United Christian Parish Preschool

March 2016 Newsletter

PRESCHOOL OPEN

Tuesday March1

FROM THE DIRECTOR
Dear Parents, Thanks again for sending so many of your friends to register for next year at Preschool. We appreciate your confidence. It was hard on everyone to have such a disrupted winter season. The teachers are all thankful that we have been back to usual routines. We will celebrate Easter during the next two weeks. We are reminded how much God loves us and did not let Jesus stay dead but alive forever to be our friend. I look forward to seeing you at Parents Day and the Easter Egg Hunt. Jane

MARCH SNACKS

3/1 Wheat Thins & soy butter

3/2 Soup/Ritz or Bagels/cr.cheese

3/3 Soup/Ritz - Peaches/gr.cracker

3/4 Soup/Ritz or Bagels/cr.cheese

3/7 Applesauce & Ritz

3/8 Potato wedges, ketchup

3/9 Bananas & gr.cr.

3/10 Chips & salsa

3/11 Cheerios & raisins

3/14 Ritz & cheese slices

3/15 Wheat Thins & soy butter

3/16 Bananas & gr. Crackers

3/17 Hot Cross Buns

3/18 Hot Cross Buns

3/29 Veggies & hummus

3/30 Irish Soda Bread or Chips, salsa

3/31 Irish Soda Bread or Chips, salsa

Fresh fruit and vegetable days may be earlier or later due to delivery times.

Vegetable Soup and Irish Soda Bread will be this month's cooking activities.

UNITED CHRISTIAN PARISH PRESCHOOL

Contact Information

703-437-1127

Administrative Staff

Jane Plum, Director

Tracie Lambakis & Julie Cornette, Administrative Assistants

The Preschool is accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children. The Preschool is inspected by Fairfax County Health Department and voluntarily complies with Virginia Standards for Child Day Programs, but holds a Religious Exemption to Licensing from the VA Department of Social Services.

CHURCH ACTIVITIES
Sundays 8:30 and 11 am - Worship services with child care. Godly Play for children ages 4 to 7 is held during the 11 am service. 9:50 am. - Sunday School for all ages Palm Sunday 3/20 Services at 8:30 and 11 am. Easter Sunday 3/27 Services at 8:30 and 11 am. For more information See ucpreston.org or call the church office at 703-620-3065.

WELCOME NEW FAMILIES
2016/2017 We welcome you to our School Family. This newsletter is our primary communication about school-wide events and announcements. Keep us updated if your e-mail address changes. Feel free to subscribe other members of your family.

BAGS, NOT BACKPACKS PLEASE

Please replace the backpacks

The children's teachers like to help them learn independence. The children can easily put away all their artwork and papers when they can reach into the top of a bag hanging on a hook. The bag with one big opening holds lots of artwork. Unzipping a backpack makes the task much more difficult. Also those multiple pockets make it easy for papers to get lost going between teacher and parents.

Join Our List

JOIN THE FUN
Parents Day, March 7 & 8, 8:30 am This fun event is the time for a parent (usually the one who does not ordinarily bring your child to school) to come early in the morning, share a continental breakfast and some play activities with your child. For those classes that meet on both Monday and Tuesday, the Tigers and Owls will be March 7 and Monkeys and Chipmunks on March 8.

EASTER EGG HUNT

Monday, March 14, 5:45-6:45

The Easter Egg Hunt is coming! Don't miss out on the fun! There will be crafts and singing, in addition to finding eggs. You don't need to bring anything but your family. Even the bags and snack will be provided this year. The rain dates are Tuesday, March 15 and Thursday, March 17.

SUMMER ACTIVITIES

Preschool Summer Camp June 6-10 & 13-17

Registration forms will be sent home in school bags this week. Be sure to return forms by March 18. There will be a lottery if there are more registrants than spaces, but we anticipate that there will be space for everyone. After March 18, registrants are taken in order to fill open spaces.

Vacation Bible School July 11-15

United Christian Parish invites your children ages 3 years* through rising 3rd graders to Vacation Bible School, July 11-15. Or register for the special extended program for rising 4th-6th graders.

* must be 3 years old by Jan 1, 2016 and able to toilet themselves

Join us as we visit Joseph in the prison-or palace to hear some amazing, true stories about trusting God through the good and bad times! New this year, we will be having online registration. By mid- March you should receive an email with a link to register.

