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Letter from the Director
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Dear Redeemer Community,
There might not be anything quite as incredible as the birth of a child. It truly is a miracle!
Christmas parties, children's performances, Santa, stockings, candy canes, Elf on the Shelf, cookies, gift giving, decorations, caroling, wrapping paper, trimming the tree, shopping and meal planning... it is a wonder we even have time to stop and "see", to stop and see that we are celebrating the birth of a child.
During our first rehearsal for our Christmas pageant, right in the middle of singing "Gloria", Frank, one of our three year olds, in a very matter of fact manner left his spot on the altar to peer at the baby in the manger. He stood there, curiously looking for quite some time - and I watched him and wondered. I wondered what he was thinking. This is what he said, "I wasn't thinking about anything. I just wanted to see." Of everything that was going on around him, what he was most curious about was the baby lying in the manger. He just wanted to see.
That is what makes this time of year so truly special. It is a time to see. It is an opportunity to open our eyes and see. It is a time to share the beautiful story of Christmas and the birth of Jesus with our children. It is a time to see the miracle of Christmas through their eyes.
It is also a time to truly see and celebrate the miracle of our own children. Perhaps it is the perfect time to share with them the beautiful story of their births because there might not be anything quite as incredible as the birth of a child. It truly is a miracle!
Merry Christmas!
Mary This week's director's letter was inspired by Judi Smith and her grandson, Charlie, who after hearing the story of Jesus' birth from Gigi said, "Ok. So now Gigi tell me the story of the birth of Charlie."
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Classroom Updates:
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Hanna 2s:
The Hanna Twos have been busy little elves painting, pasting, and decorating. They have been ringing bells and listening to Christmas stories and songs. The Christmas spirit is most definitely among us. Mrs. Doherty and I hope you will be able to attend the RPDS Christmas Service on Friday, December 18th at 9:15am. The Twos classes will be leading the procession into the church and will gather in the Hale Auditorium immediately after the service for refreshments. We wish you all a wonderful, safe holiday. Big hugs to our little ones. May all their Christmas wishes come true.
Wyatt 2s:
The Wyatt 2s have been very busy since our last update. During November, we learned about squares and the color brown. We continued talking about fall and painted fall leaves. Lots of turkey projects and activities filled the rest of our days. We even helped to decorate our bulletin board by making huge turkey feathers. December has brought us triangles and the color green, a perfect combination to make Christmas trees for our bulletin board. We used our muscles to pull the string on a salad spinner to make a spin art wreath in many different shades of green. Next week, we will be sending home candy canes that we grew from peppermint seeds. Be sure to look at the string of lights on the classroom door to see what your children want most for Christmas. We are looking forward to seeing everyone at the program next week. We have been practicing a lot with our bells!
Hooper 3s:
The classrooms are busy and festive as we create holiday decorations and special gifts! The children are using many of their emerging skills while making their Christmas treasures.....wreaths, trees, elves, angels, Santa's, reindeer food and even a red nosed "Christmoose!" Many holiday stories and songs are being enjoyed by your children. Little Jack Horner is our December nursery rhyme and green stars are our color and shape of the month. The energy level and "volume" in the classroom are increasing as Christmas draws near. We are working on focusing that energy into our Christmas Show rehearsals. We look forward to performing for you all on Friday, December 18th at 9:15 in the church! We will gather in our classroom for a brief party following the service...Thanks to our Christmas party Moms. We wish you all a very Merry Christmas! Enjoy your "little ones" at this very exciting and joyful time of year. We look forward to seeing everyone back at Redeemer in the New Year....HOHOHO...
The five day 3s have been busy little elves. We are decorating the classroom, working on our songs, and making super secret surprises. We are learning Little Jack Horner, working on stars, and the color green. We are taking advantage of the warm weather with outside play.
Pre-k is attempting to keep up with our letter of the week "K" while we are creating many Christmas surprises for home. Fine motor skills are being challenged as we glue, paint, and add sparkle to gifts. We are also making a little book about using our five senses to enjoy the holidays so please help your child identify the special sights, sounds, textures, smells and tastes at your home. Enjoy time with your children- truly special gifts!
Loeb Pre-k:
Mrs. Loeb's pre-k is in high spirits! We are looking forward to Christmas and have taken a peek at Chanukah! We are making cards, being silly, and trying to finish up the letter " K"; such a confusing sound, so often confused with "C". We just tell them the alphabet is tricky! The Church has been filled with their amazing voices. We hope you can hear some of the singing at home, although nothing can replace 120 children in unison.
