Our Happily Ever After Curriculum is based on fairy tales and folk tales and we have had a great time integrating it into our lesson plans.
The first story was Little Red Riding Hood and we loved reading different versions of the story and comparing and contrasting. But we have moved on to the Three Bears and we have already done so much!
We have started letting the children act out the stories during Music and Movement time. Here are some clips from The Room 1 Theater Group.
This is some video from Monday. The class needed Ms. Heather to guide the story along. They knew the gist of the story. The class knew a lot of the lines the second day and even had a student narrator.
The children asked about porridge and we compared it to oatmeal and they got to make it and try it during small groups. Here is what that looked like:
They said it was delicious. We used vanilla oat milk and they got to cut up peaches and bananas.
Mr. Tim even loaned us some books so we can compare and contrast different stories. Here is what we have read so far.
We have read both these books this week and we plan to read a few more.
We have celebrated Apple & Pumpkin days which is a preschool tradition. We had apple and pumpkin based crafts and games as well as snacks!
Wednesday was Apple Day and we did apple crafts and ate Red Delicious apples. They were so sweet!
We did dot painting and we stamped with apples on a stamp pad. We ended the festivities with a trip to big field and had fun with sack races, frisbees, bouncy balls and some fun with the parachute.
We read the Pumpkin Patch Parable and we learned about how we can let God’s light shine from within us.
Thursday was Pumpkin Day and it was a blast! We had pumpkin painting, carving and bowling. Here are a few photos of the fun 🤩:
We also had a parent come in and she read so many books. The class loved it 📖.
It was such a fun time and we look forward to next year!
We had a fantastic Harvest celebration for Apple Pumpkin Days! The activities were so much fun for the children in Room 3. Making apple pie and pumpkin pie in a cup was a delicious and creative way to celebrate, and painting with apples and pumpkins was a fun artistic twist to the event.
The pumpkin scooping activity is always a hit, especially when the kids get to feel the slimy pulp and explore the insides of the pumpkin. Creating a volcano explosion inside a pumpkin was an exciting experience, combining science with the fun of Harvest!
This was a wonderful way to engage the children with the seasonal harvest, allowing them to learn about apples and pumpkins through hands-on activities. It’s great to see the kids make such meaningful and enjoyable memories! A big thank you to all the parents that volunteer . We couldn’t have done it without your help and donations!
During this Harvest season the children have also been hearing the story of the Pumpkin Patch Parable. The Pumpkin Patch Parable is a beautiful story that illustrates important spiritual lessons, especially for children. In this parable, a farmer goes out to a pumpkin patch and selects pumpkins that may not look perfect on the outside but have the potential for greatness inside. This mirrors how God sees us—not just for our outward appearances, but for our inner qualities and potential.
As the farmer cleans out the pumpkins, he removes the yucky stuff inside, symbolizing how God cleans our hearts of negativity, sin, and anything that prevents us from shining brightly. Just as the pumpkins can be transformed into glowing jack-o’-lanterns that light up the night, we too can let our hearts radiate God’s love and joy.
The core message is about transformation and allowing our inner light to shine. By accepting God’s love and letting Him shape our hearts, we become beacons of hope and happiness to those around us. It teaches children the importance of inner beauty and kindness, encouraging them to let their light shine in the world.
As they reflect on the story, they can think about how they can share their light with others, just as the pumpkins brighten the darkness during Halloween. This parable provides a gentle reminder of faith, acceptance, and the joy of sharing God’s love.
It is time for us to reset our clocks as we “Fall Back” by one hour. This small change will impact our kiddos, from emotional drop-offs to concerns about how dark it gets while they’re still at school. The classrooms will discuss the time change, and we are prepared to support the children as they adjust.
As it gets darker and colder earlier, we will transition from afternoons spent in the yard and on the patios to afternoons spent inside the classrooms.
End of the Day Classrooms:
Older Pod– Rm 2 for Rm 1 & 2
Younger Pod– Rm 5 for Rm 4 & 5 Friends (Rm 3 will remain in their room.)
Toddlers – Toddler A for all our toddler friends.
Preschool Chapel – Friday, Nov. 8th
This month’s chapel will focus on the story of Noah’s Ark. The children adore this story and its emphasis on family, animals, and listening to God. We can hardly wait to worship and praise God together.
Veterans Day – Monday, Nov. 11th
PRESCHOOL OPEN
The preschool will be open for Veterans Day. We are thankful and eternally grateful to all the men and women who have served and are currently serving our country and the families that support them. We will honor their sacrifice and service with the kids on campus.
Farm Days – Friday, Nov. 22nd
Older Pod Field Trip to Underwood Family Farms
Mark your calendars! Rooms 1, 2, & 3 will be going on our traditional fall field trip to Underwood Family Farm this year; yay!
