Cherubs Chat- February 2018

First of all welcome to our new families. I am glad that you have joined our Cherubs family!

Last month with the crazy weather, Mother Nature really helped the Teachers to incorporate the theme of sights and sound of winter into their curriculum. The children were able to have real life experiences; listening and watching the plows ,feeling the cold air on their faces, playing with the snow inside and outside, building snowmen, making snowballs, discovering what happens to snow when it gets warm then when it refreezes…did it turn back into snow or ice? Where do the animals go in winter, what do they do, what do they eat? Self-help skills were practiced as the children put on all their winter weather gear to go outside and then helping their friends who needed a little extra help. It’s amazing what a dynamic group of teachers and Mother Nature can create as learning experiences for our Cherubs! Of course we still had time to incorporate our letters, numbers, colors and shapes are always incorporated into the curriculum!

This month our themes are Food & Fitness, Our 5 Senses and Dental Health. A lot of what we do this month will focus on eating healthy and creating healthy food habits and healthy bodies. It is never too early to start a solid foundation of healthy habits. During lunchtime the children will be focusing on the food groups and healthy vs. treat foods. When you pack your child’s lunch each day focus on incorporating each of the food groups: a main meal, yogurt, fruit and/or veggie and a snack is encouraged.

At home do you feel like a short order cook at times?  Are you sick and tired of the daily food battle? Do you want to stop picky eaters in their tracks? Limiting your child’s food choices at meals will help to create better eaters. Believe it or not, too many choices can be overwhelming for the children. Always offer 1 or 2 food items that you know they will eat and add 1 or 2 more that you would like them to try, creating a healthy balance of protein, fruits/veggies, whole grains and fat.  It takes an average of 8 times of introducing a food for a child to try it. There are 2 things that children can and will control: eating and toileting. Encourage them to eat their meals but do not force it. If they eat…they eat. If they don’t, they wait until the next scheduled snack time or meal. The more you force it, they more they will protest. My pediatrician always told me that children will not starve themselves and it is best to look at their overall food intake for the day not meal by meal.

Reminders:

• A few weeks ago, I put packets of paperwork in many of your cubbies. These are state mandated and need to be read, signed, dated and returned to me ASAP. Also, your child’s physical needs to be updated and given to me each year.
• If you would like for your child to have Subway on Wednesdays, the order forms are due tomorrow by noon for the month of February.
• Valentines Day lunch parties and Valentine exchange is on Wed 2/14. Please see your child’s classrooms for party information.
• 2/27 is National Polar Bear Day. Brody, our adopted polar bear in Pre-K, will be visiting the classrooms and the children. Stay tuned for his adventures.
• We strive to take the children outside every day. Please make sure to have appropriate outdoor winter weather gear at all times.
• The health and wellness of your children and our Teachers are top priority. Please keep your child home if they are not feeling well, have a fever (101 or above), vomiting, diarrhea, unexplained rash, contagious illness, new medication. If your child does have a contagious illness, please let us know so that we may inform the other families. If you have to give your child ibuprofen or acetaminophen in the morning to get them thru their day or keep their fever from hitting 101, then they should not be coming to school. It is not fair to your child, the other children and families and our teachers. I understand it is difficult to take time off of work, but please take this into consideration.

With all this being said, I wish you a very happy and healthy month of February!

~Amy