A Message From The Principal:
It’s February and love is in the air! I want to thank all of the families that participated in our parent survey this year! It is great to hear all of the wonderful things you have to say about our school and your child’s teacher! It is also great to hear some of your wonderful ideas! So thank you!
This is going to be another fantastic month here at the school. We will be celebrating Black History Month, Valentine’s Day and Presidents Day. We will have our Valentine’s Day parties on February 13th at 3:30.
We are CLOSED on Presidents Day, Monday, February 16th. During this day all of our amazing teachers will be attending a Professional Development Day. Please let me know if you have any questions.
We are hosting a Parents night out on Thursday February 12th from 6:30 pm until 8:30 pm. We will have a signup sheet at the front desk for all that are interested. Just picture it, a nice quiet dinner and you don’t need the kids menu!
All little Caesars Pizza orders are due Monday February 2nd. Please let me know if you have any questions about your order form. This is a great way to simplify Friday night pizza night!
Thank you all for being the amazing parents you are every day for your children. We are so glad your family is a part of the Chesterbrook Family!
Sincerely,
Jac-Lynn Johnson
Principal
Dates to Remember
- February is National Black History Month
- February 2: Little Caesar’s Order Forms Due
- February 12: Parent’s Night Out 6:30-8:30; $20 for one child, $35 for two children
- February 13: Valentine’s Day Party 3:30
- February 14: Happy Valentine’s Day
- February 16: Closed for Professional Development Day
- February 17: Mardi Gras!
- February 18: Ash Wednesday
- Febraury 19: Chinese New Year Begins
- February 20: Washington’s Birthday
Science Corner
Homemade Watercolor Paint Discs
It’s easy! All you need are a few basic pantry ingredients!
- 4 tbsp baking soda
- 2 tbsp white vinegar
- 1/2 tsp Light Corn Syrup (also known as Karo syrup ) I didn’t have “light” so I used golden corn syrup
- 2 tbsp cornstarch (known as corn flour in the UK)
- Food coloring (gels produce a more intense color than liquid food coloring)
- Mini Muffin Tin (or ice cube tray)
Mixing your homemade paints:
- Mix your baking soda and vinegar together (hello science experiment) and wait for the fizzing to stop. It’s handy if you mix in a container that has a spout (I used a 2c measuring cup).
- Add the corn syrup and cornstarch, and mix well until the cornstarch has dissolved.
- Pour into your containers (double batch of watercolors half-filled all 12 compartments of a mini muffin tin).
- Now, grab your colors and have some fun! Stir colour in with a toothpick or popsicle stick and mix well for about a minute. We used Wilton Icing Gels to color all but two of our paints; for the red and yellow, we used liquid food color.
- For the liquid colors, we added 6 drops to get the intense color we were looking for. An extra pinch of cornstarch helped compensate for the extra liquid.
- Now the hard part: waiting. Your watercolor paints have to dry completely. Apparently this could take up to 2 days, but I left mine beside our gas fireplace overnight, and they were dry in less than 24 hours.
- When your watercolors are dry, simply grab a paint brush and some water and test them out! I couldn’t wait to try ours, and I was so impressed with them when I did.
- The paints glide on smoothly, the colors look super. They’re nicer than any dollar store watercolors we’ve ever used. They’re a little chalky when they dry, but not as bad dollar store paints that we’ve been using recently.
Reminders
LTL Folders: Please remember to take your Links to Learning Folders home February 27th.
Enrichment: Check out the enrichment programs offered by Chesterbrook Academy!
- Tae Kwon Do
- Music for Little Ones – Weekly music classes with Music For Little Ones will be lots of fun this Fall Each child will receive a cd of the songs at the end of the semester. The price for Fall semester will be $135.00 or $45 per month. Music class is held on Thursday mornings at 9:30 starting Thursday, September 4
- Soccer Shots
- Daisy Dance
Facebook: Don’t forget to become a fan of our page!
Parent Referral: If there’s one thing parents love to do, it’s talk about their children’s successes. When friends ask you about your child’s experiences at Chesterbrook Academy, what type of success stories do you share? Do you mention the personal and educational discoveries your child is making thanks to our advanced curriculum? Do you talk about the new levels of self and social confidence your child has gained thanks to our encouraging atmosphere?
Whatever glowing reports you deliver about how your child is growing with his or her education, we couldn’t be more appreciative. In fact, we’d like to show you just how thankful we are for your endorsements. Now when you tell other parents about our school, you can become a Chesterbrook Academy Ambassador.
For every new child you refer who enrolls at our school for three months, you’ll receive an Ambassador Certificate for one FREE week of tuition for your child*.
It’s our way of saying thanks for doing what comes naturally – singing the praises of your child and sharing your experiences with the Chesterbrook Academy difference.
At the front desk are referral certificates you can give to friends and colleagues who ask about our school. If you have any questions about how you can become a Chesterbrook Academy Ambassador please contact an administrator.
Logowear: What’s a better way for your child to show their school spirit!!? You can now order online and have your items shipped to the school. Check out this link for items that sport our Chesterbrook logo. There are so many items to choose from!
Peanut Free Zone: Chesterbrook Academy is a Peanut Free school. We do not serve any food containing peanuts and/or peanut extract or peanut by-products. Please do not bring any foods/snacks with peanuts, peanut extract or peanut by-products in them to the school.
Inclement Weather Policy: In the event of inclement weather, parents should call the school’s telephone number (704-875-1177) and listen to the voice mail by 5:30 am for a message regarding the operating hours. This is our primary method of communication to parents. We will also use eNotify to send out an email to all families who have provided us with a current email address.
