Themes
November themes will be Five Senses and Space. As always we will be reading stories and participating in discussions that are theme related. The children will be making crafts and participating in activities that will be based on each individual theme.
Handwriting Without Tears
This year I am following the program Get Set for School – Handwriting Without Tears. This is an award winning program that uses multisensory strategies and material to teach pencil grip, recognition, letter formation and early literacy skills. To learn more about this program, visit https://www.lwtears.com/hwt.
For the month of November, the 3 year old program will be doing an activity called bird legs, practice recognition and making of the shape of a cross, as well as the numbers one through three.
In the bird legs activity, the children will learn how to listen and repeat songs, verbally count a set of objects, and demonstrate active listening. They will also be using large muscle groups to maintain posture and mobility, know where their body is in relation to space, as well as move naturally and place their body to perform tasks.
In the cross shape activity, the children will be able to recognize familiar two-dimensional shapes and use correct top-to-bottom, left-to-right directionality for symbols, as well as using the same hand consistently to hold crayons.
In the numbers one to three activity, the children will learn sequencing, how to count verbally, and using correct top-to-bottom, left-to-right directionality for numbers all while practicing the proper grip to write.
The four year old programs will be focusing on an activity called Capitals On The Edge, as well as working on the letters L, F, E, H, and T.
In the Capitals On The Edge activity, the children will be learning to point and name capital letters and how to position the letters right-side up. This will help the learn to use correct top-to-bottom, left-to-right directionality for letters.
In all our letter activities, the children will be learning to hold a crayon with proper grip. They will be learning words linked to the content being taught while tracing the capital letters. And they will be learning sequencing, as well as using correct top-to-bottom, left-to-right directionality for letters.
November Calendar Change
Please note there has been a change to the calendar for the month of November. The playschool will not be open on November 25 & 26th due to no school day at CES. We apologize for missing this when we created our school calendar.
School Pictures
Once again we are very pleased with the photos Renee Hunt from Simply Unique took of all the children. Renee has notified use that all editing is complete and she has emailed out links to all families who completed forms. If you have not received your email, please contact Renee at reneehunt1@hotmail.com.
November 11 – No school because of the Fall Break at Carstairs Elementary
November 12 – No school because of the Fall Break at Carstairs Elementary
November 19 – Miss Marg from the library comes to read to the 4 year old AM class (library books are due today!)
November 20 – Miss Marg from the library comes to read to the 4 year old class (library books are due today!)
November 21 – Miss Marg from the library comes to read to the 4 year old PM class (library books are due today!)
November 25 - No school (CES Collab Day)
November 26 - No school
Speech Screening & PUF
We, at the Carstairs Playschool Society, feel it is important that we use all our available resources to prepare the children for kindergarten, and life in general. We feel that language, speech, and articulation are important aspects to a child, as they must have communication skills in everything and everywhere they go. I will be using a speech screening checklist which I will be filling out for the children during class time.
If I hear that certain sounds or letters are missing, or if I can’t hear a word clearly, I will be recommending that parents get in touch with Garth Schindel, the speech therapist at Didsbury Hospital. We believe it is important to target these speech and language difficulties at a young age. We also feel that if a child gets the help they need, they will be much more confident and sure of themselves in every aspect of their life, especially in going forward onto kindergarten and beyond.
I want to stress the fact the Alberta Government only funds PUF (Personal Unit Funding) program for ages 3-5. This is a free service during these ages, and I feel this program is very beneficial in helping children succeed and become more confident with their speech and language skills. Having PUF support should not be seen as a negative experience; instead it gives those children experiencing some language difficulties a chance to thrive in order to be ready for kindergarten.
I am not a speech therapist, but I feel it is important that all children get as much help and support as they can so that they can be confident in all aspects of their lives. We have added some information to our website outlining what each age group should be experiencing in terms of speech, articulation, and language. If you are at all concerned that your child does not meet some of these criteria, I highly recommend you make an appointment with Garth Schindel. Not all children who see the speech therapist will be given PUF funding, but Garth is highly skilled and will be able to give you lots of ideas to help your child in every area pertaining to speech and language.
Scrapbooks
I have crafts planned for each day your child attends playschool, however, some crafts will not be going home with your child. This is because I save several crafts over the year and put them into a scrapbook which your child will be bringing home on the last day of class in June. I love putting these mementos together and watching the children flip through their scrapbooks is so heart-melting for me!!
Because the Carstairs Playschool Society is a not for profit facility, we often rely on donations. Parents are not obligated to donate however it is very much appreciated when you can. We do, however, ask that you do no donate items that we have not put out a request for. As much as we appreciate it, there is not a lot of storage space and we have found in the past, that some items do not get used and it can quickly become overwhelming. Each month, the newsletter will include a list of items we are in need of.
The Carstairs Playschool uses a lot of various materials for crafts and we may be short of some items.
This month, I would be grateful for:
Large cardboard boxes (big enough to make a castle, etc.)
Red felt
Red/green/white pony beads
Small pop up tents
Paper towel tubes
Toilet Paper tubes
Black poster paper
Reminders
Snacks must be peanut free. Please bring snacks in a lunch kit and please label all containers as we have a few juice cups that are the same.
Don't forget to follow us on Facebook.
There are a few items in lost and found, please take a look.
If you have any questions, please feel free to discuss them with myself or Michelle, or email me at carstairsplayschoolteacher@gmail.com, or you can phone the playschool at 403 816 1481.
Danielle