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Little Seedlings News
Little Seedlings News
Extra! Extra!
This page was last updated: May 8, 2009
THANK YOU FOR SHARING YOUR CHILDREN WITH US!
We say we are "Growing the seeds of our future."
We hope and pray that we influence positively this message.
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Share Your Pictures!
If you have taken any pictures of our Little Seedlings during any of our fun class activities and would like to share them, please click on the camera to send them to us and we will post them on your student's class page.
Coming Attractions
MAY HIGHLIGHTS
1
NO SCHOOL
NO SCHOOLProfessional Day4Bee Keeper I-H Field Trip
Bee Keeper I-H Field TripFarm Room 4sTree House 4sTree House 3/4sKindergarten7Mother's Day Tea
Mother's Day TeaTree House 3sFarm Room 3/4s8Mother's Day Tea
Mother's Day TeaFarm Room 4sTree House 4sKindergarten14Berry Farm Field Trip
Berry Farm Field TripTree House 3s15Berry Farm Field Trip
Berry Farm Field TripTree House 3/4sTree House 4sFarm Room 4sKindergarten18Assessments Due
Assessments Due19Assessments Due
Assessments Due20Graduation Day/Reception
Graduation Day/ReceptionTree House 4s20Graduation Day/Reception
Graduation Day/ReceptionFarm Room 3/4sClass PicnicTree House 3s21Graduation Day/Reception
Graduation Day/ReceptionFarm Room 4sKindergartenClass PicnicTree House 4sFarm Room 3/4s
NEWS FROM THE DIRECTOR
On my way to work one day, I was thinking about how trusting you are. For St. Jude’s Day, I would walk down the hall and students and parents would hand me money that I would put in my pocket. The same happened for the Teacher’s appreciation luncheon. One day a parent gave me a signed blank check to pay for her field trip. I thought how very trusting, you know what you give to me will make its way to the proper place. You make me feel very honored that you trust me with your hard earned money. BUT you make me feel very humbled by giving me the trust of allowing me to supervise the teaching of your children. I am honored and very humbled. Thank you, my heart is singing.
My goodness, it is time to say goodbye! I am caught between happiness in knowing that our students are ready for the challenge of the next grade and sadness in knowing that I will miss each and every face, laughter, smile, hugs, and eagerness to learn over the summer! I am always amazed at what I learn each year even at my age, the students teach me. I am very honored to be in the position as Director, that I can go in and out of each class and enjoy the learning atmosphere that is electric in each class! I am privileged to know parents who are so very generous to those in need, to the teachers, and to me. Thank you. You are all a blessing, and I am very blessed to have you in my life. Enjoy your summer and don’t forget to hug those little ones!
God bless you all,
Lynn E. Duff
VISION & HEARING SCREENING
Nurse Diane Moison from the Health Department did vision and hearing screening of all four year olds, five year olds, and six year olds in the preschool and Kindergarten classes.
This is a service offered through the Health Department (part of getting children ready for the Big School). If Mrs. Duff or Nurse Moison did not contact you, your student is within the acceptable range for vision and hearing. Nurse Moison will return to screen again a few students in mid-May.
REGISTRATION FOR MOTHER'S DAY OUT FOR 2009-2010
Mother’s Day Out will register in-house for all Church members and Little Seedlings Christian Preschool and Kindergarten parents on Wednesday, 18 March 2009 in Brubacher Hall.
Open Registration will be held on Wednesday, 25 March 2009 in Brubacher Hall for the general public.
If you have any questions, please contact Nancy Risor on 301-475-5050 on Monday or Wednesday.
MOVIE EVENT
First Saints Community Church, St. Paul’s Campus will offer Movie Night May 8 at 6:30 p.m. Bugs Life will be shown. Doors open at 6:15 p.m. The movie is free with free popcorn and water. A great event for the entire family!
SUNSCREEN NEEDED
Now that the days are getting warmer and the sun is out on the playground, please put sun screen on your student before bringing them to school. We do not keep sun screen on hand, due to the sensitive nature of preschooler’s skin (what one can wear, could harm another’s skin). With sun screen on, we will keep their skin looking beautiful and cancer free in their years to come. Thank you for your consideration.
THE BEE MAN COMETH
Mr. Walter Williams will come to see us on Monday, 11 May. (He was scheduled for 4 May but it has been too cold for the bees.) He will give a presentation to each class on bee keeping. A student will able to try on his bee keeping outfit. After a wonderful presentation, he allows the students to try honey his bees have made. Some students love the honey and others usually are not so sure!
Hopefully, our students will not fear bees but will know their importance in the circle of life.
GRADUATION DAY
Our Graduation Days are upon us. The 4 Year Old Morning Tree House class will have their graduation ceremony on May 20 (Wednesday) at 11:15 a.m. in the Sanctuary followed by a reception in Brubacher Hall.
