Creative Bulletin
October 2009
REMINDER! HAVE YOU SENT IN YOUR E-MAIL ADDRESS YET?
FALL-ING NOTES
As we begin to see more and more signs of fall, we will be talking about the changing of the leaves, cooler weather, scarecrows and, of course, Halloween. By the end of this month, we will have your home decorated with pumpkins, scarecrows, leaves, etc. Please, please...it is important to display these things even if they are not perfect!
UPCOMING EVENTS
The Super 4’s will be going to Butler’s Orchard on Friday October 9th (Permission slip on the back page). We will leave at 9:00 a.m. and return at approximately 12 noon. The children will have pretzels and bottled water as a snack. We will have lunch at school. Remember to have your child dress for the weather.
SUPER 4’s HOMEWORK
By now you may have seen your child’s homework folder. Homework is a way to reinforce what we have done at school. Each morning your child should place their completed homework in the folder and place in the “Homework Bin”. The teachers check it and give everyone who has done their work a sticker. Homework with a sticker is yours to keep at home
BACK TO SCHOOL NIGHT! Monday, October 12, from 7-9 p.m. That’s when Whetstone Community Center will host parents INSTEAD of children as we have Back to School night. It is very important to the children that parents come to see “their school” and we’ve put the time in the evening so working parents can attend. Please get a babysitter (the Center won’t hold parents AND children!) for the entire two hours, and come learn more about your child’s program and adjustment. The staff will not be able to discuss each individual child that evening, but you will be able to get an overview of our program, equipment and style.
PARTY! We will celebrate Fall with a party! Friday, October 30th the 4’s will have fun finding clues that lead to a treasure box filled with Halloween fun. The teachers will provide lunch (pizza, juice & cookies) you can leave your lunch box at home. Thursday, October 29th, the 3’s will play fall games and also have a treasure hunt. (No costumes please!)
NOTES:
*Please don’t send candy for lunch, snack or birthdays *If you have someone in the family who plays an instrument, ask if he/she would like to come and play for us in the class! *Please have your child use the bathroom before class. We are trying to avoid as many accidents as we can.
Please visit our web-site www.montgomeryvillage.com To view our calendar and newsletter, click the Recreation tab then Creative Playtime.
For information on this program, contact Jana Serlo at 301-948-0110, ext. 334. Whetstone Community Center 301-926-9428
Thank you for your continued support!
October 2009
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CLASS NOTES: You may want to check your child’s change of clothes and upgrade to long pants and a warm top now that the weather is getting cooler. We will continue talking about patterns. Ask your child (especially the 4s) about this. They should know these terms. We will be happy to warm up your child’s lunch in the microwave. Please have it microwave ready (in a microwave container not a plastic bag). Please don’t ask us to prepare food ( i.e. macaroni and cheese, TV dinners etc.) as we have up to ten items to heat each day. Don’t forget a napkin, spoon or fork if needed (our supply is limited). The 4's are working on writing the letters of the alphabet and listening to the sounds they make.
THE SCIENCE TABLE
Some experiments you can try with air and water are: 1) Blow up but do not tie a balloon. Submerge it in a tub half full of water and let the air go slowly, then faster. Talk about what you observed. Try to figure out why the balloon acted the way it did. 2) Fill the balloon half with water and half with air. Repeat the experiment and discussion. In addition, talk about similarities and differences between the two experiments. 3) Discuss things that sink and things that float and test them. Try predicting which will sink/float and then test the answer. If you really want to develop good science habits, record your results. 4) You may also wish to include objects which both sink and float, e.g., a washcloth flat will float, bunched up will sink. A plastic boat filled with water may float just below the surface.
FYI: Payments
Creative playtime staff are not permitted to accept payments! Please call or drop off your payment at the MVF office 301-948-0110.
STOP, DROP, AND ROLL
Talk with your children about how they should "Stop, Drop, and Roll" if their clothes catch on fire. Clear a large area in the room or take the children outside to a grassy area. Have the children start walking or running in place. At a given signal, have them stop what they are doing, drop to the floor or ground, and roll over and over until the pretend flames are out.
Special Thanks!
