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From the Director, November 2009
Nutritional Sciences Preschool
Dear Parents,
October was a busy and productive month for our class. Our unit on fire safety was exciting and informative. The “Sesame Street Firehouse” video provided a good background for us. I hope your child has shown you how to crawl low to get away from smoke and how to stop, drop, and roll if your clothes catch on fire. The children loved making fire hats and learning the “Five Brave Firefighters” action rhyme! Our fall unit was perfectly timed with the explosion of color from the leaves. The children love singing and acting out the “Furry Squirrel” song and “Farmer Brown Had Five Green Apples”. The children really enjoyed exploring pumpkins at school and learning about how they grow and why they are good for us. I hope they remembered about Vitamin A! We did a lot of fun science experiments with pumpkins. The trip to the Pumpkin Farm was so enjoyable; the weather couldn’t have been more perfect! Farmer Jimmy’s hayride tour is most informative, and the children loved touching and smelling all the different parts of the fruits and vegetables. And picking that special pumpkin is always a terrific treat! Thanks to so many of you parents for driving on our trip. As Halloween approached, we turned our thoughts to Jack O’Lanterns, ghosts, witches, and bats. The Hoot Owls and 5 Little Monsters songs were particular favorites. Our Halloween party was such fun, with costumes, songs, our parade, games, and goodies. Special thanks to Melissa Glick and Denise Trimble for helping to organize the parent party and filling the goodie bags for the children!
Curriculum topics to be covered in November will be Our Five Senses, Forest Friends, Thanksgiving, and Nutrition. We will be celebrating Katherine’s birthday on November 6 and Chase and Sofia’s birthdays on November 13. Happy Birthday, Katherine, Chase, and Sofia!!! On two Fridays (the 13th and 20th) students from “Nutrition Counseling and Communication” will be presenting lessons at circle time to our children. We will be having a Thanksgiving feast on Monday, November 23. (Rutgers University will not be having classes on Wednesday, November 25.) Because of the number of children, parents will not fit in the classroom, but you are welcome to watch us from the observation booth, of course. I do have a student who will be making her snack with the children that day, but we will be asking each child to contribute an item for our feast, so that we may truly share. There will be a sign-up sheet on the parent bulletin board towards the middle of the month. In December we will concentrate on holiday celebrations. We would love to include any special traditions that your family celebrates. Please let me know if any parents would like to come to class to share information about your family celebrations.
Reminder: Now that the fall weather is here, please remember to dress your child accordingly. It is easy to take off a layer if it warms up. Please have your child bring jackets, etc., into the classroom, not outside on the hall hooks.
During the month of November, we have scheduled our fall parent conferences. The conferences for our class will be held on November 9 and 18. Mrs. Gliese will be in the classroom with the children on those days. There will be a sign-up sheet on the parent bulletin board, so that you may select a convenient time. These conferences will last approximately 15 minutes and will explore your child’s adjustment to our preschool. Specific academic readiness concerns will be addressed at the spring conference. I am looking forward to speaking with you and getting to know you and your child even better.
I am including my favorite recipe for pumpkin cookies. You might enjoy making them and eating them with your child:
PUMPKIN COOKIES
Ingredients:
½ cup butter or margarine (1 stick) (or non-dairy spread)
1 ¼ cups brown sugar
2 eggs (or equivalent egg replacer)
1 ½ cups cooked mashed pumpkin
½ tsp. salt
½ tsp. ginger
½ cinnamon
½ tsp. nutmeg
2 ¼ cups flour
4 tsp. baking flour
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup raisins (optional)
Cream margarine and sugar well. Add eggs, pumpkin, and seasonings. Mix well. Sift flour and baking powder together. Add flour mixture slowly to creamed mixture and blend well. Stir in vanilla and raisins, if desired. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto greased cookie sheets. Bake in preheated 375 degree oven for 15 minutes. Makes 3 dozen cookies. They will be relatively soft, not crisp.
Hope your family enjoys them. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!
Sincerely,
Harriet Worobey, Head Teacher
Nutritional Sciences preschool
November 2009
From the Director
Dear Parents,
November is a month to begin thinking about family celebrations. Here at the Nutritional Sciences Preschool, it is also a time to think about getting to know you and your child better. We will be having parent conferences during the month of November. We hold them during class time and have a substitute teacher in the classroom to be most convenient for you. We look forward to this chance to gain insight into your child’s development and to share some of the experiences we have been having in the classroom. Your child’s adjustment to our program is our greatest concern at this point. But we will also be letting you know some of the skills your child has been exploring so far this year. It may look as if we are having fun in preschool (and we ARE!), but it is fun with a purpose—for the cognitive, emotional, social, and physical development of your child. Be sure to look for the sign-up sheet on the parent bulletin board!
I would like to remind parents that if you double park to drop off or pick up, you must enter and exit quickly, so you don’t block cars for very long. If there is ANY space available, you must take it, even if it is not so close to school. There are people who work in our building, and they must have access to their cars. Also, please do not double park and stay to watch or chat. Thank you!!
