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Weekday Program Web site: www.fumcplanoweekday.org Weekday Update November 2007 |
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Director's Report |
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Dear Parents-
Many of the things we do at the Weekday Program are done in an effort to make our environment one that is the most beneficial and developmentally appropriate for the children enrolled. Our latest effort is raising money to build a new playground. When the church was built there were 3 playgrounds installed: one for toddlers, one for preschoolers, and one for school-age children. The third playground started to fall apart pretty quickly, but the company that installed it was nowhere to be found! Then in September 2003, the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services updated minimum standards and changed many of the playground regulations. We had to dismantle several of the items on this play area to meet the standards, leaving it almost worthless.
In researching new play structures we found that we can install a play area that: 1) Exceeds the minimum standards 2) Has plenty of items to play on 3) Is appropriate for a larger number of children to enjoy (ages 4 and up) 4) Helps children develop physically and cognitively by offering unique apparatuses that promote creative play
We know that it is very important for young children to be outside exploring and playing in the fresh air. This new play area would allow us to increase the outdoor playtime for all of the children enrolled by allowing us to expand our play area.
I'm sure your noticed that many of the PTC fundraising efforts this year have gone toward our playground fund, which was started by an initial donation of $10,000 by the Weekday Program Board. Our hope is that some of our Weekday Program families will help with a cash donation so that we can start building our playground as soon as possible. If you are interested in making a cash donation, please let someone in the office know. All donations are tax deductible.
We truly appreciate your support and hope that with a little help we can start building the new playground soon!
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I Feel Blue Color and the Brain
Brain researchers have verified that color affects our mood and behavior. Although this is not new information, the recent brain research has validated the earlier body of research. Blues are calming and increase feelings of well-being, white sky blue being the most tranquilizing color. When you see blue, your brain releases eleven neurotransmitters that bring relaxing calmness to the body. The effects can lower body temperature and reduce perspiration and appetite. Greens are also calming. Reds and yellows are energizing (these colors also encourage creativity). Red is an engaging and emotive color, so that an anxious person may be disturbed by red, while calm person may be excited. Red triggers the pituitary and adrenal glands, enhances the sense of smell, and can increase breathing and appetite. Yellow is the first color a person distinguishes in the brain. Brown promotes a sense of security and relaxation and reduces fatigue. A textured gray is neutral. Off-white, yellow, and beige are optimal for positive feeling. Darker colors lower stress and increase feelings of peacefulness.
From “Start Smart” by Pam Schiller
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| PTC Family Dinner Night
November 8th 6pm-8pm
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think about it... Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited, whereas imagination embraces the entire world, stimulating progress, giving birth to evolution. -Einstein
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Spaghetti with Santa November 30 5:00-8:30 All proceeds will go to the Weekday Program Scholarship Fund. Donated toys will go to Plano Santas. |
Don't miss the
Book Fair
November 30-December 7
9:00-9:45 and 1:45-2:30 each day in the Grand Hall (and during Spaghetti with Santa)
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Home/School Connection
Alliteration Games
Alliteration- words that start with the same sound- offers game opportunities the same way rhyming does. Alliteration deals with the smallest unit of sound, or phoneme that starts a word, such as the /b/ sound in ball, boy, and banana. Alliteration games develop phonemic awareness, which is part of the more general knowledge of language sounds known as phonological awareness. Here are some alliteration games that are fun and promote learning in young children. Who is it? Ask children to guess who in the group has a name beginning with a certain phoneme. You can also play this game with the names of characters in a familiar book you’ve just finished reading with the children. Here are some examples “There are two people in this circle whose names begin with the /b/ sound. Who are they?” “I’m thinking of a person in this room whose name starts with /sh/. Guess who” “I’m remembering someone in the story “The Three Bears” whose name began with a /g/ sound. Who do you think it is?” Doing the names. Combine the initial sound of children’s names with the initial sound of actions for them to perform. Consider these examples: “Whose name begins with a /k/ sound?”(Pause for children to figure this out.) “Yes, Carl and Carol. Let’s clap with Carl and Carol.” “Whose name starts with the sound /w/?” (Pause for children to figure this out.) “Wendy and Walter, let’s see you wave. Everybody wave with Wendy and Walter. Now let’s see everyone wiggle.”
Word Starters. Ask children to think of words that begin with the same sound. “Let’s think of wards that start with the same sounds as car, cat, call…” “What words that begin with /d/ sound like daddy and door?” “How many things can you see that start with a /p/ sound?”
Letter substitution. Pick a sound and substitute it at the beginning of words during an activity such as snack time or a transition. This game is especially good to make cleanup times silly and fun. When children get the idea, let them pick the sound. “At cleanup time, what if we started the name of each thing we picked up with the /m/ sound. So if you stacked the puzzles, you could say you were stacking the /m/ ______.” (Pause to let the children work out “Muzzles.”) “Lee, it’s your turn to pick a sound to help us get ready for outside time.” (Lee says he wants /l/ like his name.) “Okay, see if you can make whatever you’re putting on- your coat, hat, mittens, boots- start with the /l/ sound like the first sound in the name Lee.”
From “Essentials of Active Learning” by Ann Epstein
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Mark your Calendars Items in bold have been added or changed. |
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November: 13-Individual and Class Pictures |
February: **Little Friends' Place (before- and after-school care open as usual) |
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First United Methodist Church Weekday Program * 3160 E. Spring Creek Parkway Plano, TX 75074 phone 972.423.4910 * fax 972.633.9126 |