Klahanie School
November 2013 Newsletter
October Reflection
Happy
autumn to all! We are in full
swing of school routine and inside/outside class exploration with materials,
selves, friends and environments.
As the school routine and new season of Autumn have officially set-in,
some children have shown and even shared during circle time (our “group”) that
transition to school has felt uncomfortable some days. This is very normal. Sometimes putting our parent investigation
hat on and observing what is a current trigger for our child during a
transition (the moment(s) when the anxiety emotion occurs) and if there have
been changes in the family can be very helpful in finding creative ways to
assist gently alleviating the angst.
A wonderful parent support
website, if you have not already stumbled upon is www.handinhandparenting.org. A great write-up on this site that offers gentle reminders
and ideas is “Embracing Transitions.”
During
school hours we are using our class puppets to tell the story how Mouse
recognizes her own uncertainties and feelings of discomfort during transition
from home to school. Using clear
examples in the story, the children hear too how Mouse finds the safety in her
routine to move with a transition and who can help her while she
transitions. Please feel free to
continue to do a brief check-ins at drop-off or phone message before class
(call backs will most likely occur after the end of the school day—3:30pm,
unless emergency) if you need some extra help during transitions or have
insight why transitions are a little more challenging during that particular
day. Please hold in your hearts,
you all are doing a wonderful job and transitions to any new experience can be
nerve-wracking for many, no matter our age!
November Topics
November
is the month we begin our Peace Studies.
Our Klahanie Peace Studies is woven throughout our school year and like
the other important subjects in class; Peace Studies is integrated throughout
our classroom all year long. We
open our Peace work with the idea of offering thanks to all the wonderments we
hold in our lives, beginning with nature.
A book we begin with every November is Jonathan London’s beautiful work,
“Giving Thanks.”
To me, it’s a
little
embarrassing
to say thanks
to trees and
things.
But Dad says
it becomes a habit;
It makes you
feel good.
‘Thank you,
stars,’ I say
as we near
home.
And the stars
come out, one by one, as if from hiding.
·
Giving Thanks: What are we thankful for and how do we show we are
thankful. Using many Practical
Life and Language activities, we will work together to create and serve an end
of the month meal to celebrate our class communities. This will happen on Thursday November 21: corn bread, applesauce, and smoked
salmon. We will also be
sharing thanks for having food to eat.
Please consider accompanying your child to drop-off Thanksgiving food
items to our local Vashon food bank.
·
Salmon: the Life Cycle, Parts of a Salmon and Salmon
habitats
·
Turkeys: Parts of a Turkey and many fun songs about these
interesting fowl
·
Class Specialists!
Reminder/Thank Yous &
Save The Date
Thank
you Ginger Hamilton for all the October cutouts, Anna Pekoz for the play dough
and Kelly Reese for the Apple Butter for our Practical Life food preparation in
class! And thank you Maria
Metler for our first class specialist visit for the school year!
·
November
Tuition due before or by Tuesday November 5th, thank you
·
Parent
Social—Saturday November 9th 5pm-7pm
Please
come to relax, have a glass of wine/appetizer, have time to meet other Klahanie
parents and ideas how to implement Practical Life and Peace work within your
home.
·
Classroom
Parent Conferences—Monday Nov.18th Sign-up sheet is posted
on the school board and will be available at the Parent Social.
We are always looking for book donations, play-dough making
and additional help with monthly cut-outs—please let a teacher know if you
would like to contribute and thank you!
Wishing you and family a wonderful November, full of joy and
gratitude.
