October 2016

We Are "Fall"-ing Into Place! 

As I walked through the halls this morning I noticed all the colour appearing on our bulletin boards! Preschool is officially "up and running" when we see the artwork starting to appear around the school. Take a walk around and check them all out! 

Get excited when you ask your child about their artwork they bring home. Ask open ended questions like "Wow! Look at all those colours! Which are the colours you like best?" or "You've done a lot of work on this picture. Tell me about it. What part did you paint first?". Start a discussion. If you ask yes or no questions, you will usually only get a yes or no answer. 

*TIP: After you have showcased your child's art at home by hanging it on the refrigerator (or wherever it is you hang it), take a photo of it, and put the photo into an Art Album. Saving all your child's artwork takes up a lot of space (I have 3 suitcases full of my boys' artwork and they are 24 and 20 years old!!). An Art Album takes up much less space and your child will have a wonderful keepsake.

Look What Happened at Preschool Last Month:

DISCOVERY TWOS (Class 201 & 202)

Our youngest members of St.Catherine's Preschool are beginning to settle in nicely to the program.  Most are happy to stretch their boundaries.  A few still need a little more time to feel secure with Mom and Dad leaving.  Such is the nature of two year olds.  Often this is their first experience away from family.  They love to explore their surroundings, but need to still stay close to their primary base of support and trust.  Separation anxiety is quite strong at this stage, but often it is only the "good-bye" that is difficult.  For this reason we encourage you to make your "good-byes" short and reassuring.

We setup the rooms in a way that facilitates exploration and discovery through play.  A great deal of time is spent exploring, pushing, pulling,filling, dumping and touching.  Toddlers feel secure in environments that are familiar and for this reason you may see the same toys and equipment out for several weeks.  What we will do is present these familiar toys in different setups (e.g adding a set of wooden blocks to the cars and garage.

Two's love painting, splashing in the water table, housekeeping, singing and dancing at circle time.  Although play tends to be more solitary, they enjoy being in each other's company, playing side by side. We are still waiting for a few more family photos.  Children love to look at these pictures especially if they are missing mom or dad.  Please encourage your child to walk up and down the stairs holding onto the railing when being brought to or leaving the preschool. 

Check the white board outside the classroom for a synopsis of our day and please feel free to talk to us if you have any questions or concerns.

We look forward to an exciting year- a year of tremendous growth in confidence and abilities.  We hope that this first group experience will be an enjoyable and memorable one for both you and your child.

Vibha, Danielle, Arsi, Marion, Susan & Stephanie

Class 301:

A big welcome to our returning and new families! We are looking forward to getting to know you and your little ones.September was a super busy month; we had a lot to learn about sharing, caring, taking turns, and we all know that those are not easy concepts when you are in a 3's class. 

The children are beginning to adjust well to the classroom rules, the daily routines and to their friends and teachers.We spent time practicing each other's names by playing games and singing name songs at circle time. We had stories on families, talked about seasonal changes and Autumn, did art with leaves, and introduced the children to the wonders of shaking tons of sparkles on massive layers of glue!

We will continue with Fall explorations, then moving right into magical Halloween stories, rhymes and 'spooky' art projects.

Class 302:

A warm welcome to our returning and new St. Catherine's families!Our first month of preschool found us very busy making new friendships and renewing old ones. Through name games and songs we have become acquainted with each other at circle time. We have been learning about ourselves through stories, songs and rhymes to help build confidence, independence and a positive attitude towards each other.

We also explored the sights and smells of fall by viewing leaves that change colour, looking at a giant sunflower, sorting acorns and chestnuts, creating art pieces with bright paints.We were both very happy and amazed to witness a very relaxed, calm, upbeat conversation between the children sharing stories on unicorns and rainbows as they all had their expert opinions on the subjects while having snack. We are so fortunate to be with this group of little people!

We will focus on Autumn and Thanksgiving in the upcoming week before moving on to the well loved Halloween theme filled with pumpkins, cats, witches and other magical creatures.

 Karen and Gabi

Class 304:

It has been a very busy first month. Gradual entry was a success. The children have settled in very nicely into the classroom. They are getting familiar with the routine and getting to know the children in the classroom. 

For the first month we focused on talking about friends. We talked about how we play with our friends at preschool and what it means to be a good friend. We also talked about our rule at preschool which is no one gets hurt. At circle we read stories and sang songs about friendship. For art we painted friendship links, worked together as a class to make a hand print collage, and painted fall leaves. 

Next month we will be exploring thanksgiving and Halloween. 

Stephanie and Gabi 

Class 401:

September seemed to zoom by so quickly. It was a great month getting to know all of the children and familiarizing them with the daily routine at preschool. It was nice seeing the familiar faces and the new faces as they walked into the classroom. We are getting to know the children better as the days go on and they are getting to know the other children in the classroom. 

