news letter - First United Methodist Church of Austin

FIRST UNITED
METHODIST PRESCHOOL
1201 Lavaca Street, Austin, Tx 78701 | Ph: 478-5709 | Fax: 478-9365
Web: www.fumcaustin.org/preschool | Email: [email protected]
O u r
W o r k
I s
C h i l d ’ s
P l a y .
W W W. F U M C A U S T I N . O R G / P R E S C H O O L | P R E S C H O O L @ F U M C A U S T I N . O R G
CALENDAR
OF EVENTS
Tues & Wed, Oct. 2 & 10
Music with Ms. Erin
Wednesday, October 17
Board Meeting: 11:30am | Rm. 108
Alternating Tuesdays & Wednesdays
Chapel with Ms. Elaine
Mondays, Oct 8 & 22
Stretch-N-Grow w/ Coach Bob
Thurs & Fri, Oct 11 & 12
Parent Conferences & Book Fair
NO REGULAR PRESCHOOL
Parent-Teacher
Conferences
Thursday & Friday
October 11 & 12
These 15-20 minutes conferences are a
chance to talk with your child’s teacher
about the transition into his/her class.
NO REGULAR PRESCHOOL!
Sign up sheets are posted outside
classroom doors. If you are unable to
attend please contact your teacher directly.
Remember, childcare is for our
currently enrolled children ONLY.
NEWS
M O N T H LY
LETTER
October 2012
From the Director
Have you found yourself saying, “Boy, I wonder why the preschool does that”? I think
many of you have. We work hard to accommodate our families needs as often as we
can, but regulations limit our flexibility. Here are a few common questions...
It seems like there are many days that FUMP is closed, why?
For the number crunchers out there, our school year is 168 days long each regular
school year. We have the traditional holidays that the local school districts hold, plus
a few more. Another factor to consider, we add in 5 staff development days, including one day to attend state conference. These are very important, as each teacher is
required to have a minimum of 30 hours per year of continuing education, which
included CPR/First Aid training, diversity, standard precautions, child abuse and
neglect, child guidance, Whew - aren’t our teachers well-trained? This gives us the
optimum training calendar for our talented staff. What about other schools? The
majority of preschool’s in Austin are set to commence classes after Labor Day and
end the year at Memorial Day. We have approximately 2-3 extra weeks built in our
school year calendar.
Why doesn’t FUMP follow the AISD, EISD calendars exactly?
When FUMP has parent conference days, we purposefully select days other than
AISD. On conference days, our teaching assistants provide child care for FUMP
enrollees because we want you to attend. If we held conferences on the same days,
we would have many elementary-aged children in our child care. This would compromise our ratios and we have no forms or records for the big kids-a BIG licensing
no-no. We know that this is inconvenient for some folks, but we appreciate your
understanding.
I’m a little grossed out by the crickets that I see in the building. We are too, but
you can’t fight Mother Nature.
Did you know that the grassy areas around the Capitol building used to be spring-fed
ponds? (You can still tell from the shape of the lawn that they could hold water.)
Our building is built over a small cave that still houses the springs. Unfortunately we
have a higher insect population. We do have a pest control service that treats each
quarter, after children have departed the building. Child care licensing highly
regulates the types of treatments that we receive, so please know we do our best to
strike the balance between managing our insect co-habitators and pest control
practices.
Has the preschool ever considered curbside drop off?
We have, in fact, it was offered about 11 years ago, when our building was under
renovation. Since that time, child care licensing now requires sign in sheets to
account for children’s arrival and departure times. While that could be handled
logistically, the decision to have parents escort their children into the building is
more of a philosophical one. What parents and teachers love about FUMP is the
sense of community that we have here. To have parents remain in their cars would
decrease the interaction between teachers and parents about your child‘s day.
continued
A Message From Your Volunteer Coordinator
By Laura Lee Daigle, Volunteer Coordinator
My favorite part of the day is heading to FUMP to pick my son Henry up from school.
Partly, of course, because he likes to greet me with an awkward little dance and then for some reason hand me a random purple pillow.
