Day Care News
November
WHAT’S INSIDE:
Birthdays!
 NEWS FROM THE TADPOLES,
TURTLES, EAGLES & OWLS
 TEACHER’S WISH LIST
 PARENT’S CORNER
 OPPORTUNITIES TO HELP THE

2015
Isaac- 9th
Tyrell-9th
Gabriel- 10th
Xavier-18th
Jillian- 20th
CENTER
PARENT REMINDERS
November
Each week during the next month, the day care
teachers will be writing lesson plans around the
following weekly themes:
NOVEMBER 2-6
LEAVES
NOVEMBER 9-13
DIFFERENT ANIMALS
Calendar of Events
NOVEMBER 16-20
PLEASE MARK THESE IMPORTANT DAYS ON YOUR
CALENDAR…
FOREST LIFE
NOVEMBER 23-27
November 202 Annual Family Potluck DinnerRSVP by November 18
THANKSGIVING/TURKEYS
nd
*LOST AND FOUND*
PLEASE CHECK THE LOST AND
FOUND WHICH IS LOCATED
DOWNSTAIRS ON THE COAT RACK.
WE HAVE A LOT OF UNCLAIMED
ITEMS WHICH NEED TO BE DEALT
WITH- CLOTHES, TOYS, EVEN
DISHES!! ARE ONE OF THEM
YOURS??
November 26 and 27Center closed for Thanksgiving
December 14Children’s Christmas Program
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REMINDERS
Please remember that if you are
not going to be coming on the day
you are scheduled, to please notify
Kristen immediately. Our
classrooms are staffed according
to numbers, and even one child
coming in or not showing up
makes a difference in how we
have to staff. We appreciate your
courtesy.
Please make sure that all items brought in are
labelled with your child’s name- lunch boxes,
containers in the lunchboxes, nap items, etc.
This will help ensure that they will make it
home to you and not get lost!
Thanksgiving Potluck Dinner
Our second annual Family Potluck Dinner is
to be held Friday, November 20 at 6 p.m. in the
fellowship hall. Please RSVP by the 18th so we
know how many to plan for- the center will be
providing table settings and turkey and drinkssign up for what you are bringing on the entry
door in the foyer. We also will have activities for
the children after the meal! Hope to see you
there!
A great big thanks to all those who assisted in Bingo in
any way- from donating food, to selling tickets, to helping
the night of the event, to sponsoring our prizes, and
coming out to play that night! It was the best Bingo we
ever had!!! Thanks to our sponsors:
If our child is here during naptime, please be
sure to bring in comfortable things for them to
sleep on…..fitted sheets to put down, pillows,
blankets. Etc. These will then need taken
home to be laundered on your child’s last day
each week.
Henderson Funeral Home
Whitehall Store
Kish Valley Electric
Double D Drywall
JM Young and Sons
Taptich Engineering
Yoder's Tees and More
Mathews Garage
Smeltz and Aumiller Real Estate
Jami Zook- Realtor/certified appraiser- Smeltz and
Aumiller Real Estate
Cieara Rankin-realtor-Smeltz and Aumiller Real
Estate
Shear Design
Sandy Metz
Big Valley Wood Products
Fleming's Garage
Gary and Carolyn French
Big Valley Feed and Grain
Gina's Simply Cuts
Creative Cuts
Hollo-Home Farm
The Stewardship Group
Yoder Chiropractic
See you next year!!
TEACHER WISH LIST
The following items are still in need of
being donated if possible:
 Laminator
 Pack and plays
 Dorm size refrigerator
 microwave
 Baby swing
If you can help us out with any of these
items, please let Kristen know! Thanks
so much!
&
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TURTLE NEWS
News from the Tadpoles
The infant room has been busy, some are
learning to share and take turns while others are
learning to walk. We are always listening to music
and stories. They listen to music and start clapping
to it.
We welcome a new friend Watt to our
group. The girls all enjoyed watching a new little
one.
It’s November – can you believe it? Where
has the year gone? I have had so much fun with
the children this year, watching them grow and
learn. We have worked so hard on our numbers,
our colors, the months of the year and so much
more. I get so excited when I see them accomplish
that tasks that we have set out for the day.