For the first month we talked about our one rule at preschool which is no one gets hurt. We made a poster with out hand prints on it so that we could have it up in our classroom to remind us of the rule. 

Then we talked about our families and learned more about each person in the classroom. For art we made self portraits and drew the people in our families. 

One week we focused on Johnny Appleseed. We talked about who he is and why we sing his song at grace. We decorated apples at the art table and one day the children helped cut some apples to make applesauce. 

We also talked about Echo, our Orca Whale that we adopted from the Vancouver aquarium. Each week one child will have a turn to take him home. 

Next month will be all about thanksgiving and Halloween. 

Stephanie and Susan 

Class 402:

What a great start to the beginning of the new preschool year. It was awesome to meet some new faces and welcome back some familiar ones. Everyone has settled in quickly. 

We spent the first few weeks getting reacquainted with each other and our number one rule – No One Gets Hurt. We read the book “Swimmy” by Leo Lionni and learnt how to work as a team, working together. We used a mixture of colours and shapes to make our ‘own members of the team`. We also spent some time talking about sharing with our friends and learning our friend’s names.

We explored “Me, Myself and I” and it was interesting to see how the children pictured themselves. We used felts to make our own self portraits and then decorated ‘ourselves’ with materials and hair.  We also draw our own family in our own houses. We read stories “I like Myself" & "Families are Different”. We played lots of games so we can also learn our friend’s names.

Last week we looked into the story of ‘Goldilocks and the 3 Bears’.  We read the story, listen to a felt story, watched a movie, and listen to many different adaptions of the story. For example, “Goldie Rocks, Tackilocks, Afrotina and the 3 Bears and A New Chair for Baby Bear”.  We then matched small, medium and large bears, cut out our own bowls and decorated it with porridge and of course we made ‘oatmeal muffins’.  Yum.

We have a fun October planned and are looking forward to having some more fun.  If you have any questions, please feel free to ask us.  We also want to remind you to pack and extra set of clothes as sometimes we do get messy.  We look forward to the year ahead.  Danielle, Arsi & Sousan.

Class 403:

Wow we can't believe how quickly September passed us by. It was a busy first month with gradual entry. It went very smoothly and the children have settled in now with the daily routine. They are all getting to know the other children in the class and the teachers. 

For the first month we talked about our one rule at preschool which is no one gets hurt. We made a poster with out hand prints on it so that we could have it up in our classroom to remind us of the rule. 

Then we talked about friendship. We talked about how to be a good friend at circle time and what that looks like in the classroom. For art we worked together and did a lot of collaborative pieces. 

One week we focused on Johnny Appleseed. We talked about who he is and why we sing his song at grace. We decorated apples at the art table and one day the children helped cut some apples to make applesauce. 

We also talked about Echo, our Orca Whale that we adopted from the Vancouver Aquarium. Each week one child will have a turn to take him home. 

Next month will be all about Thanksgiving and Halloween. 

Stephanie, Estelle, Gabi, Karen, and Sousan 

From The Resource Office:

Welcome everyone to a new school year.  I have been visiting all the classrooms and helping with gradual entry.  Over the years I have found that when dropping off your child a quick hug and kiss goodbye is the best way and although they may start to cry it is usually short lived as children “live in the moment”.  They can be easily distracted by a toy or a song and then are ready to play.  

The 2s are settling into their little routines: lining up, going upstairs to the playground/gym, washing hands, having snack and sitting at circle time.  They love to sit on their little mats and sing songs and listen to short stories.  They will be working on their verbal and social skills throughout the year.  

The 3s will be working on their fine motor skills (pincher grasp, cutting with scissors, Lego, puzzles, etc.) and their gross motor skills (riding bikes, running and climbing).  

The 4s will be developing their literacy skills through chants, rhymes and sequencing games and their numeracy skills through matching and sorting games. 

If you have any questions or concerns about your child’s development please talk with the teachers or come by my office to chat.  There are some very good resources in our Parent Resource Library.

Marion

DATES TO REMEMBER:

Fri. October 7th - Scholastic Orders Due
Mon. October 10th - Thanksgiving: No Preschool
Sun. October 16th - Messy Harvest
Fri. October 21st - Elmer The Safety Elephant
Thu. October 27th - Halloween Party (202/302)
Fri. October 28th - Halloween Party (402/304)
Mon. October 31st - Halloween Party (201/301/401/403)

Don't forget to stop by Cobs Breads in the Village and mention our preschool before they ring you up! We get 5% of all sales!!

Tina Spencer, Director
St. Catherine's Childcare Society

September 2016

WELCOME FAMILIES!!

