Director's Note and Newsletters to parents of the Fairmount School
SEPTEMBER 2011:
Director's Note:
Welcome Back! We hope everyone enjoyed their summer. Here are a few reminders for the new school year:
- We are a nut free school. Please make sure to check all ingredients in snacks before sending them to school.
- Make sure all of your child's items are clearly labeled with first and last name. This includes diapers, wipes, diaper cream, nap items and extra clothes.
- Please make sure that your child's lunch box has plenty of healthy snacks, along with eating utensils. Lunch boxes need to insulated and have cold packs. Also please remember that we do not heat lunches. Anything that needs to stay warm should be sent in a thermos.
- We are no longer allowing toys to come to school unless they are for show - and - tell. Also, pillows, pillow pets and sleeping bags are not allowed.
- Tuition is due the 25th of every month. No checks should be given to the staff. All checks either need to be dropped off directly to the Whitehouse School or mailed to: Lynne Baka, 2 Lake Drive, Whitehouse Station, NJ 08889. Please make checks payable to First Step.
- Scholastic Book orders are due Friday September 23rd.
- We are now on Facebook! ‘Like’ us to see photos of the school and of the children. (Search: First Step Learning Centers)
*Each child will receive a daily sheet at the end of each day letting parents know what they did for the day and any comments or concerns the teachers may have. This includes the infants, toddlers and twos and threes and four year olds.
Miss Gerianne's Infants:
Welcome to the 2011- 2012 school year. I have a number of fun activities planned for this September including fingerpainting, playing different textures and using bingo dotters and playdough. Our themes for the month include: Making Friends, Manners, Sharing and Feelings. We will also be focusing on Apples and our color for the month is red. Our shape will be the circle and our sign language words for the month are "more" and "please." We will also be reading various books about colors and shapes as well as singing songs. The songs for this month include the "Hello Song," and "Bumping Up and Down." It looks to be a busy start to the school year. I'm looking forward to a great year!
Miss Stephanie's Toddlers and Twos:
Welcome Back! For the month of September I have a lot of fun and messy projects planned. Our themes include Manners, Making Friends, Sharing and Feelings; as well as Apples. Our color is red and our shape is the circle. We will be reading various stories, singing songs, and beginning to learn and recognize our names. We will also have a morning circle where we will learn to say the pledge, and go over the month, days of the week, the weather and the seasons. It's going to be a busy start to a great new year!
Miss Deena's Threes and Fours:
Welcome Back! I hope everyone enjoyed their summer. It's hard to believe that September is here. I have a number of fun activities planned along with new and exciting science experiments. Our themes for the month include Manners, Making Friends, Sharing, and Feelings; as well as Apples. We will focus on the letter A and review the numbers 0 through 10. Our colors will include red, blue and yellow, and our shape will be the circle. We will also be listening to stories and learning new songs. Also new this year, we will be using puppets and the felt board to tell stories, sing songs, and learn letters and numbers. Each month we will also be "Cooking in the Kitchen." The children will participate in making a healthy snack that can everyone can share. It looks to be a busy start to great new year! If you have any questions or concerns, please don't hesitate to call the school.
*Happy Birthday to Ellie who is turning 4 this month!*
Previous Newsletters:
JUNE 2011
Director's Notes:
We are coming to the end of another school year and we would like to thank all of the parents for their donations and their hard work raising money through Joe Corbi. Our playground looks great! Here are a few important dates to remember for this month:
June 3rd - Joe Corbi orders are to be picked up no later than 12pm.
June 17th - End of the year pizza party (invitation to follow)
June 20th - First day of summer camp. (Please make sure that your child has a bathing suit, towel, water shoes, sunscreen, and extra clothes clearly labeled in their cubby. We will be having water play activities everyday (weather permitting.)
News From The Classrooms
Miss Deena's Infants, Toddlers and Twos
June is here and that means another end to a great school year. In May we enjoyed decorating and preparing for our Mother's Day Breakfast. It was a great success! Thank you to all that attended. But as we say goodbye to May, we say hello to June and the warm summer months ahead. Our themes in June will include flowers, bees and Father's Day. Our shape is the star and we will be reviewing our colors.
On June 17th we will be having an end of the year school celebration (invitation to follow) with a pizza party. All children and families are welcome to attend.
On Monday June 20th summer camp starts. Our first two themes include the ocean and outer space. We have fun arts and crafts planned, messy science projects, yummy things to make and eat, and lots of new games to play. We will also be doing water play activities every day. Please make sure your child has a bathing suit, towel, water shoes, sunscreen and extra clothes clearly labeled and put in their cubby.
