September 2010
Observations
Dear Families and Friends,
As our preschool motto, “Learning through play. . .together,” affirms, Palisades Preschool is a community of teachers and learners. Already, through our June New Parent Orientation, July Transition classes and summer Home Visits, we have welcomed many new children and their families into our preschool community. We look forward to continuing this process with our September New Parent Orientation, fall Home Visits, all-school Family Picnic and Back to Preschool nights during the coming weeks.
The pedagogical phrase for active teaching and learning in a community setting is social constructivism. Together, we construct our understandings about our world. Child development theorists, Jean Piaget (1950) and Lev Vygotsky (1962) are among our “heroes” in the world of early childhood education and we encourage families to join us is continuing our study of their theories within the context of our own work with young children at PPS. Over the summer, the teachers and I refreshed our understanding of Piaget’s work by reading, A Piaget Primer: How a Child Thinks (Singer & Revenson, 1996) and we recommend this title to parents who are interested in learning more about constructivism.
As part of our belief that constructing our learning requires participation, I ask that you carefully read the following pages of the newsletter for important information that will help you to be a participating member of our community and to support the preschool’s mission and philosophy. Please let us know if you have any questions or suggestions. Thank you! We are anticipating a wonderful year . . .together.
Warm wishes,
Nancy
Click on the links below or scroll down for this month’s topics:
- September Events
- Class Placements/Teacher Collaboration
- Palisades Preschool Teaching Staff
- Ages & Stages Questionnaire-3
- Parent Committees
- Silent Auction, 2010
- After-School Small Group Classes/Stay & Play
- Preschool Mission Statement
September Events
As you will see in the PPS Calendar for 2010-2011, September is a busy month! The first event is for the parents of children who are new to Palisades Preschool or returning parents whose younger children will be joining us in the fall:
The New Parent Orientation #2 will take place in the Parish Hall on Tuesday, Sept. 14th from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. We will introduce our teaching staff, invite you to participate in a dialogue about separation, share information about what to expect during the first days and weeks of preschool, and introduce educational consultant, Dr. Richard Cohen, who will talk briefly about the Ages & Stages Questionnaire-3 and developmental screening at PPS. Please plan to be present for the full 2 hours.
The last week of the month includes a family event and another event that is just for parents:
Our all-school Family Picnic is planned for Sunday, Sept. 26th from 10:30 to 12:30 at Rustic Canyon Park. The address is 601 Latimer Rd., Pacific Palisades, 90402. Bring a picnic lunch and a blanket (or sit at one of the many tables reserved for our group), re-connect with one another and meet new families, too. Parking is available in the Rustic Canyon parking lot and adjacent areas. Our reserved section is located down the stairs below the recreation center. There is a grassy area and a children’s playground, as well as restrooms located nearby. Join us!!
Back to Preschool Nights take place on Wednesday, Sept. 29th for parents whose children are in the Cherry Blossom and Rosemary rooms and on Thursday, Sept. 30th for the Dandelion and Sunflower rooms.
Both evenings begin at 5:00 p.m. and end at 7:00 p.m.
The meetings will begin in the Parish Hall at 5:00 with a presentation by Nancy and the teachers, followed by a break for refreshments and conversation. The last 45 minutes of the evening will take place in the classrooms, where teachers will have prepared a special activity for parents. . .that will then become a surprise for the children the next day.
Class Placements/Teacher Collaboration
As a developmental program, we generally place children in classes according to their age. Our youngest children join the Cherry Blossom and Rosemary rooms and four year olds become part of the Dandelion and Sunflower groups. Please understand that children are not always separated according to their classroom and do mix within their general age groups during their outside time and during their indoor playtime. For example, children are usually in their “homerooms” for Snack, Lunch and meetings, but join children and teachers from the neighboring classrooms for other activities. Teachers from the two neighboring classrooms collaborate very closely with one another to share observations and to co-create curriculum.