Information, permission slips, and parent sign-ups will be available at the preschool front desk.
Younger Pod & Toddlers On-site Field Trip
We will continue the Harvest celebration on-site for Rooms 4, 5, and Toddlers with a visit from a few animal pals.
*If you are a Tuesday/Thursday family, please be sure to speak with your classroom teachers and the preschool office regarding how you can join in our farm day fun.
Stone Soup Days – Monday, Nov. 25th & Tuesday, Nov. 26th
Stone Soup Days are one of the most significant preschool events of the year. Based on the beloved children’s book Stone Soup, each child brings a vegetable/food item to class to contribute to the community/class pot of soup. Your classroom teachers or Room Parents will let you know how you can pitch in and be a part of this beautiful preschool annual tradition.
Wednesday, November 27th
MINIMUM DAY – NOON DISMISSAL
The day before our Preschool Thanksgiving Break is a Minimum Day. Therefore, the preschool will close promptly at noon.
Thanksgiving Break – Thursday, November 28th – Friday, November 29th
PRESCHOOL CLOSED
The preschool will be closed for Thanksgiving Break in the second half of the 4th week of November. We hope and pray that everyone has a fantastic time off, reflecting on what they are thankful for.
From our preschool family to yours’…
May God continue to bless, protect, guide, and grace you all with His presence, mercy, and love now and in the coming year. Amen.
Speech and Language Screenings – TBA
Speech and language pathologists from Jabberdogswill provide screenings for receptive and expressive language, voice, articulation, and fluency at the preschool. Once we have confirmed the screening dates, permission slips will be available at the preschool front desk.
Grandparent’s Day – Friday, December 13th
MINIMUM DAY: NOON DISMISSAL
Rooms 1 and 2 kiddos will perform specially prepared songs along with the upper campus in our auditorium, while Rooms 3, 4, and 5 will present at the preschool. Our toddlers will host Grandparents/Special Visitors in the toddler classrooms and yard. With parent permission, the Grandparents/Special Visitors will also have a chance to check out the classrooms and even take their students with them at the end of our event.
Happy Birthday, Jesus! – SATURDAY, December 14th, from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
Happy Birthday, Jesus is a SATURDAY MORNING EVENT. This annual tradition will occur at the preschool and on the PCS main campus in the auditorium.
From 10 a.m. to 11:00 a.m., we will host craft activities at the preschool in all of our preschool classrooms. Children and families are welcome to visit each room to make/create a Christmas craft to take.
At 11:00 a.m., all the parents and family members will drop off their preschoolers in their classrooms and then go to the auditorium to grab a seat for our Happy Birthday, Jesus performance. Each classroom prepares seasonal songs to share with our families (our toddlers we parade but not perform). Seeing the kiddos perform as we ring in the season together as a preschool family is such a treat.
The Children in Room 3 help to make Pumpkin Delight this past week. Cooking activities are a wonderful way to engage children in hands-on learning. Here are some of the skills developed while making Pumpkin Delight:
Math Skills
Measuring Ingredients: Children practiced measuring out ingredients using cups and spoons, which reinforces concepts of volume and measurement.
Counting: Counting the number of ingredients or steps in the recipe helps develop basic counting skills. We also counted to 5 while they mixed the ingredients.
Science Skills
Understanding Changes: As they mixed and cooked the pumpkin dish, they observed chemical changes (like how the mixture thickens or changes color).
Exploration of Ingredients: Discussing the nutritional benefits of pumpkin and other ingredients introduces basic biology and nutrition concepts. They also enjoyed smelling the pumpkin and the spices.
Social Skills
Teamwork: Working together to prepare the dish fosters collaboration and teaches the importance of sharing tasks and responsibilities.
Communication: Sharing ideas and instructions encourages verbal communication and active listening.
Patience and Turn-Taking: Waiting for their turn to stir or add ingredients helps develop patience and self-control.
Fine Motor Skills
Cutting and Mixing: Using utensils and handling ingredients helps improve hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills.
Cooking activities like Pumpkin Delight provide a rich platform for experiential learning, allowing children to apply various skills in a fun and interactive manner. They had a delightful time learning while creating something delicious!
Our friends are having fun exploring the sensory activities in our room. They are loving the play-doh, painting with Pom-Pom’s, looking and feeling the pumpkins, and reading books 🤗
Over the last few weeks, room 3 has been exploring the crispy and juicy glory of apples! We counted and charted them (math), we looked at the parts and tasted different kinds (science, 5 senses), and we painted with them (art).
