October 31st Newsletter

Good afternoon
We are having beautiful weather this weekend and I hope that you are enjoying outdoor family walks. Our family has been walking Colliery Dam and Lynley Valley and we are feeling rested and ready for tomorrow's spooky festivities.
This week, Ms. Macdonald, our pre-service teacher, will be joining us for five full days to observe the children. We expect to be offsite all five mornings and look forward to spending that time together.  Please check our November offsite schedule to sign up for our offsite mornings.
Ms. Welte, an ECE has been hired as my full time teaching partner (and with Mrs. R on Fridays). She will begin on November 15th and continue full days until we are licensed for childcare. Then she will transition to accommodate family before or after school care. As soon as we are licensed the district will sharing the details with families. A second ECE will be hired to ensure that families can access before and after school care.
I have completed the counting assessment and updated all of the children's freshgrade portfolios. 

This week I will introduce our pattern study by inviting the children to collect nature's loose parts during our offsite mornings. Then I will be  asking the children "how many different ways can you sort your items?" To support this we will bring a few baskets to the forest Monday and Tuesday. If you are outdoors with your family please collect acorns and conkers to add to our collection as they are not in the offsite areas we will be visiting. 
I have submitted a grant proposal for a Teacher Inquiry on Social Emotional Wellness together with three staff at Departure Bay. We will be working together researching, discussing and reflecting upon our current practice. 
This week the children are being introduced to deep breathing as a tool to self calm. I have continued with naming big emotions through read alouds and modeling language throughout the day.
A new Show and Tell Calendar will come home on Monday. If your child misses the assigned day please still send it and we will fit it in the next day.
Have a great halloween!!!