The Prouty Voice: November 2018

Participating in our Democracy

By Chloe Learey, Executive Director

It is never too early to talk with our children about how to be a part of a community – from family to classroom to town to state to country, these different levels of ‘community’ offer opportunities for us all to participate in creating and building the kind of world we want.

Voting in elections is a great way to expose children to formal participation in the governance of our communities. Again, there are different levels of this, from Town Meeting to local, state and national elections. While the language and issues that surround this current election can feel difficult to talk with children about, modeling participation is a way to help children understand that we have agency to act no matter what our politics or beliefs. Here are just a few ideas for making elections and the importance of voting part of your family’s world….   Continue Reading


Welcome Starr!

Starting Tuesday, November 6, visitors, ELC families and Prouty staff members will be welcomed at the front desk by Starr Wolfe, our new Administrative Assistant. Please introduce yourself to Starr as she gets to know all of the many people and programs of Winston Prouty!


Early Learning Center Classroom News

Acorn Room

October was filled with leaves, apples, gourds and pumpkins.  We went out to look at what our garden produced and brought in those things to explore in our sensory bin.  Leaves were especially a big hit.  We made lots of applesauce and put it away for a cold winter’s day!   Apples were donated by Green Mountain Orchards.  We also received squash from Kathy Hallock’s garden and have purred squash for future snacks. 

November brings the beginnings of family gatherings, lots of food and also Day Light Savings.  This is a big event for our babies as it throws their rhythm and sleeping schedule off a bit.  To the young child, the shorter days and longer nights seem a mystery as also the cold weather and new restrictive clothing that comes with it can also be a challenge.  Through story and song we welcome the winter beast as it settles on us here in New England and watch the children acclimate and experience the beginnings of the winter season with wonder.

Elm Room

The month of October was busy yet fun filled! We enjoyed parent conferences and being welcomed into everyone’s houses. It was helpful to see the children’s home environments. We also have introduced “5 Little Pumpkins” as our storyboard song. We have Fire Safety Day where the Fire Department came to visit and get into all their gear and show us their trucks. We had our apple orchard field trip where all families joined and we ate some yummy cider donuts and apple cider and finished off with apple picking! Our focus this month is the color orange as we will be doing many sensory and art fall activities.

Maple Room

October was a fun month in the Maple Room! We started our month out with home visits which were very nice and we appreciate everyone welcoming us into their homes. We had a fire safety day and the Brattleboro Fire Department taught us how to “stop, drop, and roll”, showed us what they look like in all of their fire gear and we got to go into the fire truck. We added some costumes to our dramatic play area and everyone has really enjoyed putting on the different costumes. We cut pumpkins and gourds open to explore what was inside of them and what it felt like. We made orange play dough, and everyone helped put ingredients in and helped knead the dough.

Birch Room

We have the opportunity to intentionally develop a social emotional curriculum with a small group of preschoolers from the Birch Room. Laurie Panther, who recently joined the Prouty Team, will be creating a program in the extra classroom (formerly the Willow Room) for November and December to help shape this curriculum and align it with our commitment to a Reggio Emilia -inspired approach. We will be figuring out logistics over the next couple of days and beginning implementation this week. This development is related to our core value of inclusion and making sure we are meeting the needs of all children and staff. Our goal is to help everyone be successful in the environments we create.
 
About Laurie: Laurie has 30 years of experience as an educator. She holds a master’s degree in curriculum & instruction with an early childhood focus. She also earned two special education teacher credentials in California. Over her career, Laurie held a variety of roles from preschool teacher to program administrator with a focus on inclusive practices. Developmentally appropriate learning is the cornerstone of her approach. She joins us in Vermont to savor more time engaging with children, and to help spread knowledge about developmentally appropriate learning models.

 

Oak Room

The Oak Room has had a wonderful start to our school year! We spent the month of September getting to know our new friends and teachers. We have worked hard to learn the rules of the classroom and how to use all of the great toys available to us. Some favorite areas we discovered in September were art, sensory, and dramatic play. We also enjoyed spending time outside and collecting items for our science area. 
 
In October we enjoyed a trip to Green Mountain Orchards. We had a fun wagon ride and picked many delicious apples. Together we enjoyed making applesauce and painting at our open house. The month of October we also enjoyed meeting with families during our home visits. Thank you to all the families that shared their homes with us! 
 
In the classroom we enjoyed building wonderful block, Lego, and magnatile creations. The Oak room friends have been practicing many of their balancing skills both on our balance boards in the classroom and on our wood walk adventures. We have also been working on our counting, number recognition skills, and recognizing and writing our names. Our sensory table has been full of a number of different treasures this month. We enjoyed exploring sunflowers, pumpkins, and our nature hunt treasures like rocks, leaves, and sticks. We have also started to work on our scissor skills in the art area. 

 

Dates to Remember

Wednesday, November 7 – Individual photo retake day, 9:30am

Wednesday, November 7 – ELC closes at 3:30 for ELC Staff meeting

Monday, November 12 – Center closed for All-staff in-service

Thursday & Friday, November 22 & 23 – Center closed for Thanksgiving Holiday

Wednesday, December 5 – ELC closes at 3:30 for ELC Staff meeting

View the full school year calendar

 


Celebrations & Recognitions

Happy Birthday!

 11/1 – Josephine is 2

        11/14 – Leah is 4

        11/17 – Happy birthday, Nancy M and Lisa A.

        11/21 – Rue is 3

        11/23 – Alex H is 3

        11/24 – Cortland is 3

        11/24 – Payton is 3

        11/25 – Alex D is 3

Congrats to Luisa Oakley on receiving her Early Intervention certificate last month!

 


Resources & Events for Families

The Building Bright Futures Families & Communities Committee seeking parents leaders

BBF’s Families & Communities Committee is actively recruiting parents to join its membership. Monthly evening meetings, starting November 5th.  Click here for more information

 

Executive Function at School and Home: What is it and Why does it matter? 

Thursday, November 15th pm at the Arts Barn at Hilltop Montessori School – Click here for more information

 

Brattleboro Reformer’s Remarkable Women Award Ceremony 

Thursday, November 8th – Winston Prouty Executive Director Chloe Learey is a finalist in this community award. Click here for more information

 
 

Wishlist

Our Family Support and Family Supportive Housing programs are seeking the following items: 

Queen beds (Mattress set, frame)
Twin beds (Mattress set, frame – or bunk beds)
Toddler beds
King bed frame
Crib
Crib mattresses
Bed sheets/warm blankets
Dressers
Pots and pans
Silverware
Cooking utensils 
Oven mitts
Glasses, cups 
Plastic kids plates/cups
Toaster
Microwave
Ice trays
Living room furniture 

 

Thank you!