The Prouty Voice: December 2023

Prevent Child Abuse Vermont’s Parenting Supports

Prevent Child Abuse Vermont promotes and supports healthy relationships within families, schools and communities to eliminate child abuse. They offer a number of online programs for families, including the following:

Circle of Parents is a professionally facilitated, peer led self-help support group for parents and other caregivers. Circle of Parents offers participants the opportunity to explore their parenting in a safe and confidential weekly group. Parents come together and share their experiences, challenges and successes. Parents learn they are not alone and they can change the way they raise their children. Circle of Parents is co-led by professionally trained volunteer(s) and a parent leader, who is a group member. The online meetings are usually for 1.5 hours. There are no fees or dues to attend. Learn more

Nurturing Parenting Programs are curriculum-based, parenting education programs that work with the whole family. Families participate in 2 hour fun, educational sessions that meet weekly for 9 to 18 weeks, depending on the particular program and curriculum. The programs are appropriate for anyone who wants to improve their family life. There are no fees or dues to attend LEARN MORE

Another valuable resource that PCAVT offers is the Vermont Parents’ Home Companion & Resource Directory The booklet is a parenting guide to child development featuring golden tips for everyday problems and a complete list of local and statewide and national resources for children and families by each county in Vermont. You can view it online here or stop by the main office for a copy.

Resources & Events for families

Toys for Tots Program

The mission of the Marine Toys for Tots Program is to collect new unwrapped toys and distribute those toys to less fortunate children at Christmas. The primary goal is, through the gift of a new toy, help bring the joy of Christmas and send a message of hope to families. To learn how you can participate this holiday season, whether it’s donating a toy or requesting a toy, please click here for more information.

Moover to add stop at Winston Prouty for Saturday Farmers Market

In response to community requests, the Moover bus will add the Winston Prouty Campus as a stop on their Saturday route. This will allow more visitors to reach the Winter Farmers Market which is held in the Prouty gym on from 10-2pm. Learn more.

Project Feed the Thousands

Winston Prouty is a proud partner in the local Project Feed the Thousands campaign. Project Feed is the largest annual food drive in southeastern Vermont, and we hope you will consider supporting this cause. On Friday, December 15th, the donations will be brought to the Fill the Bus event at Hannafords. There is a collection box in the lobby and here is a list of suggested items to donate: https://projectfeedthethousands.org/

Early Learning Center News

Class Photos

Class photos are now available! The images are published on this website, which is password protected (the password will be sent out via Procare.) You are welcome to download and print the images. Please remember that not all families allow for their child’s photo to be shared outside of the Early Learning Center, to please do not post them on social media. Class photos

Strengthening Families Survey

In the fall we shared that we are our Center is a recipient of a Strengthening Families Grant. This purpose of this grant is to support families via activities like the Family Circles, other gatherings like the Harvest Meal & Open House, and Family Resource Bags (coming soon!). As part of this grant, we are required to survey ELC families once each quarter. If you did not get a chance to fill out the survey during the fall, please take a moment and fill it out here. This will help us plan the use of our grant funds and improve our program practices.

Acorn Room

The learning happening with the Acorn children is fascinating to watch. The children are moving their bodies in different ways. Some are practicing being on their stomachs, putting weight on their arms and gaining more control of their head and neck. Other children are learning how to get up on their hands and knees, rocking back and forth or moving along the floor on their stomachs. It takes lots of practice and persistence, and these children are determined! We have also tried some new sensory experiences in November. We hung bags of dry ingredients like corn meal and baking soda from a hard surface for the children to push against and see how the material responded. They also tried painting with their hands and feet. Some children enjoyed the feeling of the paint on their hands and moving it around on the paper. Others were not impressed with the feeling, as we saw from their facial expressions, and we helped them find a more pleasing activity. The children continue to enjoy the company of others and are often seen smiling and heard babbling back and forth. Since the weather has turned chillier, we’re bundling up for some nice walks outside to get some fresh air. It’s fun to watch the bare branches blow in the breeze and hear the birds chirping at one another.

Willow Room

November came and went in the blink of an eye. This month the toddlers in the Willow Room have worked very hard developing various self-help skills. Examples of these skills include combining sign language and words to communicate with teachers and peers, working on getting dressed in their layers of winter gear, and walking together as a group from place to place during our outdoor adventures. There has been snow, rain, sunshine, and cold temperatures this month but that has not stopped us from exploring outside. Rolling down the grassy hills on campus, exploring the woods, playing with balls outside, and playing in the lean-tos are some of the class highlights from our outdoor adventures this month. It is amazing how much growth has happened in the three short months we have spent together as a class. These months keep flying by and we look forward to seeing what else this fun group has instore for us!

Elm Room

This month in the Rlm room, we started taking down some of the art on our wall after filling it, and starting again with a new theme: Newspaper and pages from books! We got our second round of snow the day before Thanksgiving and enjoyed our harvest meal with other classes and their families. Our room made sweet potato casserole and got to practice their cutting and mixing skills. Elm room has taken an interest in shapes, and how they fit into other open objects. We have taken trips as a class to the sun bridge, where we see how many cars and trucks we can get to honk for us as they pass by. On one of our sunnier warmer days, we planted bulbs in the outdoor classroom garden, painted pumpkins, and took a trip into the woods to find “berry” the flamingo; who lives high up in a tree. We can’t wait to see what next month brings!

Cedar Room

This month in the Cedar Room we are adjusting to Jessica having left. We have had several “guest” teachers, including Honor Woodrow (ELC Director and teacher of 15 years), and Jess Waldman (from the Community Based Services side of our organization, a former preschool teacher and mom of Sophia!). We have been working on solidifying the classroom routine, and adding in more challenging opportunities for the children. This has included adding a visual calendar to circle time, reviewing the expectations for raising hands, waiting turns and listening while others are talking, teaching games with rules including Uno, Zingo, and others. We have also started small group activities which have included making bread, creating books using staples and hole punches, and fixing broken books. The introduction of the water table with color mixing has been a big hit, as has the new plexi-glass easel which is open during free choice in the morning. We are looking forward to continuing to keep these choices available while rotating the materials in them so the children can go more in-depth over time.