Madrone Trail Public Charter School

Kindergarten News – December 10^th

Spiral of Lights – December 11^th at 9am in the kindergarten room.  Please RSVP by Thursday December 10^th if your child will be attending.  Please arrive at 8:45am and wait outside the kindergarten classroom.  We will begin promptly 9am and due to the quiet nature of the ceremony, we are to allow anyone to enter after we begin.  All children must wear pants, NO dresses or skirts please (there will be candles burning and we don’t want any accidents).

Kindergarten Holiday Party – December 17^th at 11am.  Families are invited to join the kindergarten for a holiday party with cookies, a special performance by the children and a story.  I hope everyone can come.  We will be baking cookies in class on Wednesday for the party and I need volunteers to help.  The time is 8:50-9:50.  Please sign-up on the volunteer sheet on the bulletin board.

All School Holiday Potluck – Friday December 18^th 6-8pm at McLaughlin Middle School.  Please note, the location of the potluck has changed.  Please see the bulletin board for the potluck sign-up sheet.  Please bring plates, utensils, napkins, etc. for your family.  I hope to see you there.

School Survey – Please fill out and return the feedback survey which was handed out at parent-teacher conferences.  If you need a new copy, please pick one up in the office.  Your feedback is very important to the school.  Thank you!

Canned Food Drive – Please bring nonperishable food items to donate to our school’s canned food drive.  There is a box located outside the classroom for your donations.  Thank you!

Kindergarten News – December 2, 2009

IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT!  This Thursday’s parent evening has been rescheduled for January 14^th 6-7:30pm – mark your calendars.  There will be no meeting this Thursday.

Holiday Parade in Jacksonville – Madrone Trail will be walking in the parade in Jacksonville this Friday evening (December 4).  All families are invited to join in this fun outreach event.  We will meet at 5:30 and the parade starts at 6:00.  Madome Brion will email the details of where to meet as soon as she finds out.  I hope to see you there and don’t forget to dress warm!

Spiral of Lights - Friday December 11^th at 9:00am.  Please arrive at 8:45 and meet outside the kindergarten classroom.  As the children enter the room they will find it transformed into a beautiful evergreen spiral pathway with a single candle burning in the center, lighting up the dark room.  Each child will have an opportunity to walk the spiral and light their own candle in the middle and then place it along the spiral pathway as they make their way out again.  After all of the children have walked the spiral, the room will shine brightly.  This festival is a reverent and amazing experience for the children.  I hope that all children will be able to experience the spiral journey.  Please RSVP if your child will be attending by Thursday December 10^th. 

Communications – I am making a list of families who prefer to receive communications via email.  Please let me know if you would like to be added to this list.

We have recently learned some new circle songs; here are a couple of favorites.

The Mitten Song

Thumbs in the thumb place, fingers all together,

That’s what we say in mitten weather.

Hats upon our heads and scarves around our necks,

Warm boot, warm boots, so we won’t get wet.

Little Jackie Frost

Little Jackie Frost nipped my nose.

Little Jackie Frost pinched my toes.

So I ran into the house and I shut the door.

Little Jackie Frost couldn’t find me anymore.

Blessings,

Miss Amy

Dear Kindergarten Parents,

On Friday we had a lovely Lantern Walk at Star of the Morning Children’s Center in Jacksonville.  I am so grateful to them for including us in the celebration.  It has come to my attention that there was some confusion over the location and time of the Lantern Walk and that some children and families missed our walk.  I sincerely apologize for the confusion.  In the future, when there are multiple times and/or locations for events at our school, I will do my best to communicate more clearly the kindergarten time and location.

Parent teacher conferences are next week.  There is a sign-up sheet on the kindergarten bulletin board.  Please sign-up for a 30 minute conference time.  If none of the times work for you, please speak to me so we can arrange another time to meet.

 Wintery weather has arrived.  Our morning walks and our outside play time have been quite chilly.  The children love our outside time.  In order for us to continue to go outside on cold days children need to be dressed properly for the weather.  I request that all children come to school with a winter coat on (jackets and sweatshirts are no longer sufficient).  If you are unable to provide a winter coat for your child, please speak to me privately so I can arrange to get a coat for him/her.  If you are finding it difficult to get your child to put on a coat, please bring it to school with your child and I will insure they wear it.  I also request that children wear socks to school and have all limbs covered in warm clothing.  It’s better for children to wear many layers and take some off if they are too warm rather than being cold while at school.  Please read the attached article about warmth.  Thank you.

The Siskiyou School Holiday Faire is on Saturday November 21^st from 10-5 in Ashland.  I hope you plan on attending this great event.  There are many crafts and activities for children and booths of wonderful crafts and gifts.  The faire is also a wonderful place to buy Waldorf toys and items to enrich your child’s Waldorf experience at home.

I want to ensure that all families are receiving communication from me, so I am providing a paper copy of this letter to all families.  I will post a copy our school website as well.  I request that all families let me know if they would like to receive emails of future communications. 

