Up Close apologizes for the error with the Desert Rose Preschool at Las Sendas submission in last month’s issue. Rather than the appropriate April story, the February 2010 story was inadvertently printed. The following is a combined submission for April and May.
March was a very busy month. We celebrated the birthday of Dr. Seuss with green eggs and ham for a snack. We read lots of Dr. Seuss books every day. We also celebrated St. Patrick’s Day. All the children wore green, and they made magic potions and green art projects.
The children are learning the Zoo-phonics and lots of math. They also are learning to write their names correctly, and they know how to write numbers and letters. We are very proud of our students’ progress in getting them ready for kindergarten. We have art and music every day and lots of movement and fun time with all our classmates.
Celebration of Spring and Easter
In April, we learned about spring, the birth of birds, bugs, flowers and the change of weather. Earth Day was part of the month’s celebration. We learned to keep our earth clean and beautiful. Desert Rose participated in the annual ladybug release celebration with lots of fun things to do.
We celebrated our ninth annual Easter Egg Hunt. The children made lots of Easter decorations. They enjoyed the Easter hunt with new Easter bags to collect all the eggs and treats. Some of the children in our 4-year-old and pre-k class are starting to read. The children take books home to read to their parents and bring them back for new ones. They are actually reading! I am so very proud of them!
Registration
Registration is ongoing until we reach the right class size for Desert Rose Preschool at Las Sendas. We have lots of returning students for summer and fall. It is not too late to register for both fall and summer. We will have registration ongoing until May. If you are interested, please register at the Trailhead office with a $25 registration fee. You can pick any day of the week, half time or full time.
We also are offering the Lunch Bunch for those who want to bring their lunch and stay an extra hour and 30 minutes. This gives them extra time to be at school and learn to eat with their friends. So, for the half time, for children who stay for lunch, there will be an extra Lunch Bunch fee depending on how many days they stay. (For example, two days a week will be an extra $25; four or more days will be an extra $50.)
Everyone who registers will receive a phone call to verify all the information and make sure the times and days are correct. Follow-up post cards will be mailed to the children welcoming them to Desert Rose. If you have any questions or concerns about registration, please call me at (480) 654-4223, or send me an e-mail at Jbuttitta@cox.net.
Summer Session
The summer session will start on June 13 and run through Aug. 5. The session will run five days a week for eight weeks. You could choose from half day, full day and Lunch Bunch. You also have a choice of days to attend, two, three, four or five days a week.
I will accept older siblings for the summer, with an age-appropriated program being offered.
Preschool for the fall will start on Aug. 22.
Graduation and Celebration
Please mark your calendar for our big pre-k graduation and last day celebration. The day will include the presentation of certificates of completion for all classes on May 27.
Easy ways to teach numbers
Children love to count, and some enter school knowing how to count from 1 to 10. Others can count from 1 to 100. In the stores, there are stunningly clever books, toys and games designed to teach children to count, but there also are hundreds of objects in your own home, which will do the job.
Some children even know how to do simple addition and subtraction when they enter kindergarten. These are worthy achievements, but sometimes they can cause misunderstanding. For example, a mother asked that since her daughter knew how to count, couldn’t she begin to learn how to add. The answer is important.
Counting by itself is simply memorization. To add or subtract or to use numbers in playing a game, a child must know what the number represents. Try this on your child. “Katie, would you please bring me five spoons from the drawer?” If Katie, without help, brings five spoons, it’s fair to say she understands what five means. If she brings four, six or seven spoons, she does not know the number five.
In order to do arithmetic, children must understand what the numbers mean. Without much effort, there are dozens of times during the day when you can develop your child’s number concepts. Use these types of statements and questions:
• You may take three stickers.
• Count the dots on the dice, and then move your game piece the same number of spaces.
• How many carrots are on this plate?
Typical Behavior of 3- and 4-year-olds
Parents need to understand the fact each child is unique, and not all children behave alike. Some children reach the customary stages of development at the appropriate time, while others may experience them sooner or much later. The following section describes some of the typical behaviors a 3- and 4-year-old might exhibit. You may observe that your child exhibits some, all or none of these behaviors.
Parents can help their children and themselves survive the behavior stage of 3- and 4-year-olds by following these suggestions:
• Don’t expect your child to always behave nicely or for daily routines to go smoothly. Remember, even though she may be difficult at times, your child is not your enemy.
• Avoid criticizing your child for thumb-sucking or for constantly cuddling with her security blanket.
• Understand it is normal for your child to stumble, tremble, twitch and stutter at this age. Try not to focus much attention on these behaviors.
• Avoid correcting your child’s speech. Just repeat an incorrect word or sentence in the correct form.
• Don’t be surprised if your child cooperates with the preschool teacher or babysitter and not with you. Many children at this age do best with someone other than their parents.