It's hard to believe that we are already starting a new school year AND that we are already 3 weeks in to it!! We spent the summer relaxing and then cleaning the preschool to get it ready for the first day! (THANKS MELBA!!)

We are excited to be back and the teachers are ready to have some fun! The teachers were in the day after Labour Day setting up their classrooms and getting prepared for Gradual Entry.
Remember, separation anxiety and tears are common during gradual entry (sometimes for both parent and child!!) but calm, consistent, quick goodbyes will help your child to work through this process quickly and with the help & reassurance of our experienced and caring teachers, your child will continue to build their confidence and grow to be happy and social children.

If you have any concerns during the Gradual Entry Process or at any time throughout the year, please do not hesitate to speak to your teachers, Marion or myself.

And we hope to see you at the AGM on Thursday, September 22nd at 6:30 pm. CHRIS BURT will be our special guest speaker. Check out his website at www.christopherburt.net. You will meet all the staff and board members and will have a chance to visit and speak with the teachers in one of our classrooms that we will have set up. You can come to this at 6:15 pm. Childminding is available. Please contact the office to sign up.

Thank you for choosing St. Catherine's as your child's preschool. We are able to offer great programs loaded with fabulous materials and special guests because of our FUNDRAISING. You do not have to participate in all our fundraisers but we kindly ask that you choose one or two throughout the year to help support our Society.

Please check your Year At A Glance that was in your Info Package your received on the first day for special events and dates that are coming up. It is also posted on your child's class bulletin board. Take a photo of it so you will have it with you when you need it!!

Word of Mouth is our best form of advertising so please spread the word!! Also, please like us on Facebook and Google and give us a good rating online when you are able so our name gets out there!! Thanks in advance!


UPCOMING EVENTS
Sept. 22 - AGM/Meet the Teachers/Chris Burt
Oct. 10 - Thanksgiving-No Preschool
Oct 21 - Elmer the Safety Elephant

The office is always open so come on by for a visit or if you have any questions, comments or concerns.

Yours truly,
Tina Spencer,
Director
St. Catherine's Childcare Society
604-980-1326

So long, Farewell, Auf Wiedersehen, Goodbye! May/June 2016

A note from Jen McEneany - Coordinator

With only a short time left at preschool we are looking forward to parties, picnics and 4's graduation celebrations! Last week our 3's and 4's participated in science workshops through High Touch High Tech Science and it was fun to observe all the children being so engaged in their activities - maybe our teachers should all wear white lab coats to preschool as that seemed to keep all the children mesmerized!

Thank you to everyone who made an order through The Card Project. We raised close to $500 and I know everyone I spoke to was delighted with their order! A special thank you to Jess Franco for coordinating this fundraiser!

Don't forget to pick up your tickets for the Parent Social happening on Friday June 17th at 7pm. A huge thank you to our parent board members Leslie Black, Hannah Sinclair and Jess Franco for all their hard work and commitment to the board as well as putting many hours of their own time into organizing this parent social and fundraiser. Thanks also to Connaught the developers who sponsored this event. Tickets are available through the office for $25 and include appetizers and 1 drink.

Fundraising is very important to non-profit societies as all the money we make goes to running our preschool and every dollar counts. We apply for various grants throughout the year and if we are awarded them we put them towards specific projects such as getting a sump pump system in our Treehouse classroom sink or towards helping families with children who have special needs, to attend our summer program. The fundraising we do ourselves has allowed us to replace our office computers, replace all the gym mats and buy a whole lot of new gym games, 2 light tables as well as many other fun classroom materials. As we move forward with fundraising we plan to revamp our playground!

From all of us here at St. Catherine's Preschool, we wish you all a wonderful, fun and relaxing summer with your little ones! Get outside, read, laugh, play and dance with them because the best memories are made not bought. 

A note from Marion Porter - Developmental Resource Educator

It has been another great year with lots of laughter and learning through play. All the children have demonstrated that they are ready for new challenges.

The 2's have begun to make connections with their peers and we can now hear some conversations emerging that are delightful to listen to. Many of them have been successful with toilet training while others are working on being ready for the 3's.

The 3's have learnt so much this year about sharing, using their words and developing listening skills, especially at circle time. For some of the children, going into the 4's means they will coming to preschool more often. In the 4's the children will learn to become more independent with dressing and self-help skills. There will be lots of opportunities for the children to develop their kindergarten readiness skills.

The 4's are moving onto Kindergarten. Parents can help with this transition by:

Discovery 2's art!

• Talking with your child about the impending changes.
• Helping your child acquire many self-help skills.
•  Encouraging your child to ask for help when needed.
• Allowing your child to practice playing and working independently.
• Teaching your child to follow directions.
• Helping your child learn his/her full name, address and phone number.