But I also love interacting with his teachers and classmates and the dozens of other students and parents in the hallways. Some days
we’re all a bit rushed and frazzled, some days we’re chatty and won’t leave, but regardless we’re always there, trying to raise our little
ones to be good students and good friends, and, most importantly, good people.
I’m told that because of our involved parents the Volunteer Coordinator position is the easiest one on the FUMP Board, and I don’t
doubt it for a second. We all want our kids to grow into good people, and we all know that leading by example and being active at
school are critical. Keep an eye out for e-mails and opportunities to sign up to help out at FUMP, and if you ever have any questions
please don’t hesitate to contact me at [email protected]. Whatever your availability, whatever your interests, FUMP offers
plenty of ways to stay involved and I look forward to working with each of you throughout the year.
From the Director...continued
Also, it would reduce the family interactions as well. From reports from families who have long
since graduated from our program from my first years here, families from FUMP remain friends
for years - playdates, vacations and the like. Children have maintained their friendships into
elementary school, middle school and beyond. I feel that curbside drop off would take away that
important yet invaluable element of FUMP. So thank you for fighting the traffic (and risking
parking citations) to keep FUMP families connected each day.
Why can’t I bring homemade cupcakes for my child’s birthday?
Boy - that is a tough one for many to swallow. Again, this is based on a child care licensing
requirement. Standard 746.3309 states that food brought from home cannot be shared between children. Further, FUMP’s philosophy centers around modeling appropriate nutritional habits within the preschool day. There are many opportunities outside
of the preschool to enjoy holiday/birthday treats. Also, some families are not appreciative of the sweets at school-wide functions
and wanted healthier choices, or no food at all. We have opted to have children brought party cups and plates on their special
day for the children to enjoy their snack from home on them. It‘s a win-win for parents and child care licensing.
Why isn’t there a preschool graduation ceremony?
One of the hallmarks of our program is being child centered. This idea centers around putting child‘s needs at the forefront of our
decision-making process. While programs and pageants are entertaining for parents, it has been my experience that such programs can be very upsetting for some children. Similar to an adult’s fear of public speaking, children can be very nervous or
uncomfortable standing in front of a large crowd of adults. Being a part-time program, families can explore all kinds of activities
for their children outside of our hours, which may include recitals or programs, if that is a good match for your child‘s personality.
However at FUMP, we have made the conscious decision to avoid such programs and be supportive of all kinds of temperaments.
Why in the world does Before School Care and After School Care run for 45 minutes, instead of an hour?
Well, child care licensing states (Standard 746.1615 to be exact!) that for the first 45 minutes before opening, a program is
allowed to amend their ratios and collapse age groups - hence the 45 minute period. Starting earlier in the day would result in
needing more staff for that time and fees would increase.
Why is your summer program different (i.e. calendar, prices)?
Yes, summer is very different than the regular school year. After surveying parents, we determined that 8 weeks was the longest
summer session that we could offer. This gives our teachers a much needed week of vacation after the school year ends. We convene in mid June and July and must end in time for FUMC Vacation Bible School to be held in August. Teachers end up having two
weeks of vacation (but some are preparing classrooms at that time), and one week of staff development for room preparation
and staff meetings. As for the costs, each summer we lose about one-third of our students to camps, vacations, etc. As a result,
we used to have our classes only partially full and were not covering our expenses. We had to increase the cost of that program,
or eliminate it. The high demand for summer care resulted in a fully enrolled, more cost efficient program.
Thursday & Friday, Oct. 11 & 12
9am - 1pm | Room 108 | During conferences
Each year we have the book fair during
our fall parent/teacher conferences.
Please stop by before or after your conference and enter to
win a basket of books* and have some refreshments.
Top 5 Reasons to come to the Book Fair:
5. It’s full of wonderful and affordable books
for our kids & older siblings
4. Great gift ideas for all ages (cook books,
craft books, and some educational toys)
3. It gets kids to associate books & reading
with FUN!
2. You can purchase a book for your child’s
classroom in their honor - So check out the
teacher wish list table at the fair!
1. It’s a great way to raise money for FUMP!
Questions?
Contact Sumer Shelton
Book Fair coordinator
[email protected]
* - no purchase necessary to win
Hope to see
you there!
