Camp Songs with Blake

I love music. Music is so powerful, and especially when it comes to preschool students. It has the power to move you, inspire you, and in this week's case, it had the power to bring everyone together. As you know, this week we are having our Camping unit, so I invited a very special camper to come to preschool and sing camp songs with us: Blake! We set up a "camp site" in the gym, sat in a circle around a pretend fire, and had a blast jammin' out. All the kids thought that Blake actually lived in the woods. They thought that he was a camper full-time and comes from the woods and took a trip into civilization specifically to sing for us. It was really cute. After he left, Kingston asked me what Blake was going to do if it rained that night.

Blake brought along his bin-o-instruments to share with the kids, and everyone was eager to be handed an instrument.

Here's Blake introducing his instruments:

 Julia was very excited to get her "jungle whistle"!

Blake lead the sing-a-long with some campfire classics. 

As you can see, the children were enthralled:

Here is Blake leading a group song in which each student got to perform their very own instrument solo. The kids just loved this.

And I'll end this post with a stream of photos of Kyler and how much he absolutely loved his drum:

-Miss Jakki

Yay, yay, yay, it's May!

Hello Families,

I hope I can finally say “Happy Spring”. We had a great month of April and did our spring unit in the midst of what seemed to be more snow than we had all winter. Even though we didn’t get to plant any seeds outside yet or do any sort of bug studies, we learned a lot about weather and what it means to live next to Lake Superior.

Our field trip to the Aquarium was a success. The children loved being able to be hands-on with so many fresh-water creatures and everyone learned a lot about animals and their many habitats. We also had a wonderful time celebrating Earth Day. We focused on recycling, preserving our earth, and taking good care of nature. We even went on a nature walk to see how many natural resources we could find outside, as well as pick up things that didn’t belong in nature. We ended our month with a focus on ourselves as preschoolers and how much we’ve grown since the fall.

I can’t believe it’s May already- because that means it is the end of our preschool school year. We’ll kick off the month with an awesome unit on Camping. The children will learn all about the wilderness and take a look at what it would take to solely rely on Mother Nature. We are also planning a unit on Transportation where the students will explore the wonderful world of wheels and how people use them. We end our month with a week dedicated to preschool pride where we will have fun participating in a wacky week.

Please remember that along with our late spring comes lots of mud. We take the preschoolers outside two times daily which means we have an extra tendency to get our clothes dirty. Please remember to send extra clothes to school with your child, including pants and socks. We will continue to wear snow pants for as long as our playground stays wet and the temperatures stay cool.

Preschool graduation will be Thursday, May 23^rd from 5:00-6:30pm. The ceremony will take place at Old Main (weather permitting), and we will be having a school-wide picnic potluck. There will be a sign-up on our sign-in table for you to communicate what dish you are able to bring, so be on the look-out!

I just want to thank you all again for the support you provide for your children and their school-lives. It is truly a blessing.

Warmest regards,

Miss Jakki

Sunday	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday
Theme: Look How I’ve Grown Bb			1	2 Ahnika V.I.P.	3	4
5 Theme: Camping Bb	6	7 Tuuli V.I.P.	8 Makena V.I.P.	9 Leah R. V.I.P.	10	11
12 Mother’s Day Theme: Transportation Aa	13	14 Bella V.I.P.	15	16	17	18
19 Theme: Transportation Aa	20	21 Anthony V.I.P.	22	23 Graduation at Old Main 5:00-6:30pm	24	25
26 Theme: Preschool Pride WACKY WEEK	27 CLOSED FOR MEMORIAL DAY	28 Wear Stripes or Polka Dots	29 Pajama Day	30 Wear a Costume Day	31 Wear your class color Day

Field Trip Switch-Up

Hello everyone!

I just wanted to make a quick note that our field trip that we have scheduled tomorrow had to be cancelled. So what we've done is schedule a new field trip! Tomorrow we will be going to the Aquarium. So scratch the puddle boots, come in tennies, and we will go on an aquatic adventure!!

We will be taking the DTA from 24th Ave E at 9:31am, so please have your child at preschool no later than 9:15am. We will be arriving back to preschool at 1:00pm for a late sack-lunch and a little rest. If you have any questions, please call the school right away!

Thanks,

Miss Jakki

April News

Greetings Everyone,

Happy Spring! Even if there are still remnants of winter outside, things are warming up at CCP. We have a fantastic month planned ahead as we say “Hel-LO” to April! March was a successful month as we celebrated our love of reading with a Dr. Seuss unit. We also had a wonderful time during our Healthy Me unit. The preschoolers got to do some Zumba; we learned about the inside of our bodies thanks to Amy Greminger; and we also had a visit from Michelle Brieland, who talked with the kids about exercise and gave everyone their own pedometer. During the “Healthy Me” unit we also had a fun visit from the Whole Foods Coop where the kids got to try some unique and healthy foods.