I want to wish everyone a great, sunny summer. I am looking forward to working with Cheryl, Stephanie, Sousan and Sali at this year’s Summer Program. There are still a couple of afternoon spots available. Wishing the grads best of luck and as usual I never say goodbye, but see you in the “Village”.

Important upcoming dates:

Fri June 17 - 4's Graduation! 10:30am 401 12:00pm 402  1:45pm 403.
Fri June 17 - Final day of classes.
Fri June 17 - Parent Social/Fundraiser!
Mon/Tues June 20/21 - Picnics.
Wed/Thurs Sept 7/8 - Gradual entry begins.

For general information about our programs please contact Jen or Tina:

Tel: 604-980-1326

Fax: 604-982-3277
Email: stcpre@telus.net
Website: www.stcatherinespreschool.com
Please "LIKE" our facebook page "St. Catherine's Child Care Society" and take a moment to rate our preschool. Thank you!

A note from the Discovery 2's - Vibha, Susan, Arsi, Karen, Danielle, Stephanie, Sali

It is hard to believe that our time with the children has almost come to an end. We have watched them grow from '"Little Two's" into independent "Big Three's". The children have spent the year playing, exploring and learning about each other and themselves.

During this busy month we looked into Summer Fruit. We baked Blueberry Muffins with Arsi in 201 and made fruit Salad with Sali in 202. We used stencils to make fruit prints and used apples to make our own prints. We read stories about Apples, Oranges and Grapes. We sang the song "I like to eat, Apples and Banana's".  We played a memory game with Summer fruit and tried to guess which one was missing...??

Of course we were very, very busy making something very special for our dads for Father's Day!

Over the last few weeks we have been very busy expanding our world by talking about "Under the Sea" and all the wonderful things associated with this. We did this by using a salad spinner to decorate starfish and some of us made our own Paper bag Octopus'. Some of us made Paper Plate Aquariums using sand and cellophane. We will also be experimenting with colours, as we mix them together on diffusing paper to make an unique pattern. For Circle we sang "Baby Beluga", "Slippery Fish" and rhyming songs about the Sea. We read the stories "The Pout- Pout Fish", "Clumsy Crab", "Fidgety Fish" and a story about a Bear going to the Beach. We also played an 'Under the Sea' Memory Game.

We will also have a party on our last day...Thank you in advance to parents for providing yummy treats!

As this is our last newsletter, we just wanted to say a very big thank you to all our parents and children. It has been such a pleasure teaching your children this year and we look forward to watching them grow over the next two years in the 3's and 4's. It is nice not to have to say goodbye to those who are staying. For those who are moving on, we wish you well where ever you go! Have a safe and wonderful summer!

 If you have any questions please feel free to speak to any of us.

A note from the Treehouse room class 301 - Estelle and Gabi

It's hard to believe that we are nearing the end of the school year. It seems like only yesterday that we met some great young ladies and gentlemen for the first time, and for many of our little ones class 301 was the very first group setting they had experienced.They have all grown so much, not just physically, but more so socially and emotionally, they have become quite independent in almost everything they do in a day at preschool.

We really enjoyed learning about spring and the many new lives it brings, and the children were amazed to see the caterpillars in the classroom. They remembered the life cycle of the butterflies from stories and games, and they are fascinated to observe the process with their own eyes! 

From flying high we moved right into the deepest parts of the oceans to 'meet' some amazing creatures. We were busy creating group projects for backgrounds, mixing different shades of blues, greens,black and white, discussing what makes colours appear lighter or darker. The children enjoyed making sea creatures, and of course, the highlight of finishing up the projects was shaking a few pounds of sparkles on to them (some of those you will find in your washer, dryer, on your car seats, on your sofa - sorry!!). Group activities at circle included a 'feed the shark' game (that they absolutely loved!), and a science experiment to see what floats and what sinks, and how the same objects float differently in highly concentrated salty water. 

Speaking of science, we had our science workshop to learn about germs and how important it is to wash hands properly. We are growing germs collected from the floor and from the wall in a petri dish! 

For the next two weeks we will be doing what we have been enjoying the most: being preschoolers by sharing our favourite stories, silly songs, playing new and old games. The children are welcome to bring in books they would like to share with their friends! 


Thank you for sharing your wonderful children with us. We both have some great memories with each and every one of them, it was an honour to be their teachers. We will see some of you in September, and for the families we won't, we wish you all the best, enjoy these precious years with your little ones. With love, we wish you all a safe and healthy summer!