Kara and I wish you a wonderful holiday, filled with family, laughter, and quiet.
Kindergarten:
December is an incredibly special and magical time in Kindergarten. We began reading and discussing the biblical story of Christmas, and the children are busy practicing their roles for the Christmas pageant. We will be focusing on the symbols of Christmas and their meanings while doing many hands-on crafts and activities that reinforce their understanding. In Language Arts, students continue studying their phonemic awareness and practicing "Good Reader Habits." These skills are carried into Writer's Workshop as they hone their skills as authors who plan, write, reread, and add-to their stories. In Math, we continue to improve our number sense to 100 by counting, writing numbers, skip counting, counting by 10's, and playing games such as Roll & Record Numerals.
We look forward to sharing all that we have accomplished this month during our Chapel service and holiday party on the 18th. Wishing you and your families a wonderful Christmas season.
Pre-first:
Pre-first has decked the halls and is full of Christmas cheer and
excitement. We have enjoyed gearing up for the holidays by doing some letter writing, Christmas crafts, pageant rehearsals, smartboard activities, patterning and graphing holiday symbols, story telling, reading holiday books such as The Polar Express and learning about the symbols of Christmas and its' true meaning. We have even written a class book, "Reindeer, Reindeer, What Do You See?" We also wrote stories about what we would do if Santa got stuck in our chimney! I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday with family and friends!
Lunch bunch is getting the school all ready for Christmas. We have made ornaments for the bulletin board and glitter trees. Lunch bunch has been enjoying the extra warm afternoons, working on their Christmas songs and learning Merry Christmas in Spanish.
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Office Notes
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Outreach
Thank you to everyone who contributed to the book drive for Govans Elementary! We collected approximately 300 books and coloring books to be given as gifts at the school's holiday party. You brightened a child's day - thank you! We are also grateful for Jenn Lohse and Tami James who organized this program.
THANK YOU!
We want to give a special thanks to Elizabeth Guerin and Sophie Coates for their amazing work with our Holiday Greens sales!
UPCOMING CALENDAR EVENTS:
Friday, December 18th- 9:15 am- Christmas Service- break begins after service.
Monday, January 4- School Resumes
Friday, January 15- 11:45 all school dismissal- faculty meeting
Monday, January 18- NO SCHOOL- MLK Day
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Program Highlights:
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PDS Sunday
PDS Sunday was a wonderful celebration of the partnership between the church and school. Our students enjoyed meeting both St. Nicholas and new friends from the Church's Sunday School. Thank you to all of you who could join us. It was heartwarming to have so many PDS families and teachers join the Church of Redeemer's congregation for this worship service.
and from our rector
Dear PDS families and faculty,
Thank you so much for joining us this past Sunday at the 10 service. I loved the children's parade of gifts at the offertory and hearing Mary describe so beautifully the significant strengths of your program. The relationship between the parish and the school is a gift to the community and to me, and I give thanks for you all every day. The energy that your children bring to our campus and your commitment to their development keeps us grounded and growing. I look forward to more times together.
David
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In preschool we recognize the privilege, responsibility and joy of educating our youngest students. Alongside their parents, we work diligently at building the foundation for their ongoing and lifelong learning. Be sure to click on the link below found in every issue to see our wonderful students in action. Enjoy!
Please visit our website
Interested in learning more about our
Please visit:
to learn more about
The Church of the Redeemer
RPDS WEEKLY VALUE:
The true meaning of Christmas
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Community News
Church of the Redeemer
Family Christmas Eve Service and Pageant
Thursday, December 24
4:00
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Looking for Diapers!
Baltimore's only diaper bank, diaperSHARE (a project of ShareBaby Inc.) is holding a diaper drive this Sunday at the Hampden Giant from 10a.m.-1 p.m. Essentially, a diaper bank is just like a food bank - for diapers!
The diapers that are collected are distributed to families in need in Baltimore homeless and domestic violence shelters and programs. They collect new and open packs of diapers (and new packs of wipes and diaper cream!) so if your kiddos have outgrown their diapers or if you just want to help, please support this cause.
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Contact Us
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Redeemer Parish Day School
5603 N. Charles Street
Baltimore, MD 21210
410-435-9510
Mary Knott, Director
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