The 3 & 4 Year Old Afternoon Farm Room class will hold their graduation ceremony at 2:15 p.m. on Thursday, 21 May in the Sanctuary with a reception following in Brubacher Hall.
The 4 Year Old Farm Room Morning class will have their ceremony on Friday, May 22 at 10:45 a.m. in the Sanctuary with a reception in Brubacher Hall.
The Kindergarten will have their graduation ceremony at 12:30 p.m. on Friday, May 22 followed by a graduation luncheon in Room 8.
Each ceremony will begin with a prayer and a few words will be said by Mrs. Duff and the teachers. The students will receive their diploma from their teachers and after the ceremony finishes, photographs may be taken with the teachers. We will have refreshments following the ceremony.
All parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles are welcome to attend the ceremony. Please join us in congratulating our graduating preschoolers and Kindergarteners! What a big chapter has been written in their book of life! God bless them!
MOTHER'S DAY TEA
On Thursday, May 7 (3 Year Old Morning and 3&4 Year Old Afternoon) and Friday, May 8 (4 Year Old Morning Farm Room, 4 Year Old Morning Tree House, and the Kindergarten) the students will hold their Mother’s Day tea. Attendance at this tea is open to Mothers, or Grandmothers, or Aunts or a Special Lady. The 3 Year Old Morning Tree House Class will hold a tea for their Mom’s on May 7 (Thursday) at 11:15 a.m. in Room 8. The 3&4 Year Old Afternoon Farm Room Class will hold their tea on Thursday, May 7 at 2:15 p.m. in Brubacher Hall. On Friday, May 8 the 4 Year Old Morning Farm Room Class will hold their tea at 10:45 a.m. in Brubacher Hall. The tea for the 4 Year Old Morning Tree House Class will be held on Friday, May 8 at 11:15 a.m. in Room 8. The Kindergarten will hold their tea on Friday, May 8 at 2:45 p.m. in Room 8. Please plan on attending and receiving the special present your student has worked so hard to create just for you! Child care is available for siblings.
VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL
Vacation Bible School, Crocodile Dock, will be held July 13-17, 2009.
Times are:
Preschool: 3-5 years old; potty trained
9:30 am - 12:00 noonElementary: K - Grade 5 completed
6:00 pm - 9:00 pmIt is an amazing program and the children will enjoy the bayou! You may register on line on May 3rd on www.groupvbs.com/webtoybox/myvbs/amsession2009 and link to the registration page. VBS needs a variety of supplies donated. They are things you may have around the house, please see Mrs. Duff or Mrs. Whittington, our Music Teacher or the attachment to this newsletter if you would like to contribute.
FIELD TRIP PLANNED
The classes are planning their last field trip to a local berry farm to pick strawberries, pet some farm animals, play in the maze and playground, and enjoy farm life. The Ritchey’s own the farm and are parents of Little Seedlings alumni!
On Thursday, 14 May, the 3 Yr Old Morning Tree House class will travel to Southern Comfort Berry Farm departing at 9:30 a.m. and returning at 11:55 a.m.
On Friday, 15 May, the 4 Year Old Tree House class and the 4 Yr Old Morning Farm Room class will travel to the farm departing at 9:30 a.m. and returning by 11:55 a.m.
On Friday, 15 May, the 3&4 Yr Old Afternoon Farm Room Class will travel to the berry farm departing at 12:30 p.m. and return by 2:55 p.m. On Friday, 15 May, the Kindergarten will travel to the berry farm departing at 12:30 p.m. and returning at 3:25 p.m.
We will pick a small container of strawberries as part of the field trip. If you would like some for home, you may pick and pay for your strawberries by the pound. You may ask further questions from Mrs. Ritchey. There is no admission charge for parents or children under three. These are “fresh from the farm”! Enjoy.
PLAYGROUND MAINTENANCE
The Playground was built by our parents and students through the fund raisers, and we encourage you to use it as we do.
There are a few small rules we follow for our playground.
1. Pick up all trash and come into the building to throw it away.
2. Put all sand toys into the sandbox before leaving the playground.
3. If you remove the cover to the sandbox, please put it back on before leaving.
Our sand is sterilized and sifted for safe use by our students. If the sandbox cover is not replaced the feral cats in our area will use it as their litter box and we would not want anyone’s child or student to play in cat litter.
If we all remember these four rules it will make for a wonderful experience on the playground. Enjoy!
THINGS TO DO OVER THE SUMMER
Mrs. Duff will send out in the students’ folders a booklet titled “Summer Fun with Your Little One”. This booklet gives ideas of what to do as a family from June 1 thru September 1 (at no cost or little cost) in St. Mary’s County. This booklet was put together by Erin Gallo for her Silver Award in Girls Scouts. Mrs. Duff, as Co-Chair of the Early Childhood Team, worked with Erin on this project. It will give you great ideas for your summer!