A note form the Treehouse room class 302 - Susan and Gabi

What a wonderful year we have had in class 302! We have watched our little group grow in confidence over the months, form friendships and learn lots. We have spent the last few weeks turning our classroom into an "underwater playground" and have really enjoyed playing lots of sea-life themed games, singing songs and reading stories all about the ocean.

This month we also enjoyed having our science workshop "Colour Mania"! We experimented with mixing colours together using pipettes and watching colours travel across diffusing paper strips and meet in the middle.

We are lucky that we have an aquarium set-up in our classroom containing caterpillars (well they used to be!!) We are now watching their transformation from tiny caterpillars to HUGE caterpillars and now to chrysalis and very soon we will (hopefully) see them emerge as beautiful butterflies ready to be released into the gardens around the preschool! 

We are looking forward to seeing all our families at the picnics on Tuesday June 21st and celebrating the beginning of summer. We wish everyone a great summer and we look forward to having your children return as BIG 4's!

A note from the Treehouse room class 304 - Stephanie, Gabi, Sousan, 

This has been a great year with this group of children. We have done so many interesting and fun things throughout the school year. It has been such a joy being with your children and watching them form relationships with one another. They have built on many of their skills and have developed so many new ones.

For the month of May we explored the theme of everything that's under the sea. Each time at circle we would talk about a different sea creature and then for art we would create it. We decorated octopuses with tissue paper, sea stars with glitter, whales with paint, sea horses with sequins, paper plate jellyfish, hand-print crabs, and paper plate sea turtles with puffy paint.

We had a science workshop called colour mania come to our classroom. We had the chance to experiment with different colours and then mixed our own colours together to see what would happen.

Next we will be working on a special surprise for our dads.

We wish all of our families a wonderful summer and look forward to seeing you back for the 4's in September!

A note from the Sunflower room class 401 - Sali, Stephanie, Karen, Susan

It is amazing how fast this year has gone by. We had an awesome group of children and it was such a pleasure being with them each day. It is going to be tough to see them leave but they are definitely ready to move onto the next chapter in their lives. They have come so far since the beginning of the year; the skills they have obtained and the friendships that they have formed will set them up for a great experience in Kindergarten.

Recently we noticed that the children were very interested in magnets when we put them out one day. They were curious about which things would stick to them and why it was that one end repels while the other end of a magnet draws things closer. By observing them and hearing their questions we decided to spend two weeks doing science experiments and talking about magnets. The children really enjoyed doing this and finding out the answers to their questions.

Next we moved onto talking about Hawaii. At circle time we looked at a globe to see where Hawaii was and how far it is from where we live. We also talked about how Hawaiian islands were formed by volcanoes and talked about the different volcanoes that are still in Hawaii now; which ones are dormant and which ones are active. For art we made flower leis, tie-dyed t-shirts, and baked gluten free coconut cookies. To end things off we had a luau. It was so much fun learning how to do the hula dance and doing the limbo to some Hawaiian music.

We also had a science workshop all about being botanists. The children created their own greenhouse in a Ziploc bag and they learned about leaves.

Next we will be working on a special surprise for our dads and getting ready for graduation! We look forward to celebrating this special time with all our families!

Gluten free coconut cookies (2 dozen)

1/2 cup melted coconut oil

1/2 cup light brown sugar

1 egg

2 cups oats

1 1/2 cups sweetened coconut flakes

Pre-heat oven to 325 degrees.

Stir coconut oil, sugar, and egg until smooth.

Add the oats and stir until well combined.

Stir in coconut flakes.

Scoop 2 tbsp portions onto parchment paper lined sheet.

Bake for 12 minutes.

Let cool for 10 minutes before removing and putting on a wire rack.

We wish all our families a wonderful summer break, we will miss those of you who are moving on and for those of you who will be back next year - we will see you in September!

A note from the Sunflower/Rainbow room class 402 - Arsi, Danielle, Sousan

It’s that time of year were we wrap things up and get ready for graduation! Wow!

The month of May we spent focusing on community helpers. We began looking at grocery stores and how they help the community by providing us with important things like food. We turned our house corner into the “Sunflower Supermarket” and the children enjoyed shopping. 
During circle we talked about how farmers help the community too by growing fruit, vegetables and even meat to bring to the grocers. We baked chocolate chip cookies because we learned bakers help by baking breads, cakes, and many other delicious products.

For art we cut out shopping carts and glued our favorite items which we see when we go to the grocery store. We also acted out different community helpers like a post person, a hairdresser, a janitor, firefighter and a few more. The children were very interested in this topic so we continued next with a dentist. We looked at how important dental hygiene was and what different tools we can use to keep our teeth clean. We used these tools, toothbrush, floss, mouthwash, floss stick, to play a “What’s missing?” guessing game. For art, we cut out a big yellow tooth, glued it, and used a toothbrush to “clean” it white. No cavities! 