I sure enjoy watching them all growing and
learning new things. Have a good Thanksgiving!
We had a very busy October. Not only did we
concentrate on learning our numbers, colors and
months of the year, we had fun making a lot of
thing to decorate our classroom. The children
made Indian corn, scarecrows and even painted
pumpkins. We also had a visit from the fire
department and learned all about the trucks and
ambulances. We even got to get in the truck and
ambulance – that was really fun.
Miss Kathy
___________________________________
Eagle News
Some of the themes that we will be working
with during the month of November will center
around fall and giving thanks. We have a lot
planned activities planned for the month – our
room will take on a whole new look. I can’t wait
to get the children involved in all of the fun.
In 3 year old classroom we’ve had so much
fun enjoying autumn and all it brings! This month
we started exploring the alphabet and looked at A,
B, C, and D. Our Pumpkin Patch field-trip helped
us to understand where our pumpkins and gourds
come from and we had fun painting one of our
pumpkins we picked in class. Our Harvest Party
filled with face-painting, sack-races, pumpkin cornbag toss, and photo booth was a fun way to end our
month. We look forward to exploring more things
about fall in November and celebrating
Thanksgiving!
Ms. Liz
I want to thank all of the parents who
contributed to our sports basket for the spaghetti
dinner. We had an awesome basket.
Remember the weather is getting colder –
please remember to send a jacket or sweatshirt for
those days that we spend outdoors.
Fun Ways to Explore the Alphabet!
-Play I Spy with a Letter
-Point out the letters in a child’s name on signs,
cereal boxes, books ect.
-Draw letters on a plate filled with sand or cornmeal
and see if your child can copy them
God Bless,
Ms. Shirley
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OPPORTUNITIES TO HELP OUT
KELLOGGS FAMILY REWARDS
Collect codes off of specially marked
products and bring in to St. John’s to
collect for items we can use for our
center or redeem for cash donations!
********************************************
Owl News
This month, in Pre-K, we have been enjoying all
that Fall has to offer!  We began the month
celebrating National Fire Safety Week. We
learned ways we can keep ourselves safe and all
about firefighters and what they do to keep us
safe. The easy favorite of that week was the visit
we received from the Belleville Fire Company. We
got to try on the gear and sit in the truck. They
even brought us some goodies to take home!
Throughout the rest of the month, we focused on
Fall. During one week, we talked about crops the
farmers are harvesting. The highlight of that
week was shelling our own cobs of corn and
filling our sensory table with kernels to play in.
We also spent a week talking about pumpkins
and enjoyed a field trip to the pumpkin patch to
kick off that week. Another thank you to our
parent volunteers! Finally, we explored our 5
senses in relation to Fall. Our favorite thing to do
was taste pumpkin seeds, candy corn, and
caramel apples! We also enjoyed finishing off the
month with a Harvest Party. We wore our
costumes to school and enjoyed a morning full of
games, face painting, and fun.
During the month of November, our
theme is Forest Friends. There are lots of fun
things planned! We might even have some furry,
four legged creatures come see us…a
skunk….who knows?!  
LABELS FOR EDUCATION
CLIP THE LABELS OFF PARTICIPATING
ITEMS AND BRING TO ST. JOHN’S AND
DEPOSIT IN THE BOX IN THE FOYER TO
HELP EARN ITEMS FOR OUR CENTER!
PLEASE CHECK OUT
WWW.LABELSFOREDUCATION.COM FOR A
LIST OF GROCERY PRODUCTS! THANKS!!
We collect ID cards for Giant A+
Rewards …..if you, your family members or
friends shop at Giant and have a rewards card,
we’d sure appreciate the number so we can
register it to benefit St. John’s!
Printer cartidges
Did your printer cartridge at home or office just
need replaced? Don’t throw it away! Bring it to
St. John’s and put in the box in the foyer beside
Miss Becca
the soup label bin. We will recycle them for cash!
Thanks a bunch!
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Snow wonder
Posted: November 11, 2015- Better Kid Care website
A snow day is a great time to get outside and explore nature. Nancy Rosenow encourages early childhood educators to help
children see the wonders of the natural world. (Exchange 2011) When it’s snowing, help children wonder about snow!
