by Gail Lotze, Head of School  

At our first meeting in October, the discussion began with "the state of affairs" at Chance School. Dialogue included conversation about the school's new strategic plan, ISACS reaccreditation, state licensing, our new Outdoor Program component of the curriculum, Roots and Shoots, Pennies for Patients, new policies this year and new office personnel. The second portion of the meeting, which was unfortunately too short, focused on the book, The Childhood Roots of Adult Happiness by Edward M. Hallowell, MD. Hallowell develops a reasonable and realistic five-step plan (connection, play, practice, mastery and recognition) that all parents can use to give their children the gift that will last a lifetime - happiness. This book is a delightful "read" with many of Hallowell's personal anecdotes as he parents his own children and would be a great gift for yourself or anyone else with children.

Our next "Meet with the Head" is scheduled for Tuesday, January 31, 2012. Our book focus will be The Price of Privilege by Madeline Levine, Ph.D. Levine has over twenty-five years of clinical experience treating children and teens. The Price of Privilege looks at how parental pressure and material advantage are creating a generation of unhappy and disconnected children - America's new "at-risk" children.

Preschool registration for the upcoming school year starts with the enrollment of current Chance students and their siblings. Preschool Registration Packets will be distributed to Chance families on Wednesday, November 9. You will receive 1 packet for your family via your oldest child in attendance OR mailed to families not in school on Wednesday. The packet includes the papers needed for children entering the 2s, 3s, or 4s for the upcoming school year. Please take the time to review the information and contact the school with any questions in preparation for enrollment.

On Monday, November 14, 2011, registration begins at 7:30 a.m. for children entering the 2s, 3s, or 4s classes for the 2012-2013 school year. Registration for children of current Chance families will conclude on Friday, December 9, at 3 p.m. The school cannot accept any registration papers or payment before Nov. 14 at 7:30 a.m.

To secure your child's enrollment for the 2012-2013 school year, return the Registration Form with $800 non-refundable registration fee on or before December 9. Upon receipt, the Enrollment Contract and Student Profile are also required. To secure you child's enrollment if you are applying for financial aid, return the Registration Form with $100 refundable registration fee.

Registration is on a first-come, first-serve basis. While we can accept all returning students, know that preschool enrollment can be limited according to class size, schedule, and gender considerations. For a complete outline of steps, deadlines, required forms and fees, and enrollment restrictions, review the Application and Registration for Current Chance Families. Plan accordingly, based on your interest in a specific class for the upcoming school year.

Details are also included on the internal website in the FYI/Parent Handbook and Tuition & Admissions sections. Contact Margaret Droste, Director of Admissions, with questions at 502.425.6904 or admissions@chanceschool.org.

What Does Developmental Education at Chance School Look Like? Keep Reading for the User-Friendly Version....  

Because we know that children are individuals with unique learning styles and timetables, at Chance School we offer a developmental education program. We stress learning as an active process, meeting children at their own levels regardless of age and grade, optimizing growth and achievement.

Translate this definition into practice and that is what learning at every level looks like at Chance School.

• Individualized. Each child is challenged to work at his his/her own level and pace.
• In a safe environment. Learning is all about taking risks to try new things because mistakes are considered as opportunities to learn.
• Relevant and meaningful. If new material has a practical application, the learner becomes highly motivated and learns best when faced with genuine challenges, structured choices and responsibility.
• Active. The learning comes in the actual doing. Think of it this way - Would you learn as much from hearing about a cruise or actually taking the cruise yourself?
• Fostered in an environment of mutual respect and trust. Teachers act as facilitators, coaches and role models and take an interest in and value the opinions of each child.
• Child-centered and child-directed. When planning, teachers take cues from the interests, concerns and questions of the children and build on their natural curiosity, infusing all of the skills, knowledge and concepts for growth and development.
• Reflective. When children have been immersed in authentic and real experiences, they must have the time and the opportunity to reflect upon what they have felt, thought and learned.

Chance School - what a great place for students and their teachers!

The annual Fall Festival was a fun-filled afternoon of perfect weather, lots of games, delicious food and great music.  A big THANK YOU to Celeste Espinoza de Verderosa for leading the effort to make the day such a success and to ALL the volunteers for their hard work and many contributions.

During Fall Festival, Chance families generously donated a total of 465 ½ pounds of food to Dare to Care to help families in our community who need it.  We appreciate your continued support of our annual food drive and thank Jen Rue and Sarah Cummins for organizing it. 

Thanks also to all parents and faculty who purchased items from the Innisbrook Wrap sale.  Chance earned over $1,800 from the sale.  We appreciate Bethany Jones' great work in coordinating the sale this year.  Thank you to Tasha and Chris Hellman for expertly handling the Spiritwear sales that included choices of colorful Chance logo and new collegiate style Chance t-shirts and sweats.

We hope everyone had a fun Halloween that included coming to the Chance "Trunk or Treat"!  Thank you to Ashley Campbell for organizing that event.  The next social event that you won't want to miss is the Fall Hike, December 4 from 2:00-4:00pm.  It will include a campfire with roasted marshmallows and a walk through the woods near school guided as always by Mr. Stevens.        

Plan to get a jump start on your holiday shopping at the Chance School Holiday Boutique!  It will be held in the Funroom on Saturday, November 19 from 9:00am to 3:00pm and will feature a variety of vendors offering exciting gift items including jewelry, accessories, home décor, kids' items and more.  Friends and family are welcome to shop too, so please be sure to invite them.

The preparations for Auction are underway, so mark your calendars for February 25 to go back in time for an 80's Party!  If you have any questions, or would like to get involved, please contact us.   

Have a Happy, Healthy Fall! 

Christine Baltas 

 cmbaltas@insightbb.com 

472-9288

Katy Collis

kcollis@bellsouth.net 

893-3799

We began our year welcoming back returning friends as well as greeting friends new to Chance School. We spent the first few weeks learning the routines of our school day and getting to know each other better. "All about Me" posters were sent home during opening conferences, and as we began sharing them they ushered in the first theme of the year aptly named "All about Me". For most of September, we focused on friends, feelings and family. We talked about how to be a good friend, made puppets, washed babies in our sensory table and wrote our first classroom book about what feels good.

Before immersing ourselves in all of the usual Halloween frivolity, we finished off our "All About Me" theme with a focus on the five senses for several weeks while welcoming the autumn season. Activities such as playing with play dough made out of coffee grounds, painting with sand added to finger paint and exploring potpourri with a magnifying glass were just a few of the many sensory stimulating activities the children experienced in the classroom. We used all of our senses when we used an air popper to make popcorn for snack one day and four out of our five senses when we tasted different colored apples and then later graphed the results.

With impeccable timing, during our last week focusing on the senses, we were thrilled to have our first outdoor classroom experience with Ms. Sarah. Ms. Sarah had us using our eyes to notice differences between leaf shapes and feeling leaves for different textures when the leaves looked similar. Our friends are so excited that we will be meeting with Ms. Sarah every month. 

Thank you to everyone who has responded to the survey monkey regarding this year's new policies at Chance. Your feedback will help us look at policies and make decisions that positively impact the children. At the time of the enews submission (October 28), we had already received 120 responses!

The deadline for participating in the survey was October 31. We will compile the data and make it available to everyone. I am excited and anticipate that the data will guide us in re-examining policies wherever needed and that we will make decisions that are in the best interests of the children.