It's going to be a great month filled with exciting activities!
Miss Erin's Threes, Fours and Fives
As May comes to an end, we had so much fun learning about different kinds of insects, the life cycle of a frog and butterfly; and plants. The older girls finished the alphabet and now they can write every letter. Everyone is doing great with cutting, name writing, letters, letter sounds, and numbers. Also, big thanks to Miss Deena for having a successful Mother's Day Breakfast!
As our school year comes to an end we will have an end of the year party (invitation to follow). We will be reviewing everything we learned throughout the year. We also have a new friend and her name is Keris. We welcome her to our class! I hope to see everyone at summer camp. If not have wonderful summer and good luck to Ainsley and Dayanara who are going to kindergarten next year.
*We would also like to give a big thank you to Miss Stephanie for helping out this past school year! We are looking forward to a great summer with her!
-----------
MAY 2011
Director's Notes:
Our Easter celebration was a great success. The children loved searching for Easter eggs and really enjoyed their grilled cheese lunch. Thank you to Miss Deena for taking the time to make such a wonderful lunch for everyone to enjoy!
Our Mother's Day breakfast will be on Monday May 9th at 9 am. (More information to follow)
Joe Corbi orders are due back Friday May 13th.
Sunscreen permission forms are due back no later than May 27th.
And don't forget.... we will be closed Monday May 30th.
News From the Classrooms:
Miss Deena's Infants, Toddlers and Twos:
April was a great month filled with stories, art projects and fun activities. The children loved coloring eggs and decorating the school with special projects. Our Easter egg hunt and lunch were a great success!
For the month of May we are going to focus on the colors black and white and our shape will be the rectangle. Our themes for the month include: Pets, Lady Bugs, Feelings, Vegetable Garden, and Caterpillars and Butterflies. We are also going to work on Mother's Day gifts and prepare for our Mother's Day breakfast on May 9th. It looks to be a great month filled with lots of fun activities and projects!
Miss Erin's Threes and Fours:
We had so much fun in April learning about our spring environment and all the changes that occurred. The children are doing great with their letters, numbers, shapes, colors and cutting. Thank you to Miss Deena who made a wonderful Easter lunch! Hope everyone enjoyed their Easter.
In May our themes will include: Flowers, Gardens, Plants, and Insects. The three year old class will start their curvy letters and the four year old class will finish the alphabet; along with a lot of review. We also will be having a Mother's Day Breakfast on Monday May 9th. Hope to see you all there!
-------------
APRIL 2011
Director's Notes:
- Thank you to those who donated items. We greatly appreciate it!
- Tuition is due on the 25th of every month. Please be sure to hand it in on time to avoid any late fees.
Make checks payable to The Fairmount School and mail to:
Lynne Baka
2 Lake Drive
Whitehouse Station, NJ 08889
- Please be sure to pick up your child/children on time to avoid late fees. It is $10 for the first five minutes and then $1 a minute additionally after that.
(Late fees are to be paid in cash only)
- Spring is coming and the weather is changing. Please make sure to have appropriate extra clothes in your child's/children's cubby.
- Thursday April 21st is our Easter Egg Hunt and Spring Party. Be sure to look for the sign - up sheet.
- Friday April 22nd we will be closed in observance of Good Friday. The school will re-open on Monday April 25th at 7am.
CLASSROOMS
Miss Sharon's Infants:
In Mach, the babies had fun with St. Patrick's Day crafts. Their colors were yellow, green and white. They will be learning about Easter, Spring, Caterpillars and April Showers in the month of April. Our colors will be pink, purple, yellow, green, blue and white. We will also be going over the shapes they have been learning thus far. Also in April we will be celebrating Zackary's birthday. He will be one years old! Happy Birthday to him. April looks to be a busy month. (Please be sure that your child has appropriate clothes to wear when outdoors. We will try and spend a little time outside each day as the long as the weather permits.)
Miss Deena's Twos:
We had a blast in March celebrating Dr. Seuss' birthday with stories, fun activities and special treats. We also enjoyed decorating for St. Patrick's Day and celebrating with a breakfast party. It was a great success! (Thank you to the parents who signed up to bring in the ingredients.) Now that April is here, we plan on spending more time outside doing lessons and fun activities. Be sure your child wears appropriate clothing and shoes. Our themes for the month include: Baby Animals, Weather, Ponds, and Taking Care of the Earth. Our shape is the triangle and our color is purple. We are also going to have an egg hunt and party on April 22nd. Be sure to keep a look - out for the sign - up sheet. It looks to another busy and exciting month!
