January Newsletter

Welcome back to playschool!  We hope you all had a great Christmas holiday and we wish you all the best in 2019!

Themes

For the month of January, the themes will be winter, hygiene, and the ocean.  We will be designating one day for a beach party which coincides with our ocean theme.  As always, the children will be doing crafts, reading stories and discussing each theme.

Drop Off / Pick Up

The Carstairs Playschool Society would like to send a friendly reminder to please drop off and pick up your child at the scheduled times.  If you are going to be late at pick up, please call or text, 403 816 1481, to advise us.  Sometimes the children can get very upset when their parent doesn’t come through the door at pick up time.  If we are notified, we can let your child know and hopefully avoid some sad tears.

• Monday/Wednesday AM Class: 8:45am - 11:15am

• Monday/Wednesday PM Class: 12:30pm – 3:30pm

• Tuesday/Thursday AM Class: 8:30am-11:30am

• Tuesday/Thursday PM Class: 12:30pm – 3:30pm

Open House

Our previous open house was such a success, the Carstairs Playschool Society has decided to have another one in May.  Watch for details!

January 7th – First day back to school for the Monday/Wednesday classes

January 8th – First day back to school for the Tuesday/Thursday classes

January 9th – Fire drill for the Monday/Wednesday classes

January 10th – Fire drill for the Tuesday/Thursday classes

January 13th – Carstairs Playschool Society Board of Directors monthly meeting 2pm

January 15th – Miss Marg comes to read to the Tuesday/Thursday morning class

January 16th – Miss Marg comes to read to the Monday/Wednesday afternoon class

January 17th – Miss Marg comes to read to the Tuesday/Thursday afternoon class

January 28th – Beach party for the Monday/Wednesday classes

January 29th – Beach party for the Tuesday/Thursday classes

January 30th – No school because of the semester break at Carstairs Elementary School

January 31st – No school because of the semester break at Carstairs Elementary School

Beach Party

We thought it would be a fun idea to have a beach party in January.  At least we can pretend it’s warm for one day!  Each class will be having their own beach party.  The children can dress in beach themed clothes such as shorts, sun dresses, tank tops, capris, flip flops, etc.  However, NO SWIMSUITS PLEASE!

 Please sent a towel with your child so that we can have a picnic on the “beach.”  The children will require a regular snack and a small treat will be provided afterwards.  Our time will be spend following the regular routine as much as possible, however some changes will be made to incorporate the beach theme.

Open Door Policy

We wanted to remind families that the Carstairs Playschool Society has an open-door policy.  If at any time, you have questions or concerns regarding your child or the program, please let us know.  You can chat with us after class or email carstairsplayschoolteacher@gmail.com.  If you would like to keep your concerns or questions confidential, please email them to Gail Schwartz, our administrator, at carstairsplayschool@gmail.com or call 403 999 8275.

Reminders

• Snacks must be peanut free.  Please bring your child’s snack in a lunch kit and please label all containers as we have a few juice cups that are the same.

• The Lost and Found bucket has some items that need to be claimed.  It is located on the table in the entrance way.  Please take a look and see if these items belong to your child.

• Please refer to the Carstairs Playschool Society handbook for information on updated policies of the Carstairs Playschool.

We are looking forward to great success in 2019!

Danielle and Michelle

Christmas Concert

This is so exciting for the children! Don’t forget your camera!

December 2018 Newsletter

Themes

Christmas will be the theme for the entire month of December.  We will be making special Christmas crafts, reading stories and playing games related to Christmas.

Open House and Parent/Teacher Conference

On December 4th from 5:00pm – 7:00pm the Carstairs Playschool will be having Parent/Teacher conferences for those who are interested.  This will be a time for parents who want to discuss how their child is doing in play school, where they are at for kindergarten readiness, how they are doing socially, etc.  There will be a signup sheet where each family will have a ten minute session.  As with parent/teacher interviews at CES, you are more than welcome to bring your child with you.  You are not at all obligated to sign up, however, I believe our time together will be beneficial for discussing any questions or concerns you may have about your child.