Mrs. Swain, our Kindergarten teacher, suggests that if you wish your student to continue some formal education over the summer, that is fun, you may wish to purchase the “The Original Summer Bridge Activities” Reading, Writing, Math, and Language Skills! For PreK-K published by Rainbow Bridge Publishing. The ISBN Number is 1-59441-725-3 and can be ordered from Bay Books or EBay or Kaplan School Supplies.
ST. JUDE'S RESEARCH HOSPITAL
We did it!!! We may be little, but our students raised $1,107 for St. Judes. We had so much fun making out boxes, putting up the village and roads, and riding. Sheriff Hartzell and Sheriff Simonds with Kyra were a valuable addition to our day. All those who helped set up and tear down are very appreciated. What a fun day!
ASSESSMENTS TO BE COMPLETED
CONFERENCES MAY BE REQUESTED
The teachers of your student will be completing the assessments of your student by May 18 and 19. The teachers will be placing the assessment in each student’s folder. If you have any questions about the assessment and wish to speak to the teachers, please feel free to contact your student’s teacher or Mrs. Duff. A time will be made available to you.
For both Preschool and Kindergarten students, if you wish their portfolios to be sent to their new school, a form will be sent home the week of 11 May, please fill it out and return it to Mrs. Duff.
SUGGESTIONS FROM A PARENT
Deanna Neely (Mom of Tessa in the 3&4 Year Old Farm Room Class) says: I just got the new info for swim lessons this year. These swim lessons are done at the Hickory Hills housing development off of Chancellor's Run Rd. The instructors name is Ashleigh Payne and she is the gym teacher at Leonardtown Middle School. I have been taking my children to Ashleigh for 5 years now and she does a wonderful job. I like that the kids love her and look forward to seeing her every day. I also like that an adult is teaching the kids. Ashleigh is also available for private lessons and will come to your home pool. If you are interested in private lessons you can contact her at: Ashleigh Payne arpayne@hotmail.com
CLASSES TO BE HELD FROM 8AM-11AM AT THE NCH POOL $45 PER STUDENT PER 8 DAY SESSION
THANK YOU
At this time of year, Mrs. Duff wishes to thank all that make our program special. Thank you to our wonderful parents for trusting us to teach their children. Thank you to our Mom’s and Dad’s for attending the Donuts with Dad and Mother’s Day celebrations and all our pageants! Thank you for our Leonardtown High School Interns and their work with our students! Thank you to Nurse Sullivan for Teddy Bear Clinic and Nurse Moison for making sure our eyes and ears are ready for the “Big School”! Thank you to Tracy Gatton for teaching us about proper Dental Health, and for Curtis her friend with some tooth problems (who resides with Mrs. Duff in her office)! Thank you to Mr. Scott for teaching us about reading with our hands and teaching us that even though we lose one of our senses, we can rely on another sense to help out! Thank you to Mr. Morton for teaching us about collecting and about the greatest collection is the books of the Bible! Thank you to Mr. Williams for teaching us about bees and how much our food needs them! Thank you to our own Pam Howe for guiding us through St. Mary’s City! Thank you to Betsy St. Laurent from Child Find and Debbie Crosby from Infant & Toddlers along with Anne Kirchner from Project First Choice for coming to see our students and giving suggestions to the families and teachers to get them ready for the “Big School” Thank you to Mrs. McConville for being our website Guru! Thank you to Mr. Duff for being the repair person for everything that breaks or does not light in our classrooms! Thank you to Mrs. Hazzard who has taught Chinese painting with the 3s Tree House and 4s Farm Room! Mrs. Duff says thank you to all our substitute teachers! Thank you to Rev. Wunderlich for his great prayers and “Pastor John and God’s Little Children” Sanctuary talks! Thank you to the office staff, who we continually ask questions! Mrs. Duff says thank you for all our teachers, we are very blessed to have them teaching in our school! And thank you and goodbye to two teachers who will be leaving, Mrs. Gaddis and Mrs. Geyer. Lastly, but not last, we all thank God for our wonderful life!
TEACHER APPRECIATION DAY
Mrs. Duff wants to thank you all for everything you have done for the teachers. She is most touched by your including her in all the festivities! She knows how hard the teachers work, but she also knows how very much they love teaching and they enjoy putting forth 110%. Thank you to Mrs. Hazzard for her delicious real Chinese cooking. The main dish was wonderful! To have all of you show such caring with the gifts along with the luncheon gives the teachers a “big hug”. It shows that they are appreciated, and everyone needs to hear this sometime! From Mrs. Duff’s heart, thank you to all of you so much! A big thank you to Mrs. Hayes, Mrs. Neely, and Ms. Owen (Moms of Kim Hayes, Tessa Neely and Eddy Nelson in the 3&4 Year Old Farm Room Class) for organizing this wonderful luncheon and table flowers! The teachers walked away from the table relaxed and with huge smiles. God bless you all!
