Sealed Air Child Development Center
October 2014
Upcoming Center Events
We welcome October as we celebrate Hispanic Heritage
st
on the 1 . The day will be dedicated to introducing the
Hispanic culture and customs to the children in age
appropriate ways. We will also use the Spanish language
throughout the day and teach the children about Native
Hispanic countries. Monday, the 6th, we will focus on the
engineering portion of our STEM curriculum as we
celebrate World Architecture
Day. Teachers will
implement activities that encourage the children to
building structures and to
architecture around the world.
learn
about
famous
Please remember to bring your best smiles to school on
Tuesday, the 7th, as we will be receiving a visit from Life
Touch photography.
If you have not already received
photo information for your child, please stop by the front
Important Dates
October 1: Hispanic Heritage Day
October 6: World Day of Architecture
October 7: Center Wide Picture Day
October 16: Pumpkin Day
October 21: Read for the Record “Bunny
Cakes,” by Rosemary Wells
October 29: Family Matters Webinar Series
(see pg. 4 for details)
October 31: Classroom Halloween Parties
**You will be informed of individual classroom
plans by your child’s teacher
desk and speak to a member of administration. Each child
will have the opportunity for an individual photo, and will
also participate in a full class photo.
Pumpkin Day takes place on Thursday, the 16th, and all of
the classrooms will focus on learning about pumpkins in
age appropriate ways. One common activity across all
programs will be a Science Rocks exploration of a
pumpkin from the inside out.
On Tuesday, the 21st, the Sealed Air Child Development
Center will participate in Jumpstart’s National Read for
the Record Day. Every child within the center, will
participate in a reading of Rosemary Well’s, “Bunny
Cakes,” and will take part in activities within the
classrooms that are based upon this book. Our center
will then report to Jumpstart, how many participants we
had that shared “Bunny Cakes” and will help to beat last
year’s record of 2,462,860 children sharing the same
book across the nation on the same day!
From the Director…
Fall is here whether we are ready for it or not!
And with the changing of the seasons arises a
need for the changing of clothing in your child’s
cubby. Please take a peek to ensure that your
child has extra pants, and long/short sleeved
shirtsand their indoor shoes. With the winter
weather fast approaching, I would like to remind
you that the children will go outdoors when
state regulations allow. Please make sure your
child has LABELED snow pants, boots, a hat,
and mittens to wear outdoors on cold days. We
will now have boot bins available to store boots
beneath your child’s cubby.
Connect with Bright Horizons
8501 Campus Dr. Mt. Pleasant, WI 53406 | [email protected] | Mon-Fri, 6:30 a.m.– 6:00 p.m.
Classroom Highlights
First Day of K Prep
September 2nd marked the start of our new school year in Kindergarten Prep! The
building was buzzing with the excitement as the students made their way into the
classroom on the first day! The children worked with their parents to sing
themselves in by answering our question of the day, to visit our estimation station
to make a guess, and to draw a first day self portrait. We are all looking forward to
the learning and growing that our K Prep students will experience throughout the
year!
Kids Take Over the Kitchen Day
Children throughout the center were busy little chefs as they “took over the
kitchens” throughout the building. Some of items that were prepared by the
children were rice krispie treat moldings, Mediterranean tomatoes sandwiches, and
play dough. The infants and toddlers in the photo to the left are working together
to make banana muffins. All of these cooking activities allowed the children to
practice following directions as they read the recipes with help from their teachers.
They also utilized their Math Counts skills as they carefully measured and counted
each ingredient.
International Talk Like a Pirate Day
International Talk like a Pirate Day was a HUGE hit! Several children and teachers
took the opportunity to dress in pirate garb and to use pirate language in daily
interactions. Our preschool friends in the photo to the right are reading their
treasure map which had been delivered to them by a large pirate. The children read
the map and followed it to reveal the secret hiding spot of a hanging (not buried)
treasure. This activity was a great lesson in teamwork and following directions!
Johnny Appleseed Day
Our learning centered around all things apples on Johnny Appleseed day.
Classrooms made “tin pot” hats, explored apples, and learned all about the history
of John Chapman aka Johnny Appleseed. Several of the classrooms used apples as
ingredients in cooking activities and taste tested various types of apples to compare
the flavors. The children then used expressive language to describe the similarities
and differences between the apple types. The children in the Transition classrooms
even used apples as paintings tools, as shown in the photo to the left.
8501 Campus Dr. Mt. Pleasant, WI 53406 | [email protected] | Mon-Fri, 6:30 a.m.– 6:00 p.m.
READY for SCHOOL News
READY for SCHOOL Parent News: Inclusion Interactions
Early childhood is the time when children develop lifelong values and dispositions that affect how they
view the world, how they relate to others and ultimately how they act. The core of each child’s
self-esteem and identity stems from the interactions between the child and important adults in the
child’s life. Children who have a secure sense of identity, (which includes gender, size, race, ethnicity,
language, religion, culture, family composition, abilities, etc.), are more likely to develop skills to be
inclusive of others.
Just as prejudice and stereotyping are learned behaviors, tolerance and inclusion are learned behaviors
as well. Telling children to “be kind,” and “play with everyone” or punishing a child for hurting a friend,
have little lasting effect on the development of their attitudes. Observing adults being kind and including
other people is much more effective. Children learn by modeling the adults in their world. Children are
strong perceivers, and they take in all the subtleties of the adults’ behaviors.
Our behaviors and beliefs have a tremendous impact on how children feel about themselves, view the
world, and how they regard differences. As parents, we need to continuously be self-reflective and think
about both the direct and subtle messages that we give children. We convey messages by our words,
jokes, seemingly innocent comments, tone, body language, facial expressions, and physical actions.
Parents are key in instilling the values of respect, acceptance, and inclusion in their children. Children
who feel good about themselves tend to have open hearts and minds; they are less likely to judge
people by their accents, clothing, skin colors, sexual preference, age or physical appearance. Acute
awareness of the messages that we give children is key. Think about the powerful effect it has on any
child when we give him or her the message, “You are recognized, you are valued and I’m really glad
you’re my child.”
8501 Campus Dr. Mt. Pleasant, WI 53406 | [email protected] | Mon-Fri, 6:30 a.m.– 6:00 p.m.
Bright Horizons News
SAVE THE DATE: October installment of the Family Matters Webinar Series!
SAVE THE DATE
Wednesday, October 29, 2:00 pm EST
Featuring AARP Health Experts, Bright Horizons Family Solutions® is bringing you the next installment
of the Family Matters Webinar Series on the the basics of Medicare for caregivers Join us in this hour
long webinar to discover what you need to know about Medicare policies in an quick and easy to
understand format.
Keep checking www.brighthorizons.com/webinar for the latest registration information as it becomes
available!
8501 Campus Dr. Mt. Pleasant, WI 53406 | [email protected] | Mon-Fri, 6:30 a.m.– 6:00 p.m.