A snow day is a great time to get outside and explore nature. Nancy Rosenow encourages early childhood educators to help
children see the wonders of the natural world. (Exchange 2011) When it’s snowing, help children wonder about snow! Most
people have heard no two snowflakes are alike. “No two leaves, flowers, or people are exactly alike, either! Snow crystals are
like us—we’re each different, but we have a lot in common.” (Cassino 2009) However, in 1988 Nancy Knight, a scientist at the
National Center for Atmosphere Research, found two identical examples while studying crystals from a storm in Wisconsin.
(http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/) This is very rare. Typically a snow crystal has six branches or dendrites and is shaped
like a star, but some snow crystals form in plates or columns. Occasionally twin crystals form with twelve points as one sixsided crystal forms on top of another.
A snow crystal starts as a speck in a cloud. When a speck gets cold enough, water vapor sticks to it and then layers of moisture
form a six-sided crystal because water molecules attach themselves to each other in clusters of six. As they grow and become
heavier, crystals fall from clouds to the ground at an average of three miles per hour. Once out of the cloud the crystal stops
growing. It may be damaged as it falls. Snow is not white, it’s clear. (Cassino 2009)
Catch Snow
Adults can encourage young scientists to catch snowflakes and study them. Even preschoolers can do this. Investigators need a
dry, sturdy, dark piece of cardboard or foam core board. Place the board outside for at least 10 minutes before an attempt to
catch snowflakes so that the board is chilled and the flakes won’t melt on contact. Direct children to hold the board flat, gripping
on one side, as the snow falls. Only catch a few flakes at a time to improve viewing. Use a magnifier to examine the crystals.
Concentrate on the smallest bits on the board. They are the most likely opportunities to see defined crystals. If this doesn’t work
the first time, don’t give up. The temperature has to be just right. If rain mixes at all with snow, it won’t work. (Cassino 2009)
Citizen Scientist Snowflake Bentley:
Wilson Bentley lived in Vermont from 1865 to 1931. From his childhood he was intrigued by nature and especially captivated
by snowflakes. As a child, his mother gave him an old microscope to use. In 1885, he became the first person to capture a
photograph of a single snow crystal using a microscope adapted to a bellows camera. In his lifetime he captured more than 5000
photos (called photomicrographs) of snowflakes, no two alike. These images were then studied by scientists, artists, and fellow
citizens. (http://snowflakebentley.com/bio.htm)
Experimenting with crystals
Snow is a common crystal, but the crystals are tiny and melt. Children can explore the formation of non-melting crystals by
making a Borax crystal snowflake.
Materials needed: Pipe cleaners (white, if possible), string, wide-mouthed jar, Borax (check your local grocer’s laundry
section), pencil, boiling water, food coloring (optional), scissors
Directions: Have children cut a pipe cleaner into three equal sections (about 2” long). Twist them together to form a six-armed
snowflake. The snowflake must pass through the jar mouth without touching the sides of the glass. Tie an end of a 4” piece of
string to the snowflake. Tie the other end to a pencil. The pencil will become the hanging rod for the snowflake as it dangles in
the jar. Make sure the snowflake does not touch the bottom of the jar. Once all the measurements are right and the snowflake is
prepared, remove everything from the jar. Fill the jar with boiling water. (If using a quart jar, use three cups water). For each cup
of boiling water, add three tablespoons of Borax powder. Stir to dissolve. Add food coloring if desired. Hang the snowflake in
the solution, resting the pencil across the mouth of the jar. Make sure the flake is completely submerged. Place the jar in a spot
where it will not be bumped for 24 hours. Within four hours, children should start to see crystals forming. After 24 hours,
remove the flake and examine.
Touch the crystals, look at them under a magnifier. How do these crystals compare to real snow crystals?
(stevespanglerscience.com)
Exploring hexagons
Snowflakes are six-sided crystals (think of a pie cut in six pieces or a clock with hands at 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12). Children can
have geometry fun, learning to fold paper in six sections and cut their own paper snowflakes. Using this method, adults can
emphasize the six-pointed structure of a real snow crystal, rather than simply folding paper in random fashion.
Children can cut the folded wedge any way they wish, but making cuts on only one side will create a more striking, six-sided
shape when unfolded. 6-sided snowflake instructions