Thank you to Belle’s mom for making our wheatfree play dough for everyone! Due to allergies, this will be the type of play dough we will use from now on. Thank you to Ciara’s mom for bringing in Tommy the Painted Box Turtle to visit the 4’s. He was very active and a lot of fun!
Supplies, Supplies, Supplies
Dear Creative Playtime Parents, If you would like to donate any of the following items to enhance our program please feel free to do so. This is not mandatory and is strictly on a voluntary basis. Thank you for your support.
Ms. Hufnagel and Ms. Williams
Tissues Wax paper Disposable Cameras Plastic spoons
INCLEMENT WEATHER POLICY
If Montgomery County Public Schools are cancelled, the Foundation’s programs are cancelled. If school is delayed, morning programs (Creative Playtime 3’s and Super 4’s) will meet one hour late, i.e., at 10 a.m. instead of 9 a.m. If Montgomery County morning kindergarten and pre-school classes are cancelled, we will still have class. Classes currently in progress when schools are cancelled will be determined on a case by case basis, and you should call 301-948-0110, ext. 333 for information. DO NOT CALL WHETSTONE COMMUNITY CENTER because the teachers have their hands full. Listen to your radio – all of the local stations announce school closings.
OCTOBER READING
The following books are among those featured in our program in October: • • • • • Mousekin's Golden House by Edna Muller Big Pumpkin by Erica Silverman The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything by Linda Williams Go Away, Big Green Monster by Ed Emberley Pumpkin Soup by Helen Cooper
Good Night!
(Sung to “Good Night, Ladies”)
It is nighttime. It is nighttime. It is nighttime. When owls fly around. It is daytime. It is daytime. It is daytime. When owls go to sleep.
SONG PUMPKIN SONG Five little pumpkins sitting on a gate. The first one says, "My, it's getting late!" The second one says, "There are witches in the air. The third one says, "We don't care." The fourth one says, "Let's run and run and run," The fifth one says, "It's time for Halloween fun!" Ooooh, went the wind, Out went the lights, And five little pumpkins rolled out of sight!
The Friendly Scarecrow
(Sung to “Mary Had a Little Lamb””)
Scarecrow, scarecrow, there are crows On your head, on your nose, On your shoulders, On your toes. Please scare away those crows – boo! FRIENDLY GHOST
CRISSCRISS-CROSS CHANT Criss-Cross, Applesauce, Spiders crawling up your back. Cool breeze, tight squeeze, Now you’ve got the shivers! TRICK OR TREAT! Trick or treat, trick or treat, Give us something good to eat! Give us candy, give us cake! Ooooooo, I have a belly-ache! Five Firefighters
(Sung to Frere Jacques)
I am a friendly ghost, I am a friendly ghost, Watch me fly, Watch me fly. I can fly right through the air, See how all the people stare, Way up high, in the sky.
(Sung to “Five Little Ducks)
One firefighter(s) went out to spray Water on a flame one day. It was such an enormous fire, He called for another firefighter. Final Verse: Five firefighters went out to spray Water on a flame one day. They sprayed the water till the fire was out. Their work was done; we heard them shout! (Horray!)
Five Little Leaves Five little leaves, so happy and free, Hung from a branch of a maple tree. The wind came whistling all around, And one little leaf came tumbling down.
SUMMER, WINTER, SPRING, SUMMER, FALL
(Sung to: "This Old Man")
Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall, There are seasons, four in all. Weather changes, sun and rain and snow, Leaves fall down and flowers grow. Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall, There are seasons, four in all. Look outside and you will see Just what season it will be!
JACKJACK-O-LANTERN SONG Jack-o-lantern, Jack-o-lantern You are such a funny sight As you sit there in the window Looking out at the night. You were once an orange pumpkin, Growing on a sturdy vine. Now you are a jack-o-lantern, See the candle light shine.
THE ACORN SONG
Directions: Children sit in a group or circle and sing the song together. After the word “nut”, children lightly knock on their own heads twice.
I’m a little acorn round, lying on the cold cold ground. Everybody steps on me, that is why I’m cracked you see. I’m a nut (knock, knock) I’m a nut (knock, knock) I’m a nut (knock, knock) I’m nutty.