Alongside the Parent/Teacher Conference, the Carstairs Playschool is opening their doors for an Open House.  This is for any families who may be interested in attending the playschool this year or even next school year.  Please feel free to share this information with any families you know.  This is a great opportunity for families to see the space and ask any questions they may have.

December 4th – Open House and Parent/Teacher Conference (5:00pm – 7:00pm)

December 11th – Miss Marg comes to read to the 4 year old morning class (Library books due)

December 12th – Miss Marg comes to read to the 4 year old afternoon class (Library books due)

December 13th – Miss Marg comes to read to the 4 year old afternoon class (Library books due)

December 19th – Christmas party for all classes (9:00am – 11:00am)

December 20th – January 6th – No School Christmas Break

January 7th – Monday/Wednesday classes resume

January 8th – Tuesday/Wednesday classes resume

Christmas Party

The Christmas party will be 9:00am – 11:00am on Wednesday, December 19th.   Everyone is invited!!  This includes parents, siblings, grandparents, friends, or whoever would like to see these cute little children sing some songs. As it is a busy morning for the teachers and the children, we are asking that ALL children be accompanied by an adult at the Christmas party.

I would like to let you know what Michelle and I have planned for the morning.  Parents are to drop off their child at the playschool by 8:45am.  The children are to stay in the classroom with their classmates while the parents go to the church sanctuary and find themselves a seat.  This year, we will be separating the age groups as to not overwhelm them with so many children in one space.  The 3 year old class will go into the church library which is located in the hallway just outside the playschool classroom.   The 4 year old children will remain in the classroom.  If you have a very shy child, who may feel overwhelmed by all the activity, please feel free to stay with us up in the classroom.  If any child is upset and does not want to participate in the singing, don’t worry – it is perfectly fine with us if they choose to sit and watch.

At 9:00, the 3 year old classes will be brought down to the sanctuary by Michelle and myself.  They will then sing two Christmas songs.  At 9:05am, the 4 year old classes will be brought down to the sanctuary by the classroom EA’s and will line up at the sanctuary door.   The 4 year olds will then sing two songs.  After that, all classes will sing one Christmas song to the audience.  Once all the classes have sung their last song, the children may go and sit with their parents.

After all the children have sang, we will then proceed to the church gym where Santa will arrive soon after.  The children are welcome to sit with him and get a little treat.    A few volunteers will be needed to provide snacks and to help set up and take down.  An additional email will be sent out shortly with more volunteering details.  The children do not need to bring a snack to the party as there will be plenty of food available for everybody to enjoy.

Don’t forget your cameras, and we hope to see you all at the Christmas party!!

Photographs and Social Media

The Carstairs Playschool Society would like to clarify the rules that come with taking pictures of the children and posting them on social media.  As you may remember from the beginning of the year, all parents had the option to provide consent or to not provide consent to have photographs taken of their child.  To ensure that a picture of a child whose parents has not provided consent, does not accidentally get posted on social media, we ask that parents carefully following these guidelines.  If you are visiting your child at playschool and want to take pictures, please ensure other children are not in the frame.  Because the Carstairs Playschool is a public facility and we hold open to public events, such as Christmas concert, parents are permitted to take group photographs and post on social media if you so choose.   

If you have any questions, please feel free to email me at carstairsplayschoolteacher@gmail.com

On behalf of the myself, Michelle and the Carstairs Playschool Society Board, I hope you have a wonderful and safe Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Danielle

Operation Christmas Child

Over the past several years, Carstairs Elementary School has invited the Carstairs Playschool Society to join them in Operation Christmas Child.  This is the creation and collection of shoe boxes filled with items that are then shipped overseas to needy children in many parts of the world.  OCC Canada distributes shoe boxes to countries in Africa, Central and South America.  For 2018, the hope is to collect an additional 20 000 boxes for the Ukraine, which is in need of cold weather items.  

Shoe boxes will be collected on Thursday, November 22 at 2:15pm at Carstairs Elementary School.  The playschool will be attending this assembly.  We would love to have Carstairs Playschool families join as well, however, you will need to transport your child to the assembly.  All children will need to be picked up from playschool at 2pm on this day.  

For those who would like to participate by filling a shoe box, we will have them available in the classroom.  Please stop by and pick one up.