Thank you and blessings on our wonderful class,

Miss Amy

944-7477 amy.rudolph@madronetrail.org  

Madrone Trail Kindergarten Halloween Celebration

Next Thursday, October 29^th is our class Costume “Parade” and Halloween Celebration from 11-12.  Our parade will start at the school at 11 am.  The parade will lead to us to Alba Park, where we will have a treat and apple cider.

On the morning of the celebration, children should bring a simple, homemade costume to school.  Children should not come to school dressed in their costumes.  Costumes should consist of a few items that your child can put on over their clothes.  I request that costumes be free of masks, make-up, commercial/media characters and not be “scary” (vampires, blood and gore, etc.).  Examples of appropriate costumes for school are dog, cat, mouse, princess/prince, king/queen, fairy, gnome, cowboy/girl, fireman, etc.  If you have questions regarding appropriateness of a costume, please talk to me.  Get creative and have fun making a costume with your child.

Volunteers Needed!

On the day of the celebration:

1.     Helping to set up snack at the park

2.    Walking to the park with the class

Please let me know how you can help

Thanks,

Miss Amy

Dear Kindergarten Families,

Wow, it’s already October 1^st, and it is finally starting to feel like fall.  We are having a lot of fun in the kindergarten.  Last week we started our new circle and the children love shaking the apple trees to make those apples fall.  Here is one of our favorite verses:

“Way up high in the apple tree,

Two little apples smiled at me,

I shook that tree as hard as I could,

Down came the apples, mmmm, they were good.”

Fall Field Trip

Unfortunately, I was unable to locate an apple orchard that would work for a kindergarten field trip.  I have scheduled a field trip to Pheasant Fields Farm in Phoenix for Monday, October 12^th.  It is a great farm with a pumpkin patch, a corn maze, an herb garden, animals and a wagon ride.  The cost is $4 per child which includes admission to the farm and a pumpkin.  I will send permission slips home next week.  Please sign the permission slip and return with $4 to school no later than Thursday October 8th.  We will need parents to volunteer to drive and help out on the field trip.  I will post a sign-up sheet on our bulletin board.  Please indicate the total number of children, in booster a seat, you can take in your vehicle.  Please indicate, also, if you will be bringing any siblings (there may be a charge for siblings).  All drivers need to fill out paperwork in the office prior to the day of the field trip.  We will leave the school just before 9:00 and return around 11:00/11:30.  Each child will be required to ride in a booster seat, so please send one to school with your child on October 12^th.  If you have any questions please call me.

Parent Evening

I have scheduled an additional parent evening for October 22^nd, 6-7:30pm.  We will discuss the Waldorf kindergarten curriculum and do an activity the children are doing in class.  Very important information is discussed at these meetings and I encourage all families to attend.

Kindergarten Aftercare

Kindergarten aftercare is available each school day from 12:15-2:45.  Cost and information are available in the office.  If you need drop-in care, please call the office to sign-up, to ensure there is space available. 

Rain Pants and Boots

We had our first rain this week.  We will soon begin wearing rain pants and boots each day when we go outside.  Please send rain pants and boots to school, marked with your child’s name, if you have not already.  At the end of the day, please help your child out of their rain pants and hang them on one of the two drying racks.  Boots can be placed neatly together, near your child’s cubby outside.  This is a new pick-up procedure, so we may have to work out the kinks.  Please let me know if you have any questions.

The updated parent handbook is online at www.madronetrail.org.  Please read it, as it is full of valuable information.  If you prefer a paper copy, please stop by the office to pick one up.  I am really enjoying getting to know each of your children.  Thank you for choosing Madrone Trail.

Take Care,

Miss Amy

944-7477 or amy.rudolph@madronetrail.org

Dear Kindergarten Parents,

Thank you to all the parents who were able to make it to the parent evening last Thursday.  At the meeting we discussed child development of the 51/2 to 7 year old.  We also did some circle activities and discussed them.  If you would like information on these topics, please let me know.  I hope even more families will be able to attend our next meeting.  I am thinking of scheduling another meeting next month.  If you have any feedback on days or times that work best for you, please let me know.  This week we started a new circle with songs and verses about going to the orchard to pick apples.  It has been a lot of fun.  This week we had our vision and hearing screenings.  I will speak to parents individually if your child did not pass either the vision or hearing test.  If you do not hear from me, your child passed the tests.

Field Trips – I am working on planning a couple of fall field trips for our class.  I am hoping to take a field trip to an apple orchard next Thursday to pick apples.  The apples we pick will be brought back for use in classroom activities.  I am currently looking for an orchard or farm or someone’s house with several apple trees the children can pick from.  I prefer the apples to be no spray or organic.  If you know of any such place, please let me know as soon as possible.  If we find a place, we will need parents to volunteer to drive and help on the field trip, so please let me know if you can help.  I will let everyone know as soon as possible if we are going on a field trip next Thursday.

Volunteering Opportunities

Laundry fairies – The kindergarten accumulates one load of laundry each week.  The load of laundry is taken home by the “laundry fairy” on Thursday after school and returned clean on Monday morning.  A sign-up sheet is on the kindergarten bulletin board.

Walks to the park – Every Monday and Wednesday the kindergarten walks to the park to play.   Starting next week, we would love to have parents join us.  There are two spots available each park day.  Please sign-up early to join us.