Our next community helpers were construction people. We learned how they need blueprints to begin projects and we even got to look at some real blueprints. Also, we learned that the foreman is the boss at a construction site. We read various books that showed us the safety gear that the crew wear like hard hats and safety boots. Furthermore, we took a small excursion to the edge of our parking lot to see the construction site across the street. We saw a big excavator and the children were excited to see a real site.There are definitely many trucks that also enter a construction site and we learned about those as well. The most exciting part was when the children used real hammer and nails to build their own wooden sculptures. Since the children were still very interested with community helpers, we also had 2 very special guests visit us to tell us a bit more about their profession. 

Our first guest was Dr. Sharlene (Isla’s mom) who is a family doctor. She came in and talked to the children about what she does as a doctor and also brought some of her very important doctor kit tools such as a stethoscope and otoscope. The children asked questions and also shared their stories of being at the doctor’s office.

Our last visitor was Constable Rockhill and boy were the kids delighted!! They had many questions to ask him!! He talked to us about street safety, stranger danger, and showed us his uniform and gear. It was such a great experience!


We have noticed the children really taking a liking to dot to dot number puzzles.They
have made it a real social experience as they talk to each other while practicing their
numbers, hand-eye coordination, and fine motor skills by printing their names and
colouring.
We have enjoyed this year very much and watched the children learn and grow right
before our eyes. We wish them all a fantastic summer and a great school year ahead! We look forward to celebrating this special time at our graduation ceremony on June 17th.

To finish off the year, we will be looking at fossils, volcanoes, and Father’s Day.

A note from the Treehouse room class 403 - Estelle, Stephanie, Gabi, Karen, Sousan

We can't believe the year is coming to an end. We have had such a great year with this group of children. It is going to be hard to say goodbye. They have come together so well and have built so many friendships. They are all so ready for kindergarten and the new challenges that come with it.

For the month of May we started off talking about space for the first couple of weeks. We sang planet songs at circle and talked about special characteristics that each planet has. For art we made rocket ships out of paper towel rolls, made craters on the moon by using paint and a balloon, and we created our very own constellations and named them.

Then it was on to talking about Hawaii. We looked at a globe and found where Hawaii was and how far is it from where we live. We talked about how the Hawaiian islands were formed by volcanoes. We did a science experiment and saw what happens when a volcano erupts. Then we created our own volcanoes by drawing out and cutting up the volcano and then dripping foamy lava from the top. We also made leis and tie-dyed t-shirts. Then to end things off we had a luau. It was so much fun learning how to do the hula dance and the limbo!

A special visitor came to our preschool and taught us all about being geologists. We each had our own pans that we had to search for different types of minerals in. It was really interesting learning the different names of the minerals and seeing what they look like.

Next we will be working on a special surprise for our dads and getting ready for graduation. We are looking forward to celebrating this special time at the ceremony on June 17th! We wish all of our families a wonderful, relaxing summer!

HAVE A WONDERFUL SUMMER BREAK! 

Fun in the sun! - April 2016

A note from Jen McEneany - Coordinator

We have been busy over the last month with the 3's and 4's having their Easter Services and a special tea for all the families up in the gym. We hope that you all enjoyed seeing your children performing - they worked very hard and we are so proud of them! April was also Summer Program Registration - as always the spots filled very fast - at this point we have 4 spots remaining in the first week, July 4-7 (afternoons 1-4pm) and 1 space available in our final week, July 25-28 (afternoons 1-4pm). Something else we enjoyed this month was having Sportball come and do a session with each of our 3's and 4's classes - this was a huge hit with both children and teachers!

Jeans Day!!!

Over the last few days you should have received a greeting card in your child's cubby depicting their own artwork on the front. Orders can be made online as explained in the email I sent out. We have examples of the sketch books and notebooks in the office, so please pop by and check those out! The preschool receives 25% of all profits, so not only do you receive a beautiful and personal product  - you are benefiting the preschool as well!

As we head into May and June there are a few important dates coming up, particularly for our 4's who will be graduating on Friday June 17th - more info to follow! Please make sure to check your emails and the communication boards outside your child's classroom for information regarding events. Thank you!

Important upcoming dates:

Wed/Thurs May 18/19 - Music Open Houses - 3's and 4's only.
Mon May 23 - Victoria Day - PRESCHOOL CLOSED.
Thurs May 26 - Messy Church.
Tues May 31 - Science Workshops - Classes 302/304.
Tues May 31 - Final Scholastic orders due.
Fri June 3 - Science Workshops - Classes 301/401/402/403.
Thurs June 16 - Messy Church.
Fri June 17 - 4's Graduation!
Fri June 17 - Final day of classes.
Fri June 17 - Parent Social/Fundraiser!
Mon/Tues June 20/21 - Picnics.

