Fortune Preschool Newsletter - Elk Grove

Hello Elk Grove Fortune families! To say that we are excited about beginning our preschool journey is an understatement. We are so happy to have been able to open on April 12th and welcome your children into our program. While the first few weeks of preschool are usually bumpy, we have been fortunate to experience nothing but fun and happy energy. Fortune Preschool staff hope you and your child(ren) enjoy our program as much as we do.

Our first few days at preschool have been filled with fun and sand. Many of you may have noticed that your child goes home talking about playing in the sand. The truth is that they are! We have been lucky enough to have kinetic sand for the children. Playing in sand is not only fun but remarkable for their fine motor development, which later helps them to be able to hold a pencil or markers in class. By offering these acceptable motor activities, we are not only building the muscles that help their grasp, but we are also opening the children up to learning new words to describe the feeling of the sand, the way it looks when spilling from their hands, and the way it looks when spilling from their hands as even how it smells. Each experience that we offer at Fortune Preschool is not only fun but educational too!

Circle time is the most essential part of the preschool day. During circle time, the children read stories, sing songs, talk about issues in the classroom, and strengthen their social-emotional development. The children learned about conflict resolution in this photo when the two dinosaurs began fighting over a toy. Through these experiences, children learn how to deal with difficult situations. The children also learn about what will happen throughout the day so they know what to expect as the day goes on. Please make sure that your child arrives in time for our morning meeting.

During the children's outside time, Ms. Johnson noticed that the children were interested in snails. That interest carried through to the classroom when they decided to catch snails to keep inside. Although they have just started, the children are already asking many questions about the snails that we can't answer yet. We hope to learn more about snails and how they live through research and observation.

We look forward to sharing more about the children's snail adventure with you!

A few reminders:

-Please pack three clothing changes for your child in case of an accident.

-Replace diapers/pull-ups as needed to prevent running out

-Bring in a family photo for a future project.

-Take home your child's Rollee Pollee Nap Sac to wash on Fridays

"Get Out of Their Way"

"I'm often asked by parents what advice can I give them to help get kids interested in science," says Neil deGrasse Tyson, "And I have only one bit of advice. Get out of their way. Kids are born curious. Period. I don't care about your economic background. I don't care what town you're born in, city, or country. If you're a child, you are curious about your environment. You're overturning rocks. You're plucking leaves off of trees and petals off of flowers, looking inside, and doing things that create disorder in the lives of the adults around you."

DeGrasse Tyson continues, "And so then, so what do adults do? They say, 'Don't pluck the petals off the flowers. I just spent money on that. Don't play with the egg. It might break. Don't…' Everything is a don't. We spend the first year teaching them to walk and talk and the rest of their lives telling them to shut up and sit down. So you get out of their way. And you know what you do? You put things in their midst that help them explore. Help them explore. Why don't you get a pair of binoculars and leave it there one day? Watch them pick it up. And watch them look around. They'll do all kinds of things with it."