September 2009 Newsletter

September 2009

Welcome to the official start of the 2009-2010 School Year!

Save These Dates
Weekday Preschool Celebration Sunday and Parent Orientation - Sunday, September 13
*11am - 12noon Family Worship Service welcoming Weekday Preschool families and recognizing the 2009-10 Weekday Preschool Staff.
*12noon - 1:30pm Open House & Family Picnic offering an opportunity to walk through the Weekday Preschool and enjoy a hot dog lunch on the lawn!
*1:30 - 2:30pm Weekday Preschool parents will meet in the Sanctuary briefly before going to their child’s classroom to meet with the teacher while children and other guests enjoy Eager Beaver in “Mixed-up Magical Mysteries” presented by Kamp Kreatures followed by popsicles on the playground!

Visiting Day - Monday, September 14
Parents are invited to bring their child/children any time from 9:00 - 11:00am to visit their classroom and meet their teacher. Please bring your child’s school supplies on this day. 

All programs begin regular schedules - Wednesday, September 16
*AM Extended Hours opens at 7:30am. PM Extended Hours ends at 5:00pm. Parents park and come to the classroom to drop off and pick up their child so they can sign them in and out. (You must have completed and returned an Enrollment Application in order to use this service.)
*Toddler Morning Out (TMO) begins at 9am and ends at 12n. Parents park on the playground side and come to the classroom to drop off and pick up their child. If you have a child in another program please drop them off first, then park and take your toddler to their class. For pick up, please pick up your toddler first and then come through the dismissal line to pick up your other child. 
*Playgroup and Preschool begin at 8:45am and end at 12n. Parents drop off and pick up from their car.
*Pre-K begins at 8:45am and ends at 1pm. Parents drop off and pick up from their car.
*Kindergarten begins at 8:45am and ends at 2pm. Parents drop off and pick up from their car.

*"Sneak Peek” Bazaar Preview - Friday, October 2*
7-9pm for adults only. Tickets are $5 in advance and $6 at the door. We will be having coffee and desserts as well. Door prizes will be given out every 15 minutes.

*4th Annual Best Fall Festival & Bazaar Ever - Saturday, October 3rd*
9am - 2pm - Bazaar with all kinds of vendors, games and inflatables for the kids, bake sale, food and drinks and lots of fun! Come out and meet the other families of the preschool. Bring along your family, friends and neighbors. All proceeds go toward the God Is Good Scholarship Fund.

School News
2009-10 Parent Orientation
This year we have decided to shake things up a bit and we have created an afternoon of fun for the whole family. It is sure to be so well received by the Church and Preschool families that it will become an annual event to kick off each new Preschool year!  We do expect you, as a parent or guardian, to make time to come to the Orientation to receive the information that will help your child to have a successful and fun school year. We have included the rest of the family this year in hopes that everyone will make this a priority. Click here to RSVP no later than Wednesday, September 9, letting us know which events (Worship. Picnic, Children’s Program, Parent Orientation) your family will attend and how many adults and children will attend each one. See you there!

Arrival and Dismissal
There will be changes this year due to our expansion, nothing too drastic, but enough that during our first week a parent will be walking the drop off line before you reach the drop off/pick up point to answer questions and provide assistance especially to our new families. Those adults responsible for dropping off and picking up whether it is through the line or from extended hours are asked not to be in conversation on their cell phone and please refrain from smoking. When dropping off through the line please keep your child in their seat buckled. We will unbuckle and take them out. This is both for the safety of your child and to expedite the drop off process.

4th Annual Fall Festival and Bazaar
Our Best Fall Festival & Bazaar Ever is Saturday, October 4th with a Bazaar “Preview Night” for adults only on Friday, October 3. The festival features food, shopping, inflatables, and games.  Admission is free and the proceeds from the games and food benefit the God Is Good Scholarship Fund. Stop by the Fall Festival table at Parent Orientation on September 13 for more information. You will receive a letter from our Parent Group with volunteer opportunities the week of September 7. A lot of volunteers are needed to help with the games and food. Please consider donating your time to this event. Even just one hour of your time makes a huge difference! Attending the planning meetings is not necessary to volunteer but if you have ideas to share we will hold meetings at the preschool “work office” at 7:00 pm on September 17, 24, and October 1.

September Birthdays:
Happy Birthday to Lily Holtz - 9/8, Hannah Shoul 9/8, Trevor Read 9/11, Cecilia Miller 9/20, Madison Matzganis 9/24, Mrs. Hertzler 9/28, Mrs. Kim Johnson 9/29, Jack Finnegan 9/29, Mrs. Spalding 9/29,

Congratulations
Jacob Ashworth, he’s a big brother!

For your thoughts and prayers
Mrs. Allgood, her stepfather died just recently; The Camp (Donovan) family, his younger brother died this summer; The Yeatts family, Aiden’s mom’s dad is very sick. 

Reminders
Tuition
Tuition payments are due the 1st of each month, not the first class day of the month. Extended Hours bills are sent home by the15th of the month and due upon receipt. Thank you for making your payments on time so we are prepared to meet our financial obligations on time. 

Labels
Please make sure your child’s name is on their backpack, snack and lunch boxes in a visible place. We will be glad to do that for you. Just let us know.

Toys and “Lovies”
Toys of any kind from home are not to be brought to school unless your child’s teacher has sent a request home.

Shoes
Children must wear shoes that are secure on their feet with socks. Flip-flops, Crocs-types and slides are not acceptable. A child will not be allowed to go outside or to Creative Movement if they do not have on appropriate shoes. If it becomes one of those “tests of wills”, we are happy to change their shoes after they get here if you just put them in their backpack and let us know. 

From the Director’s Desk
One summer while our children were still in high school we took a trip cross country. One of the places we wanted to show them was the Grand Canyon. Having seen it, we tried to describe it to them beforehand, but it is just one of those places that defies words. They just had to see it to believe it. It is simply a miracle. That is how I feel about what you will see when you come for Preschool Celebration Sunday and Parent Orientation on September 13. It is so hard for me to put into words so you can truly appreciate the miracles that have happened here this summer.You just have to see it! It is even more difficult to find the words to adequately express my thanks to those people who were a huge part of making the vision the staff had a reality.
I happened to catch the end of an Extreme Makeover show the other night. One of the sons made the closing statement saying that if there were words bigger than thank you, he would surely use them to let the people who had volunteered their time, resources and skills to makes his dreams a reality know what their selfless sharing meant to him. I know exactly how he feels as I say thank you to God for Rick Holtz, Hank Milam, the Preschool staff, Pastor Dick and my Lakeside Presbyterian Church family who never once said to me, “That’s not possible!” Thank you! God is good! All the time!!!! 

Classroom Updates
This section will regularly feature a snippet from your child’s teacher’s monthly updates that are featured on our parent discussion forum. Look out for a welcome email from your child’s teacher in the upcoming week. You will be prompted to register at that time. The Discussion Forum is here to allow parents more access to their child’s preschool day. It is open to parents and family members of currently enrolled students only.

We would love to hear your comments and suggestions!