April comes to us with many fun new units and themes planned. We begin the month by celebrating Spring and new beginnings (even though our celebration might be in snowpants)! We are also going to be having a unit on Animals where the preschoolers will get to take a field trip to the Woodland Hills Farm on Tuesday, April 9^th at 9:30am. If your child is attending this field trip, please make sure they are dressed for the weather. Our field trip guide stressed the fact that puddle boots or durable boots are preferred because the grounds get really muddy and sloppy. We are still in need of chaperones for this trip; so if you are interested in helping, please speak with one of the teachers right away. Shortly after our unit on Animals we will be having a unit on Earth and Recycling where we will get to learn about what a wonderful resource our Earth is to us and ways we can keep it clean.

Thanks again to all who help out during the weeks! The teachers always love to have an extra set of hands around, and the preschoolers truly love having you.

Warmest regards,

Miss Jakki

Sunday	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday
Theme: Spring Ee	1 Closed	2	3	4	5	6
7 Theme: Animals Dd	8	9 Woodland Hills Field Trip  (WEAR BOOTS!) 9:30am	10	11	12	13
14 Theme: Animals Dd	15	16	17	18 Pajama Day	19	20
21 Theme: Earth/Recycling Cc	22 Earth Day	23	24	25 Fire Drill	26	27
28 Theme: Look How I’ve Grown Cc	29	30

Week of March 18th

Hello Everyone!

I hope you all had a fun and exciting St. Patrick's Day! I know all the preschoolers did. Friday everyone had a blast trying to catch that leprechaun. Miss Renee taught all the kids how to effectively capture a leprechaun by bending and scooping, but we still let him get away! He played many fun tricks on the kids at preschool, but in the end he left us some candy, cookies, and even some of his gold! (The thought of a miniature red-haired man that runs around terrorizing things and pinching people scared some of our preschool friends, so we made sure to tell everyone that Roy G. Biv is only real if you believe in him.)

This week we continue to focus on Health. Amy Greminger, Anna's mom, visited our school last week and gave the kids a wonderful presentation on the human body; Thanks, Amy! We also had a great visit from the Whole Foods Coop where the kids got to sample some interesting healthy food. This week we will take a look at our digestive system, learn about dental hygiene, and Monday we even get to practice some Zumba; so if you are scheduled for school Monday don't forget to wear your exercise clothes!

And please remember, in the case of inclement weather, CCP will close along with the Duluth Public Schools.

Thanks:)

Miss Jakki

Conferences & Summer Camp

Hello all!

I just wanted to write a quick note about conferences. Conferences are next Tuesday and Wendesday, March 12th and 13th. Sign-up sheets are in the preschool entry so please sign up as soon as you can. The teachers are willing to work with you on any scheduling conflicts you might have.

Enrollment for summer camp will be sent out at conference time, so start thinking about your summer plans!

See you soon,

Miss Jakki

March

Greetings Everyone,

What a fun month February was! We had a wonderful time in our Post Office unit writing letters to our loved ones and learning about the postal service. The preschoolers found it especially entertaining to peel and stick stamps to everything. Our Valentine unit was a blast. The Valentine’s Day tea party was a success and everyone enjoyed spending time with their loved ones. (Some even got a kiss in the kissing booth.)  Everyone had fun in our History unit learning about Presidents, money, and the American Flag. We ended the month with a unit on Art Appreciation where the preschoolers got to exercise one of their favorite strengths: creativity.

March comes to us with many exciting new units and activities. We kick off the month with a Dr. Seuss theme, followed by a unit we call “Healthy Me”. During the Healthy Me unit the preschoolers will explore the many ways we keep our bodies healthy; from eating right, to brushing our teeth, to exercising, and even getting enough sleep. We will be having a visit with the Whole Foods Coop during this unit which will be an exciting opportunity to explore many healthy foods. This particular unit would also be an excellent time to have a visit from some of you! I know there are many healthy family members and role models here in our CCP community, so please talk with one of the teachers if you have anything to share and contribute to this unit (i.e. marathon medals, healthy food recipes, exercise routines, etc). We will be closing the month with a unit on Easter where we will spend some time talking about the newness of life. Please remember that CCP will be closed for Easter Friday, March 29^th through Monday, April 1^st.

We want to thank all the parents, friends, and family members who help out from time-to-time. It is especially nice having helpers come in at lunch time, read to the children during the day, and help out around the school. Please know you are always welcome at CCP!

Sincerely,

Miss Jakki

Sunday	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday
					1	2
3 Theme: Dr. Seuss Gg	4	5	6	7	8	9
10 Theme: Healthy Me Ff	11	12 Leighton V.I.P.	13 COOP visit 10am	14 Breck V.I.P.	15	16
17 Theme: Healthy Me Ff, Ee	18	19 Chelsea V.I.P.	20	21	22	23
24 31            Theme: Easter Ee	25 Ian V.I.P.	26 Fire Drill	27	28	29 CLOSED for Easter until Tuesday, April 2nd	30