FUMP Classroom News
In this monthly column, I have asked the teachers to write about what is going on inside their classrooms. I know
that, as parents, you have those quick arrivals and departures, and cannot fully see all of the aspects of our program. Your child‘s day
is filled with countless teacher-child interactions, guidance, and meaningful, purposeful activities and curriculum - all under the large
umbrella of our developmental philosophy. We want parents to better understand the workings of a play-based program and the best
practice of early childhood education. We would like for you to truly understand the value of choosing FUMP for your child’s first
educational experience. Enjoy and Happy Reading!
Infants:
Do you have a little one about to embark on solids beyond cereal? If so, give them a good start and avoid the
tempting sweet tooth, meaning start with veggies even if the pediatrician says otherwise. Children do not
know ‘sweet’ if it is not given. Through the years I have seen too many picky eaters who have a preference for
sugary foods. This summer I took on several of the ‘organic’ baby food companies that sell food in the pouches after finding that the majority of them list veggies first on the front, but on the list of ingredients, fruit is
first—no wonder the kids love it! My suggestion is to serve veggies straight or if your child balks at it, add in
another veggie they like, or cereal or a tiny bit of fruit to tone down, and decrease the add-in over several feedings. If you have to
stay in the toned-down phase a while, no worries, they are eating, right? As for yogurts, there is no need to give your baby anything
other than plain, whole-milk yogurt—the texture is pleasing and they don’t know the sweet versions are out there. I really like that
you can now find whole-milk Greek-style yogurt, which I like because the thickness means more IN than ON! Oh and yogurt is a
great add-in for the veggies, if needed, with the added benefits of probiotics and protein. Do know that some early eaters have an
exceptional palate and may be ready to go straight from breast feeding or cereal to what the rest of the family is eating? Just serve
it in pureed form and then graduate to a ‘chunkier’ texture as they are ready. Besides convenience, the only real purpose of the
baby food is to give your child new tastes and textures while ruling out allergies. There are no hard and fast rules for feeding but be
cautious if there is a history of allergies and avoid those foods until later. And remember, NO honey for children under 12 months
and no reduction in fat until age 2. Happy Feeding!
Young Toddlers
What a great start to a new school year.
Our Bumblebee class has done a wonderful job. Imagine, having to learn so much
in so little time! With each day, they have
mastered self help skills, like hand washing,
eating with utensils, climbing up and down
the stairs for diaper changes, etc., as well as learning how to put
away snack and lunch materials.
We really enjoyed implementing the lessons plans, and our
little ones really had fun exploring water and sand, as well as
cornmeal, bubbles, shaving cream and walks to the Capitol in the
bye-bye buggy. With each of these areas of play, we experimented both inside and outdoors, (not the buggy, obviously), to see
the way they use materials in different environments. Doing bubbles inside is much like bath time; lots of splashing, and lots of
clean up. Shaving cream and ice allowed us to experience cold
textures. Sand and cornmeal gave us opportunities to use tools
to manipulate. We used shovels to dig, buckets to pour, and our
hands and rakes help us separate these materials, as well as form
designs inside.
A special thank you—our families got to spend time together for
the all-school picnic. Mother Nature gave us rain, but also a
chance to get to learn so much more about each other. We can’t
wait to do it again in the spring.
Older Toddlers
Every year, each child is unique in
their temperament and the
adaptability to the class routine.
This is why we spend most of the first
month focused on establishing
routines. We see the way it worked
(or didn’t work) for the children. We
learned a lot about each other through this month. We
helped them learn the routines with redirection, and taught
them to use their voice instead of their bodies to resolve
conflict. When there is conflict we assure them that their
friends will listen and teachers will help. We are growing as
a whole group and will continue to learn from each other.
FUMP Classroom News
What’s been going on in the classrooms
Twos: M-F
I wanted to let you know what is
going on this month. We have been
working on fine motor skills or “pinching.” This is a very important process since it helps with handwriting
skills. Things that we do everyday,
like at mealtime the children use
spoons or forks, manipulating toy
trains, cars, dolls, etc... all help with their fine motor skills.