Registration Fee: $10 per child (maximum $25 per family) Financial aid is available if needed.

For questions or to volunteer please contact Beth Williams at Beth@ucpreston.org or Shelly Johnson at michellejohnson1980@yahoo.com

CONSCIOUS DISCIPLINE
Thursday, March 10, 9:15-10:45 am Come explore the subject of power struggles with children--how to prevent them and how to heal relationships if they happen. If your child is not in school on Thursday and you want to attend, call the office to ask about child care.

BIRTHDAYS
See Calendar for Gathering Since we are not in school to celebrate June, July and August birthdays in those months, we include them during the school year. Notice below that the March Gathering includes celebration of June birthdays. Parents of the children with other summer birthdays should notice the calendars for future Gatherings.

FROM THE PARENTS GROUP

Please join in any or all the activities

Meeting

Come join us for our next Parent Group meeting, Tuesday, March 8th, at 9:10 a.m. We will be stuffing eggs and getting ready for the Easter Egg Hunt.

Easter Egg Hunt

Come join us for the Easter Egg Hunt on March 14th (rain dates 3/15 and 3/17) at 5:45 p.m. We will provide bags, so you don't even need to bring a basket. We'll have lots of fun celebrating Easter! If you have any questions, please contact Colleen Grant (colleen.o.grant@gmail.com) or Liz Kamp (lizekamp@gmail.com). See you March 14th at 5:45 p.m.!

Labels for Education

The national Labels for Education (Campbell's Soup Labels) program is ending after this school year. Please send all your labels in as soon as you can, so we can take advantage of this great resource. Send them with your child, or put them in the school office.

Family Dining Out
Join us at Lucia's Italian Ristorante Wednesday, March 16th for a delicious fundraising event! Present the flyer that will come home in your child's school bag, and a portion of the proceeds from your dinner will go to our preschool. The offer is valid for dine-in, carry-out, and delivery.

CALENDAR
Mo, 3/1 Preschool is open, FCPS is closed Mo/Tu 3/7-8 Parents Day Th 3/10 Conscious Discipline 9:15 am Fr/Mo 3/11, 14 Gathering (includes June birthdays) Mo 3/14 Easter Egg Hunt (Rain date-T, 3/15 & Th 3/17)Tu/Th 3/15, 17 Chapel Mo-Mo 3/21-28 Preschool closed, Easter Vacation

LOOKING FORWARD TO NEXT YEAR

Children Coming to Preschool

New families need to come in with a birth certificate or passport and pick up the packet with forms and Parent Handbook.
Returning children will bring home their packets in their school bags next week; please put the packet in a safe place.

Going to Kindergarten?

Go sign up at your neighborhood elementary school so that you get all the necessary information about orientation sessions.
Please reply to the this e-mail and tell us which school your child will attend if you have not done so already. We like to let you know other families going to the same school.
For those of you who give us magnet school forms, they will be mailed to FCPS promptly.
Some of you will be given Transition forms by your elementary school. These will be completed and given to you along with progress reports at the end of May. The elementary schools do not need those until summer. All families will be given an extra copy of the spring progress report to share with your elementary school.

I LOVE YOU RITUAL FOR MARCH

Hot Cross Buns

Hot Cross Buns, Hot Cross Buns

Clap thighs, hands, child's hands

One penny, Two penny

Touch 1 finger right hand, 2 fingers left hand

Hot Cross Buns

Clap thighs, hands, child's hands

Give them to your daughters

Shake right hands

Give them to your sons

Shake left hands

One penny, Two penny

Repeat finger touches

Hot Cross Buns

Clap thighs, hands, child's hands

Those of you who have come to Conscious Discipline sessions know how important it is to build connections with eye contact, touch and presence in a playful way. Teachers do these with your children and they do them with each other. You can build connections in your child's brain by doing these together at home.

LOST & FOUND
Last Chance These items which were on display the day of Parent Conferences are being donated to charity next week. New Lost & Found Since Feb 5

Tuition Credit Voucher	If you do work for the preschool and wish to get credit for tuition, complete this form and attach it to your next tuition invoice and payment. Child's Name ___________________________________________ Work done _____________________________________________ Hours __________ X $12/hour = ___________________________