Multicultural Fair – Madrone Trail will have a booth at the Multicultural Fair this Saturday in Hawthorne Park.   This is a great outreach opportunity for our growing school.  There are still volunteer shifts available.  The shifts are only 30 minutes and there is an activity for children.  The sign-up sheet is on the kindergarten bulletin board.

Volunteer Orientation Meeting – Tuesday October 6^th from 7-8 pm.  Come and find out about the many ways you can volunteer and support our school.  There will be information on various committees and snacks too!  Unfortunately, there is no child care available for this event.

Fall weather – Fall is here and the mornings have been cool and crisp and the afternoons hot and sticky.  It certainly makes it difficult to dress children for the day.  Please remember that we start our day outside and it is cold, so please be sure your child has a jacket in the morning.  It is also a good idea to put tights or leggings on under skirts, as these are easy to remove later in the day as the weather warms up. 

Bread bags – We bake bread each Tuesday and the children get to bring their little loafs home.  I have made a cloth bread bag for each child.  Please return this bag each week by the following Tuesday morning. 

Blessings,

Miss Amy

944-7477/amy.rudolph@madronetrail.org

Dear Parents,

It was a wonderful first couple of days of school.  We have an amazing group of children.  I am enjoying getting to know each child more and am looking forward to a wonderful year together. 

Parent/Teacher Communications: 

Throughout the year, I will update parents through letters and announcements.  Our school website allows teachers to post information online, so I will post all communications online at www.madronetrail.org and on our class bulletin board, located outside the classroom.  I will also print several copies of communications, so if you prefer to receive a paper copy, please ask me for a copy. 

Communication between parents and teachers is very important, so please let me know if you would like to speak with me about anything.  I am available by phone (541-944-7477) Sunday through Wednesday from 5-8 pm (or other times if the matter requires immediate attention). I am happy to discuss things over the phone or we can schedule a time to meet and speak in person.  I am also available by email at amy.rudolph@madronetrail.org.  During drop-off and pick-up times, I am focusing on many things so it is generally not a good time for me to have in-depth conversations with parents.  Drop-off is a good time, however, to briefly let me know about anything going on with your child that may affect their day, such as “he didn’t sleep well”, “we had a hard morning”, “she wouldn’t eat breakfast”, etc. 

Drop-off/pick-up:

This year’s drop-off procedure is slightly different than last year’s and I appreciate everyone’s understanding as we work out the kinks.  Drop off begins at 8:20 each morning. If you arrive before 8:20, please wait with your child outside.  Miss Inderiah and I will come out to greet the children at 8:20. Children should be dropped off at the fenced-in portion of the playground.  I will be standing at the entrance to this area (at the end of the sidewalk).  Please check-in with me before you leave your child, so I am sure to know they have arrived.   Please remember to check-in with me each day when you pick up your child, so I know they are leaving with you.  Thank you.

Parent Council:

The parent council is a great way for parents to support the school and faculty.  All parents are welcome and encouraged to join the parent council. The first parent council meeting of the year will be this Tuesday, September 15^th, 3:30-4:30 in the handwork room (the classroom closest to the playground). I hope to see you there.

Water bottles:

 All children need to bring a water bottle to school, filled with fresh water, each morning.  Please mark the bottle with your child’s name and place it on their picture symbol on benches outside the classroom.  We have water glasses for drinking water indoors, but the children get thirsty while playing outside.

Toys from home:

Children often want to bring toys from home to play with at school or to show to their friends.  I ask that all home toys be left at home or in the car. 

Parent Evenings: 

We will have four parent evenings/meetings throughout the year.  These meetings provide valuable information on Waldorf education, child development, classroom activities, upcoming events and volunteer opportunities.  Our first parent evening is scheduled for this Thursday September 17^th from 7-8pm.  We will discuss the development of the 5-6 year old and the work we are doing in circle time.  This is a great opportunity to meet other families in our new class.  I look forward to seeing you there.  Please note, parent evenings are for adults only.  Thank you.

Blessings,

Miss Amy

Madrone Trail Kindergarten Schedule

(Updated September 8, 2009)

Daily Schedule

8:20-8:30 – Drop – off (outside)

8:30-8:40 – Walk

8:40-8:45 – Transition indoors

8:45-10:00 – Daily activity/free play,/clean-up

10:00-10:25 – Circle/rest

10:25-10:30 – Snack prep/washing for snack

10:30-10:55 – Snack

10:55-11:05 – Snack clean-up/transition to story

11:05-11:15 – Story

11:15-11:30 – Transition to outside (rain pants, boots, etc.)

11:30-12:15 – Outside play

12:15 - Dismissal

Weekly Schedule

Day:                       Activity:                          Snack:

Monday                Painting                            Rice w/Beans

Tuesday               Bread Baking                 Bread w/ Butter & Trail Mix

Wednesday          Drawing                           Granola w/Bananas & Rice Milk

Thursday              Beeswax or Craft           Soup

Outside Play Schedule

Day:                                                                    Location:

Monday/Wednesday                                   Walk to Alba Park

Tuesday/Thursday                                      School playground