Displayed on our bulletin board, we have been working on
gluing art, pom poms, buttons, packing peanuts, and our
class quilt. When the children have to pick up an object,
they use their “pinching” fingers, which also helps with fine
motor skills.
At home, there are things that can help with your child’s
fine motor skills: crayons. Holding crayons helps develop the
pincher grasp, rather than using their whole hand. One idea
is to break the crayons. When they use smaller crayons, they
must grasp with the pincher, due to their hand position.
Other fine motor activities include: having your child take
toys out of containers (no dumping) and helping put toys
away; helping to put on articles of clothing: socks, shoes,
etc; screwing and unscrewing various jars, containers, etc.
Try some of the activities at home with your child to foster
the school-to-home connection.
Twos: MWF
The year has gotten off to a good and
productive start. Although we have
only shared about 15 days with your
child, it feels like we have been together longer. They learn so fast. They
learn from one another and that‘s the
beauty of having your child in an Early
Child Care classroom. Our strength is
that we have a few who are the leaders of the group and have
set the stage for others. Just last week, one child was helping
another across the balance beam. A short time after, three
others came over to her for help. She patiently held each
child’s hand progressively walking along side of them as they
learned how to balance across the beam.
The children have mastered their classmates‘ names and are
beginning to have play buddies that they spend more time with
throughout the day. Developmentally, toddlers typically play
either side by side or alone. At two, our children are not only
learning to play together but they are appropriately moving
through the stages of early child development while creating
friendships. Throughout the day, we can hear them calling each
other by name inviting a friend to come over to play with them.
So beautiful!
This month, we are learning directional words. At home,
when speaking with your child, be intentional when giving
directions by stressing and demonstrating the meaning of
words like ’above‘ or ’under‘ or similar.
At the end of the month, as Halloween approaches, we will
have a pajama party in lieu of costumes. Thank you so much for
sharing your child with us. We are having a great year thus far.
FUMP Classroom News
What’s been going on in the classrooms
Older Threes:
Young Threes:
Can you re-read that book to me one
more time?
We all know that children love repetition and this fact seems particularly
true with children and books. Recently
we have gone through a favorite book
moment in our three year old class.
The children have asked us repeatedly
for the same book, sometimes several times a day. As adults
we might get bored and think, “Why on earth do they want
to hear that book again?” However, that is exactly why children love to hear familiar stories. They love the sense of
power that comes from knowing what is on the printed page.
In a world where a three year old doesn’t inherently have
very much power, “memorizing” a book is a great source of
pride. They are able to feel proud when they can finish the
sentences on their own.
There is also something to the fact that children like to read
it with you. We all know how sometimes it can be fun to
finish your best friend’s sentences, and this is similar for
them. It also allows them to actively participate in reading
and have a more involved experience. Children will memorize every word so be careful and remember not to skip even
one! And saving the best for last, children are making sense
of words and language even if they don’t know it. Who
could ask for more? Happy re-reading!
Fours:
Ms. Dee Dee and Ms. Marla’s class
have had a very busy month. The children have been reviewing their colors
in English and Spanish and discussing
a different shape each week. They are
doing a wonderful job with recall! We
have discussed ourselves & our families and how we are the same and how we are different. This
week we will be exploring our different feelings and how to
handle them. Many books have been read, play dough made
and yummy moo-shakes blended and tasted. The children
have explored many art projects using a varity of different
mediums. Check out our bulletin boards! They are proud of
their creations! We continue to work on routines, first time
listening and conflict resolutions with our peers. Chapel with
Ms Elaine, Stretch-N-Grow with Coach Bob, and Music with
Ms. Erin all started in the month of September.
Every day in the older three’s
classroom we are busy learning and
practicing socialization, self help and
personal development skills, along
with conflict resolution. It is very
important to me that by the end of the
year each child will be able to say:
• I can make good choices.
• I can work/play in a small group.
• I can problem solve.
• I can work/play by myself.
• I can resolve conflicts.
With conflict resolution in the beginning of the year, the
teacher usually acts as a mediator. By the end of the year,
usually a child is mediating conflict resolutions. Usually this
takes place in the area of conflict. However, if it is too heated
we walk over to a neutral area. “Let’s walk over to ____” the
teacher may hold the item that is in dispute. “Let me hold this
as we all talk.”