For general information about our programs please contact Jen or Tina:

Tel: 604-980-1326

Fax: 604-982-3277
Email: stcpre@telus.net
Website: www.stcatherinespreschool.com
Please "LIKE" our facebook page "St. Catherine's Child Care Society" and take a moment to rate our preschool. Thank you!

A note from Marion Porter - Developmental Resource Educator

Play enhances feelings of acceptance of differences, increases empathy, compassion and sharing. Play-dates are very important, especially for the 4s, as they head off to Kindergarten. By now you most likely know which school your child will be attending and the teachers have posted a sheet outside their rooms so you will be able to see which children will be going to your school. It is always easier to go to a new environment with someone you know, so plan some play dates before and during the summer months and visit the school playground. Providing children with new activities which provide a bit of a challenge, will help them become comfortable with new situations and develop confidence in their ability to be successful.

Jeans day!

With the nicer weather comes lots of opportunities to get out and enjoy the sunshine and longer days. Visits to parks, play grounds and beaches are great times to learn about road safety and staying in sight of Moms and Dads. Take time to get out of the car and walk to the park – practice the rules of holding hands with an adult to cross the road or while walking through a parking lot. Teach children to Stop, Look and Listen while standing safely on the sidewalk while waiting to cross. Look both ways and proceed when there are no cars or all cars have stopped in all the lanes to let you cross. We walk across in the crosswalk straight to the other side. Teach your child how the crossing signals work and what each stage means.  

It can be a little crazy in a crowded playground with all the children running around. With younger children I like a playground like Princess Park which is completely fenced. Some of the bigger parks like John Lawson and Mahon are a little more challenging to keep track of the little ones. You can put a brightly coloured T-shirt or hat on your child so you can spot them quickly. Pre-load your child with your expectations of them, where they can play  and give them a 5 or 10 minute warning before it is time to leave. Follow through with your expectation of when it is time to leave and praise them when they respond to your requests.  Children like routines and you can have an outing routine which they can learn and follow.  Allowing them to be part of the process will teach them responsibility. They can get their beach toys, sun hats, towels and sandals together in a big bag. So have a great time and enjoy your outings this Spring!

A note from the Discovery 2's - Danielle, Vibha, Arsi, Karen, Stephanie, Susan

For the month of April we focused on colours. At circle we read the story 'Little Blue and Little Yellow.' The children really enjoyed seeing what happens when the two colours are mixed together. Then for art we mixed two primary colours together and finger painted with them to make a new colour. We listened to the felt story 'Brown Bear, Brown Bear' and the children joined in to say the colours of each animal.

For art we made a colourful tissue circle collage, foam shapes collage, colourful hand-print balloons, and stamped different coloured shapes.

For one week, we celebrated jeans week. We decorated jeans that were cut out from denim. Thank you for all the donations that will be going to B.C. Children's Hospital.

We also spent a lot of time making a very special gift for a very special person; our mom!

If you have any questions or concerns please feel free to speak to any of the teachers. 

A note from the Treehouse Room Class 301 - Estelle and Gabi

Hello Everyone. Time is flying by and I can’t believe another month has gone by so quickly.
This month our theme was spring and Mother’s Day. 

The children have enjoyed the flower shop in the home corner. For art the children made butterflies, carrots and a caterpillar (a group project). Thank you to all the parents for bringing in recyclable materials for the art center. The children also enjoyed exploring with paint and different mediums such as string and plastic cards to paint with.

For circle we played some games such as, "guess the sound" and different memory games. The children also enjoyed movement songs such as 'Head and Shoulders' in English and French.

Sportball was a big hit and hopefully this is something we can do again next year.

We have noticed the children are really starting to form friendships in the class and play group games together, such a change from the beginning of the year.

As the weather gets nicer we will spend more time outside on certain days. Please remember to send a light jacket and hat. Runners or closed toe shoes are better because of the bark mulch outside. Thank you!

A note from the Treehouse Room Class 302 - Susan and Gabi

We have been busy little bees in class 302 over the past month! First we had our Easter Services and a special tea afterwards - everyone worked hard and sang beautifully up in the church. Next we started work on our art pieces for The Card Project - we hope you enjoy seeing your little one's art turned into greetings cards! Something else we worked on was a special surprise for our mommy for Mother's Day this Sunday! We hope you like it! Lastly we had a great time having a session of Sportball in the gym as we LOVE to move our bodies!

With the weather being so warm and sunny we have really enjoyed being outside and the social play has just blossomed out there with lots of conversation between friends and imaginative games with complex rules!!