Miss Erin's Threes, Fours and Fives
We had lots of fun last month at out St. Patrick's Day breakfast party and talking about how March comes in like a lion and out like a lamb. We are doing wonderful with our letters, learning our phone numbers and our learning our shapes. In April we will be talking about Earth Day, Spring, Rain, Animal Homes, and Animals and their Babies. We will continue working on cutting, our letters and our numbers. On April 21st there will be an egg hunt and party. (More information to come) Also this month we will be celebrating Madelyn's birthday. She will be three years old. Happy Birthday to her!
MARCH 2011
Director's Notes:
Wednesday March 3rd is Dr. Seuss' Birthday. We will be celebrating with a birthday party for him! Special treats and activities are planned.
Thursday March 4th we will be having green eggs and ham, as we continue to celebrate Dr. Seuss week!
Thursday March 17th will be our St. Patrick's Day Party. Please wear something green to school that day. The sign - up sheet for the party will be posted on the door. Feel free to sign up to bring in something to share.
Miss Sharon's Infants:
Matthew and Zackary worked on Valentine Crafts in February. They had fun with dress - up, wearing different hats and clothing. Our colors were pink, white, red, and green; with our shape being the heart. Our theme last month was "Love To All." In March, our shape will be the oval and our colors will be green, yellow and white. We will be celebrating St. Patrick's Day on March 17th with a party. We will also continue learning yes, no, up and down. March looks to be a great month!
Happy 1st Birthday Matthew!
Miss Deena's Twos:
Last month we had a blast making decorations for Valentine's Day, learning about the groundhog and his shadow and all about dental health. We also enjoyed making and eating waffles! For the month of March our themes will be Dr. Seuss, Dinosaurs, St. Patrick's Day, Grocery Story and Nursery Rhymes. Our shape is the triangle and our color is yellow. Some of the fun things planned for the month include: celebrating Dr. Seuss' birthday, having green eggs and ham for breakfast, making dinosaur headbands, and turning our dramatic play area into a grocery store. We will also have our St. Patrick's Day party on March 17th. Be sure to wear something green to school that day; and be ready for a day full of fun activities! March is going to be a great month!
Miss Erin's Threes and Fours:
Last month we enjoyed our Valentine's Party and decorating for the occasion. Making waffles with Miss Deena was a lot of fun too! For the month of March our themes will include: Dr. Seuss, Rainbows, St. Patrick's Day, Wind, Telephone Numbers and Transportation. The four year olds will be working on letters R, S and T; and the three year olds will continue their lined letters (N, T, V, W and X). Our numbers will be 9 and 10 and we will be working with primary colors. Some of the fun things we have planned include a party for Dr. Seuss' birthday, green eggs and ham for breakfast, and our St. Patrick's Day party. During the week of March 1st we will be talking about Dr. Seuss. Feel free to bring in your favorite Dr. Seuss book to share with friends.
FEBRUARY 2011
Director’s Note:
- Friday February 11th is Parent's Night Out from 5:30 - 8:00pm
- Monday February 14th is our Valentine's Day Party. Be sure to look for the sign - up sheet to bring something in to share.
- Friday February 18th and Monday February 21st we will be closed for President's Weekend.
Miss Sharon's Infants:
- In January we had fun working with glue, crayons, and paint. Our shape for the month was a diamond. We enjoyed making diamonds out of popsicle sticks and construction paper. The babies had fun learning how to "Press" objects using their punter fingers. We will continue teaching them "yes" and "no" throughout February. In February, our shape is the heart and out colors will be red, pink, white, and green. We will also be learning please and thank you; along with talking about family and love.
Miss Deena's Two Year Olds
- January has come to an end and we really enjoyed all of our winter projects and activities. Foe the month of February we have lots of fun things planned including our Valentine's Day party. Our shape for this month is a heart and the color is pink. Our themes include Groundhogs and Shadows, Valentine's Day, Terrific Teeth and Community Helpers. We are also going to be making musical instruments and having music day on Mondays. And on Fridays, we are going to have science day. Lots of fun and messy experiments are planned. It looks to be a fun - filled, busy month!
Miss Erin's Threes and Fours
- As January comes to an end; we had lots of fun talking about snow and winter. The girls are doing great writing on lined paper and cutting on a line. As we get in to February, we will be preparing for our Valentine's Day party. The shape is a heart and the colors are pink and gray. The letters will be O,P,Q and letters that have straight lines. Our numbers are seven and eight. Our themes include President's Day, Post Office, and Dental Health. We will continue to cut and write this month also.
Happy Birthday Andrew! This month he is 3 years old.