It is possible, as children move from the Cherry Blossom and Rosemary rooms to the four year old rooms, that the composition of the classes may change slightly to accommodate changes in enrollment from one year to the next. However, the sense of community that is built between classrooms supports children who may switch from one roster to the other. We intend for the teaching teams to continue working with all children in their age group. In other words, while children are placed according to their age, they will have many opportunities to work and play with peers in both classes within their age group.
Palisades Preschool Teaching Staff
Teachers at PPS are selected for their sound knowledge of child development, their belief in children as curious and competent learners who construct their own understandings, their collaborative and creative attitude, their previous experience working with young children, their respectful behavior and nurturing personality and their openness to learning and growing as individuals and as professionals.
This year we extended the hours of the studio teacher working with our youngest children to full-time hours and added a new full-time position to our program. We will now have a fifth co-teacher in the Cherry Blossom and Rosemary rooms who will also collaborate with teachers from the four year old classrooms as needed and share the responsibility of the Stay & Play program with colleagues.
We are very pleased to introduce our teaching staff for the 2010-2011 school year:
Karen, PPS Co-Director
It is also my pleasure to welcome back Karen Booth, co-administrator, for her 12th(!) year at Palisades Preschool. As many of you already know, Karen is a very special member of our staff who wears many hats: she keeps vital preschool financial records and collects tuition, handles the ordering of many of supplies, including the children’s snacks, manages the school office, and tends very lovingly to children who are not feeling well or missing their mommy or daddy. Thank you, Karen!
Ages & Stages Questionnaire-3
During the previous school year, our preschool was included in a project sponsored by First Five LA and UCLA as part of an effort to achieve the goal of developmental screening for all Santa Monica children. Dr. Richard Cohen served as the consultant for PPS and several other participating preschools and will continue his collaboration with us through this fall and, possibly, into the future. Using the Ages & Stages Questionnaire-3, parents spend time observing their child at home and then share the results with Nancy and with teachers during Initial Conferences to be held in October, 2010. New parents will learn more about the developmental screening process at the Orientation on Sept. 14th and again at Back to Preschool Night in late Sept.
Parent Committees
At our June New Parent Orientation, Board President, Jennifer Mirner, and Nancy shared information about the many different participation opportunities offered by membership on PPS Parent Committees. Parents who were not present at the first Orientation in June will have a chance to sign up to serve on committees at the upcoming Sept. Orientation.
Returning parents will find the sign-up sheets in Karen’s office.
Committees include the Silent Auction Committee, Emergency Prep. Committee, Refreshment Committee Housekeeping Committee, Library Committee, Documentation Committee, Gardening Committee, Spring Open House/Small Fundraiser Committee, and more. . .
Silent Auction, 2010
Save the Date!! PPS Silent Auction Saturday, November 6th
The Silent Auction is our large fundraiser for the school year. It is an evening event that requires the participation of all PPS families as: auction item donors, attendees, underwriters of entertainment/flowers/food/alcoholic beverages, Auction Committee members. This year the Auction will be held at the beautiful home of returning parents Kristen and Steve Abraham in Pacific Palisades. Our Auction Committee chairpersons have been busy behind the scenes and will be meeting later this month to plan the food and entertainment. Please look for your invitation to this lively community-building occasion –to be mailed in early October. Friends and relatives are welcome to attend and to participate.
After-School Small Group Classes/Stay & Play
After-school Small Group (Enrichment) classes will begin the week of October 4th. The selections and costs will be announced after school starts on Sept. 15th. Stay & Play, offered between 1:00 p.m. and 2:30 p.m., features after-school supervised play. Stay & Play will begin the week of Sept. 20th. The cost is $14.00 per hour and monthly totals are billed with tuition at the end of each month. Children dismissed at 1:00 will be billed for only one hour. Please see Karen for more details.
Preschool Mission Statement
Our mission is to serve our community by offering a preschool experience for children and families that celebrates diversity, creativity and kindness. These values are embedded within a rich child-centered curriculum that provides individuals and groups with opportunities to investigate, explore and express themselves through meaningful play.