As we move into our final weeks of preschool we will be learning about oceans and sea life.

A note from the Treehouse Room Class 304 - Stephanie, Gabi and Sousan

What beautiful weather we have been getting! It is so nice to be outside and enjoying the sunshine. The Easter services were a huge success. Rachel did a wonderful job with all the songs and the children were great singers. It is always nice having the tea in the gym afterwards and getting to mingle with the families!

We did a lot of discussion about planting this month. We talked about different plants and flowers that we saw growing everywhere. One of the most popular plants were sunflowers. The children really liked them because of how big they get and of their colour.

For one week we decorated jeans out of denim. At circle we talked about how we were raising money to help the children at the hospital get better. Thank you for all the donations.

Next we spent some time working on a special gift for our moms! We hope you all enjoy your gifts. The children were very excited about them.

If you have any questions or concerns please feel free to speak to one of the teachers. 

A note from the Sunflower Room Class 401 - Stephanie, Sali, Karen and Susan

In April we have been talking about planting and Spring. We planted seeds in a Mason jar and watched the shoots and roots appear. We drew a picture of what might grow from our seed. We read books about planting and how seeds grow. 

For Spring we made symmetrical butterflies and for the last week we have been working on a special surprise for our moms!

We practiced hard at our songs for the Easter Service and enjoyed performing for our families. It was nice for the teachers to visit with the families at our Easter tea.

The children have blossomed socially and enjoy co-operative games. They like to create their own games when playing outside and they love to run, run, run!

We are now moving on to a science unit and are doing some experiments such as demonstrating air pressure and magnets. 

We are enjoying having parents join us in the classroom to see what happens at preschool.

A note from the Sunflower/Rainbow Room Class 402 - Arsi, Danielle and Sousan

Wow, how time flies...I cannot believe that we are now going into May....The children have grown so much since September...

We have certainly made the last few months at Preschool busy ones.  With lots of learning, exploring, playing and experimenting with new things.

After the Easter Services, which were great we looked into a favourite topic 'Bug's'.. This involved talking about how important bugs are to our world. Where you can find them, how they move, what they eat and what they do for us. We explored worms, snails and bugs. We enjoyed searching for the snails in the snail aquarium.

Next, we decided to explore an American artist named Jackson Pollack because he has a unique way of painting. We found out that he doesn't use a paint brush like everyone else. He likes to use different tools,even bugs and he likes to drip things. We ourselves took our paper to the floor, spread it out on a large drop-sheet and 'dripped away'!

We then looked into another interesting topic, 'The Human Body'. We learned what our bodies are made off, what we need to do in order to keep them healthy and happy. We used clay to 'design' our own bodies and we made a collage of the skeletal system. We played with 'red intestines' in the water table, looked at x ray's and also explored our Senses...

We then moved on to a special subject 'Mother's Day'.  The children were very busy making their own Sun-catcher.  This was very exciting as using a pipe cleaner we designed our shape. Then we watched as Arsi mixed the water, colour and borax together to form our very own crystals.  Something to treasure for a few years!

The children have now finally finished looking at each letter of the Alphabet...As you can imagine this took us 26 days...We have now became very proficient at what letter our names begin with and also the first letter of our friends names...This gave us many opportunities to practice letters, especially how to spell our names...

In May, we are looking into Community Helpers'. The people who help us everyday. We are planning a visit from The RCMP Police Officers...A great opportunity for all of us to chat with a real life community helper!

Over the last few weeks we have been busy cutting, drawing, writing, gluing, exploring, learning new things, playing and having fun... Challenging ourselves so we can grow and develop. We have done an excellent job and now we are ready for Kindergarten!

If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to speak to either Danielle or Arsi.

A note from the Treehouse Room Class 403 - Estelle, Stephanie, Gabi, Karen and Sousan

This month’s theme was gardening, spring and mother’s day.

As the end of the year approaches we are working on kindergarten readiness in our classroom structure and routine. 

At circle time we are working on the expectations that will be expected of them in kindergarten; such as sitting in one spot and being aware of one another’s personal space, listening and waiting their turn to talk by putting up their hand.

During play time we are encouraging the children to talk to each other before we intervene and problem solve around sharing and taking turns.

When we are in the hallway and lining up we are working on staying in our place in line and using quiet voices out side of the classroom and making sure to not run and to stay safe by walking behind the teacher.

We have been talking to the children about these things and what will be expected of them in kindergarten.

Some other things to consider are encouraging your child to put on their own jackets and shoes, carry their own snack bags, put away their toys and help out with chores such as setting and clearing the table. These skills will help towards independence and make the transition easier for kindergarten.


If you have any concerns, please feel free to come and talk to us before or after class.

Happy Mother's Day to all our wonderful moms!