FROM THE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT
Learning About the Uses and Benefits of Technology
Children today have many opportunities to interact with technology for entertainment value and learning. Most often we think of children using computer technology, including handheld devices loaded with games, books, music and movies. In moderation, these devices can aid in children’s learning and development.
Within our academic curriculum, we involve children in activities and reflection on ways that technology can improve our understanding of the world around us, help us do our jobs, and make the world a better place. We help children see how the understanding of science and math moves technology forward, and that someday they too might create new and improved ways to do things.
Below are a few ways that we integrate technology in our classrooms and some ideas to try at home.
INTERMEDIATES
- In the classroom: Beginning in our Intermediate program, students learn common technology vocabulary, such as mouse, keyboard and email. Students also explore the double meaning of verbs that describe online and offline activities, such as “tapping” and “surfing”.
- At home: Dot. by Randi Zuckerberg is a great book to read with your child to continue the learning at home. Dot, the main character, is a tech savvy little girl who leaves her electronic devices at home while she taps, swipes and shares in the real world.
PRE-K
- In the classroom: Teachers encourage our older preschoolers to use technology as a tool to express themselves. For example, students use a camera to take photos of seasonal changes outdoors and write what they observed in their journal. This activity promotes creativity and provides a fun opportunity to practice writing skills.
- At home: Allow your child to explore his world using digital photography tools. Ask him to describe his photos and explain why he chose those objects or locations to photograph. Encourage him to use descriptive language and emotion vocabulary.
In summary, we provide numerous opportunities for children to explore technology in our classrooms. Through these activities, children become excited to use technology educationally, and are better prepared to use technology in elementary school and beyond.
– Lauren Starnes, PhD- Director of Early Childhood Education
February News
A Message From The Principal:
It’s February and love is in the air! I want to thank all of the families that participated in our parent survey this year! It is great to hear all of the wonderful things you have to say about our school and your child’s teacher! It is also great to hear some of your wonderful ideas! So thank you!
This is going to be another fantastic month here at the school. We will be celebrating Black History Month, Valentine’s Day and Presidents Day. We will have our Valentine’s Day parties on February 13th at 3:30.
We are CLOSED on Presidents Day, Monday, February 16th. During this day all of our amazing teachers will be attending a Professional Development Day. Please let me know if you have any questions.
We are hosting a Parents night out on Thursday February 12th from 6:30 pm until 8:30 pm. We will have a signup sheet at the front desk for all that are interested. Just picture it, a nice quiet dinner and you don’t need the kids menu!
All little Caesars Pizza orders are due Monday February 2nd. Please let me know if you have any questions about your order form. This is a great way to simplify Friday night pizza night!
Thank you all for being the amazing parents you are every day for your children. We are so glad your family is a part of the Chesterbrook Family!
Sincerely,
Jac-Lynn Johnson
Principal
Dates to Remember
Science Corner
Homemade Watercolor Paint Discs
It’s easy! All you need are a few basic pantry ingredients!
Mixing your homemade paints:
Reminders
LTL Folders: Please remember to take your Links to Learning Folders home February 27th.
Enrichment: Check out the enrichment programs offered by Chesterbrook Academy!
Facebook: Don’t forget to become a fan of our page!
Parent Referral: If there’s one thing parents love to do, it’s talk about their children’s successes. When friends ask you about your child’s experiences at Chesterbrook Academy, what type of success stories do you share? Do you mention the personal and educational discoveries your child is making thanks to our advanced curriculum? Do you talk about the new levels of self and social confidence your child has gained thanks to our encouraging atmosphere?
Whatever glowing reports you deliver about how your child is growing with his or her education, we couldn’t be more appreciative. In fact, we’d like to show you just how thankful we are for your endorsements. Now when you tell other parents about our school, you can become a Chesterbrook Academy Ambassador.
For every new child you refer who enrolls at our school for three months, you’ll receive an Ambassador Certificate for one FREE week of tuition for your child*.
It’s our way of saying thanks for doing what comes naturally – singing the praises of your child and sharing your experiences with the Chesterbrook Academy difference.
At the front desk are referral certificates you can give to friends and colleagues who ask about our school. If you have any questions about how you can become a Chesterbrook Academy Ambassador please contact an administrator.
Logowear: What’s a better way for your child to show their school spirit!!? You can now order online and have your items shipped to the school. Check out this link for items that sport our Chesterbrook logo. There are so many items to choose from!
Peanut Free Zone: Chesterbrook Academy is a Peanut Free school. We do not serve any food containing peanuts and/or peanut extract or peanut by-products. Please do not bring any foods/snacks with peanuts, peanut extract or peanut by-products in them to the school.
Inclement Weather Policy: In the event of inclement weather, parents should call the school’s telephone number (704-875-1177) and listen to the voice mail by 5:30 am for a message regarding the operating hours. This is our primary method of communication to parents. We will also use eNotify to send out an email to all families who have provided us with a current email address.
FROM THE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT
Learning About the Uses and Benefits of Technology
Children today have many opportunities to interact with technology for entertainment value and learning. Most often we think of children using computer technology, including handheld devices loaded with games, books, music and movies. In moderation, these devices can aid in children’s learning and development.
Within our academic curriculum, we involve children in activities and reflection on ways that technology can improve our understanding of the world around us, help us do our jobs, and make the world a better place. We help children see how the understanding of science and math moves technology forward, and that someday they too might create new and improved ways to do things.
Below are a few ways that we integrate technology in our classrooms and some ideas to try at home.
INTERMEDIATES
PRE-K
In summary, we provide numerous opportunities for children to explore technology in our classrooms. Through these activities, children become excited to use technology educationally, and are better prepared to use technology in elementary school and beyond.
– Lauren Starnes, PhD- Director of Early Childhood Education