April 2022 newsletter

Happy Spring everyone!

Spring in Alberta can be beautiful;the skies are clear and the air is clean. The meadows, woodlands, hedgerows and road-side ditches start to green up and spring flowers emerge: Alberta Wild Rose, Alpine Buttercup, Common Fireweed, Red Paintbrush, and the beautiful Prairie Crocus. The birds that migrated in the fall are beginning to return – the song birds start making the most of the early mornings to sell their wares! It is also a wonderful time for the children to be outside, and here at Angel Wings, we are keen to be outside as much as we can as there are so many benefits to outdoor activities:

Builds child’s endurance, stamina, strength, independence, risk taking and problem solving.
Encourages a healthy attitude to lead an active lifestyle.
Improves motor skills: gross and fine motor, balance and coordination.
Develops social skills as the children move from parallel play to associative and cooperative play- sharing, taking turns, making up rules to games, cooperating, imaginative play and role playing.
Appreciation for the environment: looking for bugs, bird watching, planting seeds and looking for new plant growth.
The senses are developed and refined, allowing the child to become familiar with new sensory experiences.
Brain development; exploration, experimentation, discovery, and improved communication skills.
The opportunity to just sit, to be peaceful, to soak up the sun that helps to lift the mood.
FUN! What other reason do we need!

SPRING CLOTHES:

With outdoor fun in mind, the snow pants and snow boots can be left at home, and if you have the one-piece splash suit to bring instead, along with rain boots (or “Wellies” as I call them – short for Wellington boots!) that would be great. Amazon have a good selection of splash suits, but if you like to support local stores, I do know that Great Things in Store have a good selection. Please remember to still bring a warm sweater, toque and mitts for the cooler days, and write your child’s name in each item of clothing, including the wellies.

FLOWER ARRANGING:

We will be starting Flower Arranging lessons in April. We will be talking about the names and parts of the flower, as the children make their classroom so beautiful and inviting. Dr. Maria Montessori once said, “The essential thing is to arouse such interest that it engages the child’s whole personality.” This work also sparks an interest in other children, as they complete daily checks on the water in the vases:Are the flowers still viable, or, what can we do with them if they’re not? Flower arranging refines and develops discrimination, judgement, and the aesthetic sense: Are the stems too long for the vase? Is the vase big enough for this many flowers? How much water is needed? Is the arrangement pleasing to the eye? Do the scents go well together? How do the flowers make you feel?

If you’d like your child to participate in this classic Montessori lesson, please check the separate flower arranging listfor your child’s name, and bring a bouquet of flowers to school on the date next to your child’s name.

ALPHABET SNACK DAY – WEDNESDAY APRIL 13^TH

Your child has been assigned a letter of the alphabet in class- we will notify you of the letter by Seesaw. We ask that your child’s snack has that letter in it. For example, if Zoe picks S she could bring Sausage Sandwiches. To make it more fun, perhaps you could make up a small fun rhyme about that snack and practice it with your child so that she/he can recite it to their friends at circle time – public speaking practise here! i.e., Six Saucy Sausages Sizzling on a Skewer. The snack is just enough for your child, as due to the continuing COVID restrictions we can not share food prepared at home.

Bring snack and the rhyme on Wednesday 13^thApril. Let’s see what your child can come up with!

REMINDERS!

April fees are due on the 1^st – thank you!
Drop off – please do your best to bring your child to school by 8:45AM. Arriving after this time not only impacts your child, making transitioning a little harder, but also disturbs the other children who have already started their work cycle. Likewise, if your child is here for the mornings, please pick up your child by 11:30 at the latest. Thank you!
Now that the warmer weather is here, please take home your child’s snow pants and replace with a one-piece splash suit or waterproof pants. Please continue to bring a warm sweater and jacket for chillier days.
Please ensure that your child has enough snack for the whole day – especially as we will now be outside more often. Running around and playing burns off so much energy.
Keep up the good work remembering forks, spoons and water bottles daily!
No school on the Easter weekend: 15^th – 18^th
Sound of the week – Z – 4^thApril: Zoo, Zap, Zucchini
I wanted to remind you how awesome your child is and how much positive growth and development is happening every day. We hope you are enjoying the photos and videos we send on Seesaw.

CENTRE CLOSED:

The centre is closed on Friday 15^th, and Monday 18^th April.

And May 20^th and 23^rd for our staff meeting, professional development day , and May long weekend.

BIRTHDAYS WE CELEBRATE THIS MONTH!

Jett

Maevis

Koehler

If you would like us to celebrate your child’s birthday in class, please send us a quick note. We ask for a photo of each year of your child’s life, including birth.

MUSIC CLASS WITH MISS.TESSA:

In April we will be focusing on melody, memory and movement. The music has themes of spring, rainbows and birds. We will be learning and memorizing a couple of songs throughout April and May. It is a great opportunity to encourage your children to sing at home!

– Tessa

Thank you as always, for supporting our centre. We hope you all have wonderful Easter weekend.

Mrs. Divya, Mrs. Joce, Miss. Nicole, Ms. Michelle, Mrs. Diana, Miss. Tessa, Miss. Glynnis, and Miss. Mikayla.