Part of the mission of our preschool is providing a learning laboratory for university students. Please remember to keep your conversations in the booth quiet ones, so these students may hear properly, as well as other parents who may be observing. If you have a younger child who is crying or banging on the window, please leave the observation booth. Thanks for your cooperation!
Our student teachers are an important part of our program. Each student must participate at the Preschool during one class per week. In addition, the students attend my lecture class called “Nutrition for the Developing Child” once a week. Each student teacher must plan and implement a snack plan with the children, which you have been seeing in October and will continue throughout November. During “Nutrition Week” each group of students will plan a nutrition-themed curriculum for the day. In addition, our students who have been with us before and are taking an independent study must plan and implement all phases of the curriculum for one day as “teacher of the day”. So you will see an interesting variety of student projects in our classroom!
If anyone would like to have Bubbles the Bunny for a guest (not the main dish) at Thanksgiving, please let me know!
This year “Rutgers Against Hunger” is sponsoring “Adopt a Family” to help local families during the holidays. The Preschool will be participating in this program. As details become clearer, we will send you more details.
Below are some suggestions for creative learning at home. Enjoy!
Sincerely,
Harriet S. Worobey, M.A.
Director
WANTED
WHO? You and your family and friends.
WHEN? Thursday, December 3, 2009 from 6:30 – 8:30 PM
WHERE? Barnes and Noble Route 1 South North Brunswick, NJ
WHY? The Rutgers Nutritional Science Preschool is launching a Bookfair at the store that evening. There will be fun for all ages. Parents, family members and teachers will be reading stories, there will be a HULA (yes Hula) lesson for the kids, a Spanish Lesson, a visit by Bob the Builder, a Police Officer, Firefighter, an Irish Dancer, a Norwegian Princess and more. It will be a great night with fun for all ages.
HOW DOES IT WORK?
Rutgers Nutritional Science Preschool will receive a percentage of all sales made in person or over the phone by persons providing a voucher (SEE ATTACHED) or, if done over the phone, the BOOKFAIR ID# 542340.
Barnes and Noble had provided us with the following BOOKFAIR ID#: 542340. If you or your loved ones would like to make a purchase but cannot make it to the store or the event that day you can simply call the store at 732-545-7966 and order your items over the phone. When you do please be sure to provide the bookfair ID# to ensure Rutgers Nutritional Sciences Preschool will receive a percentage of your sale.
If you are interested in volunteering for gift wrap during the event please contact Liz Peter 732-565-1778.
Click here for:
Barnes and Noble Bookfair Link
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November Newsletter 2009
Nutritional Sciences Preschool
October was a very busy month and productive month for our class! The children and I enjoyed watching the changes that happen during the fall season. We listened to stories about the beautiful colors of the autumn leaves. The children also had lots of fun singing and acting out songs including “Gray Squirrel” and “Five Little Pumpkins”. We all had a great time at Giamarese Farm. The hayride with Farmer Jimmy provided us with a look at some things that grow on a farm. The children enjoyed seeing the farm animals, and picking that special pumpkin is always a terrific treat! Thanks to all the parents that volunteered to drive for our class trip and all that attended.
As Halloween approached, we turned our thoughts to black cats, pumpkins and Jack-o-Lanterns! We investigated the inside of a pumpkin, discovered how pumpkins grow, listened to pumpkin stories, and learned that pumpkins have vitamin A which is good for our eyes. Finally, our Halloween party was a big success, with wonderful costumes, a special snack and a parade! What a wonderful ending to the month of October.
Curriculum topics to be covered in November will include “My 5 Sense”, “Harvest” and “Thanksgiving”. We will be having a Thanksgiving feast on Tuesday, November twenty-fourth. During our celebration, we will all eat together in class at a long table to enjoy some traditional Thanksgiving foods. We are asking each family to contribute an item for our feast, so that we may emphasize the concept of sharing. There will be a sign-up sheet on the parent bulletin board in mid-November. (Parents are invited to enter during our feast to take photos if they would like).
Also during the month of November, we will have ort fall parent conferences. Conferences take place while the children are in school and a substitute teacher will be present with the children. This year, the substitute will be one of our college students, Jess, who is involved in the education program at Rutgers. She has also been involved with the preschool for a number of years, so she is familiar with our schedule and routines. The conferences for our class will be held the week before Thanksgiving. The sign-up sheet with the dates and times will be posted on the parent bulleting board. Conferences will last approximately fifteen minutes and will explore your child’s adjustment to preschool. I am looking forward to speaking with you and getting to know your child better.
Just a reminder, with the fall weather upon us, please send in whatever your child may need to feel comfortable. The classroom is generally warm, but the playground is often chilly with the wind blowing. Please bring jackets, gloves, hats, etc into the classroom and place them in the cubbies for outdoor play. Thanks so much for your cooperation. I hope everyone will have a Happy Thanksgiving!
Sincerely,
Brigitte Gliese
Brigitte Gliese
Teacher of the three year old class