not gone off. 2. Follow with a favorite storybook. Extensions If you have troubles with story time, set the timer and begin where you left off with any unfinished books the next night. Books *Mouse’s First Day of School* by Lauren Thompson *D.W.'s Guide to Preschool (Arthur Adventures)* by Marc Brown *The Kissing Hand* by Audrey Penn *If You Take a Mouse to School* by Laura Numeroff *What to Expect at Preschool (What to Expect Kids)* by Heidi Murkoff *Maisy Goes to Preschool: A Maisy First Experiences Book* by Lucy Cousins *I Love You All Day Long* by Francesca Rusackas Accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children