Some other words you will hear me use as a teacher/
mediator are:
• Do you need help? Please sit. Thank you.
• What do you think is the problem?
• Did you hear ____ say _____?
• Do you have any ideas on how to solve his?
• What do you both think will work?
• Okay, thanks for talking to each other.
It is amazing to me to see the growth in this area with our
older threes as they transition to four years old. By the end of
the year they are resolving conflict like pros!
WHO CAN FORGET BRITTANI?
Brittani Beasley:
T/TH Assistant
in Young Toddlers &
MWF Floater
My name is Brittani and this is
my second year at FUMP. I am
the oldest of 6, so I’ve spent a
lot of time around kids of all
ages. I love cats and bunnies! I graduated high school in
2010, and plan on taking child development classes in
the spring. I like riding my bike and playing guitar.
[Brittani was inadvertantly left off of our last newsletter.]
PARENT EDUCATIONSERIES
Parenting Styles & Children’s Temperament
Wednesday, October 24
11:30 - 12:30 | room 108
By Sandy Pennington
Cost & Childcare FREE for FUMP Families
Were your parents stern or relaxed?
Do you model their parenting, or have you found your own way?
Does your parenting style match your partner’s style?
What is your child’s temperament like?
Easy or slow-to-warm-up?
All these questions will be discussed and more as we explore the parenting style and children’s
personalities and how the two interplay in the parent-child relationship. All questions welcomed.
Bring a brown bag lunch.
Please RSVP if you will need free child care. Email: [email protected]
OCTOBER at FUMC
Provided by Lara Greene, Director of Children & Family Ministries
KID’S NIGHT
KID’S DAY
To offer parents a few hours
to themselves.
Fridays:
October 12 & November 9
5:30-9:00pm
To help parents run those
holiday errands, kid-free
$25 for first child, $8 for siblings
Saturday, Dec. 8
10:00am-1:30pm
$25 for first child, $8 for siblings
PET SPOTLIGHT
2012 / 2013
Board Members
Amber Higginbotham
Board Chair
Kelly Schaub
Treasurer
Ashley Gibson
Secretary
Squeakers & Squiddles
Pets of the Young Threes class, 5 months old
Squeakers and Squiddles live in an ‘open’ cage. This means that they are an
active and open ‘center’ in the classroom. Kids can help with many aspects of
their care—feeding, petting, and bathing. The class also talks about how you
treat animals respectfully and kindly. These sisters are new to preschool this
year. Squeakers (orange) is an abyssinian (lots of cowlicks) and Squiddles is
multi-colored. Can you guess how Squeakers got her name?
bits and pieces
Vision/Hearing Date Change:
We have moved our screening date to Monday,
October 8. These screenings are optional for 3 1/2
year olds and required for four year olds. Classes
participating will be Erin’s and Dee Dee’s.
Teresa Wohlers
Personnel
Michele Fenton
Publicity
Kari McAdams
Hospitality
Katie Kaighin
Hospitality
Andrew Leeper
Special Projects
Many Thanks To...
Germaine Curry for single-handedly rescuing
our garden! The garden plot suffered from little
attention during the summer preschool break and
she has planted new plants and watered regularly
since school started. Many thanks again for your
dedication to our garden.
With flu season coming...
We appreciate all that our families are doing to
help keep illnesses at bay. Just a friendly reminder
to have your child wash his/her hands upon arrival.
This simple act has a big impact on the spread of
germs. As a staff we are committed to maintaining
a clean and healthy environment.
Glenna Bruun
Personnel
Melanie Dow
Special Projects
Sumer Shelton
Special Projects
Have
a fun
and safe
Halloween!
O UR M IS S ION
The FUM Preschool strives to create an atmosphere of love and acceptance in which each
child can develop socially, emotionally, physically, spiritually, and intellectually.
Jason Black
Equipment
Laura Lee Daigle
Volunteer Coordinator
Sandy Pennington
Preschool Director
Lara Greene
Director of Children and
Family Ministries, FUMC