The students were true professionals with their taste-testing that spanned from Honeycrisp sweet to Granny Smith sour and voted on their favorites. We’ve read books about apples, did paintings with them, and even sang songs learning about the different parts of them. Our finale of this apple chapter was cooking with them–apple dumplings!
Without a doubt, this was a rewarding and delicious segment to kick start our first two months of preschool. Thank you to our ingredient contributors and volunteers!
Our first month of school has ended and most of our kids have settled down. Our little friends are learning each others names and are also learning to share space and toys. We have exposed our class to the letters “A,”and “B.” Our bible story for this month was Genesis 1:1, we reviewed the beautiful work that God created in six days and that He rested on the seventh day.
We have so much to do and look forward to in October…
Oh my gosh…we need squash!
Over the first weeks of October, we will collect pumpkins, squash, and gourds of all shapes and sizes in the preschool lobby and create our own Preschool Pumpkin Patch!
If you would like to contribute, every $20 donation counts towards 1 hour of MVP.
After we refresh the preschool on Parent Site Work Day, Saturday, October 12th, we will redistribute all our squash across the campus from the Outdoor Classroom to Rooms 1 through 5 and our toddlers, too.
Thanks for donating! We can’t wait to see how big our Pumpkin Patch will become.
Preschool Chapel – Thursday, October 10th
Our second chapel of the year is here! For our first chapel together, we focused on the Creation Story. We are now moving on to Adam and Eve and discussing the power of choices, consequences, and God’s love.
Parent Site Work Day – Saturday, October 12th
WE NEED YOUR HELP! Parent Site Work Day is just around the corner; don’t miss your chance to help our preschool, build community, and earn MVP hours.
There are two ways to participate in this year’s event.
Donate materials/supplies.
(CORRECTION: Every $20 spent is worth 1 hr. of MVP.)
Help at the event. (Psst…volunteering to work at this event is worth double hours. Work 2 and receive 4. )
We will clean classrooms, power wash the patios, add sand and woodchips, and more. Please use the SignUp.com link below to join in all the fun.
We’re using SignUp.com to organize. Here’s how it works in 3 easy steps:
2) Review the options listed and choose the spot(s) you like.
3) Sign up! It’s Easy – you will NOT need to register an account or keep a password on SignUp.com.
Note: SignUp.com does not share your email address with anyone.
The Great ShakeOut – Thursday, October 17th
Once again, the preschool will participate in the Great California ShakeOut. This will be a full earthquake drill involving practicing “Bunnies in the Hole,” aka duck & cover, and a muster onto the main campus for an official headcount.
The preschoolers will muster in our parking lot and then walk over to the big field grass, where we will read books, sing songs, and possibly have a snack before returning to the preschool campus to resume our day.
Teacher In-Service Day – Friday, October 18th – STUDENT FREE
It is time for a teacher in-service day. These days are crucial and provide us the much-needed time for training, planning, preparation, and cleaning that can’t be achieved while the children are on campus. We are grateful for these opportunities to grow and improve all we do in service to the children and families.
Parent-Teacher Conferences – Friday, October 25th
Fall Conferences are here! We will sit down to discuss the kiddos, all we’ve done, and plans for the days ahead. Please use the classroom links below to find your classroom information and sign-ups.
Childcare will be provided for all our current preschoolers and siblings. Please see Mr. Tim or Ms. Kohar if you need an older or younger child to participate in the care during your conference.
They’re back! We will again be taking Candid Photos of all the kiddos at the preschool this year. These photos are different from traditional school photos as they are meant to catch the kids in action. Our photographer, Adrea Scheidler, is a PCS mom with many years of experience capturing those adorable preschool smiles. Once photos have been taken, Ms. Adrea will provide families with individual links for viewing and purchasing options.
Apple Pumpkin Days – Wednesday, October 30th – Thursday, October 31st
Our annual tradition of Apple Pumpkin Days is just around the corner. During the last week of October, we will celebrate this year’s harvest season with unique themed books, activities, and treats. Watch for emails from your classroom teachers or Room Parents about how you can help support this fun-filled fall tradition.
Volunteering at the Preschool
Will you be volunteering on campus this year?
If you plan to help out in the classroom or during a special event, we will need a signed Volunteer Confidentiality Agreement on file.
Hard copies are available in the Preschool Office.
Older Pod Field Trip to Underwood Family Farms – Friday, November 22nd
Mark your calendars! Rooms 1, 2, & 3 will be going on our traditional fall field trip to Underwood Family Farm this year, yay! It has been three years since we have enjoyed this fantastic outing, and we can’t wait. More details will be released throughout the month.
Rooms 4, 5, and Toddlers will enjoy Farm Days on-site with special farm animal guests.
