A friendly welcome greeted the children prepared by classroom volunteer Sophia Toole Offsite Days: Our tentative offsite days will be Tue, Wed, Thur alternating between Woodstream Park and the Departure Bay Seashore. We will require two parent volunteers for each of these days. If Fridays work best for you please let me know because there is some flexibility with the days. This week on Thursday, we will be travelling by school bus to Milner Gardens and no volunteer is required for that day. Please send in your permission slip if you have not already done so. This Tuesday we will accompany the K/1 class with Mrs Pickerell. GOOGLE DOCUMENT FOR OCTOBER OFFSITE SIGN UP SPCA Mrs. Radigan and I have booked the Kindness Counts program to visit our classrooms. The cost is $1.00 per child. Please send in a loonie for this program over the next week. They will be coming on Monday October 7th. :) Cooking: We have lots of apples leftover and the children are eager to...

...

On Saturday I attended a Gary Anaka workshop which addressed a child's brain and what we can do to grow a healthy brain. including water, a healthy diet, good fats, movement, safety and much more. Right away my table group began discussing Reggio Inspired practice and how so many elements of this pedagogy support healthy brain growth in children. As I considered all of the wonderful pieces of my program one of the most success' this week has been morning tables. This past week I have been paying attention to how my new kinder interact with each other and the materials in the classroom. Already they are slowing down and talking with each other and enjoying the open ended materials. The more time they use the materials the richer their play and conversations have become! I am in love with morning tables and know that they are a rich experience for children and their brain development.  This framework allows a slow start to their long days as they tran...

Story Play created by Hudson and Peyton Family Reading- Please join us on Monday mornings for family reading beginning September 23rd . We will begin at 8:45 and end at 9:00. Enter through the school front door and join us in room 115. Parents, extended family, caregivers and siblings are welcome to join us. Please expect other children to join you if they do not have anyone visiting that day. I will drum to let you know that the session is over. Birthdays - we love to celebrate birthdays at school. Your child will decorate a birthday letter for the classroom math wall, receive a book and small gift bag. You are welcome to celebrate with the class by sending a treat to school like a little bit of carmel corn in a brown bag with a pencil (thanks Acacia!) Scholastic Orders- family book orders will be processed on the Friday following the forms being sent home. It takes about two weeks for the orders to arrive. School Supply Fee $25.00- I have purchased the student supplies....

Canadian Small business which emphasizes eco through from design, creating, shipping and repurposing. Excellent for families looking for outdoor gear for their children. ...

            When we were visiting Reggio Emilia Schools in Italy one of the many things that we noticed as observers was the use of natural elements in their centres. Instead of plastic containers they used metal, basket and glass jars. The children used wooden cars in the block centre and lots of tree branches, wooden blocks, stumps and leaves in their play. Two of the schools we visited had potted trees in the classrooms and they all had bouquets of fresh flowers. There was an absence of plastic in the room and abundant use of repurposed materials. The furniture was all wooden tables, chairs and shelves and lots of small woven rugs throughout the rooms. There were branches hanging from the ceiling and beautiful children's process art with nature pieces including clay, weaving, sculpture and sketches throughout the school. Each centre was different but had beautiful large windows bringing views of trees, yard and sky into the room as well as many mirrors to reflect...