“If you can imagine it, you can achieve it. If you can dream it, you can become it.” – William Arthur Ward
Message from the Principal:
Happy New Year! I hope that each of you were able to spend family time with your loved ones over the winter break. I know I really enjoyed the time with mine. I’m sure I speak for the whole staff when I say thank you to everyone for all the holiday gifts and goodies! Your generosity and thoughtfulness truly warms my heart.
As we wind down 2014 and gear up for the New Year, I look forward to lots of wonderful things here at Carrington! I am so excited to see our program grow and am truly blessed to be a part of it! My prayer for everyone during this New Year is that we all remember and share the warmth and joy we experience during the holidays all year long!
Our community outreach programs for January will be a coat and mitten drive as well as the “Souper Bowl” at the end of January where we will be collecting cans of soup. I hope everyone will be able to help out in some way.
I also would like to welcome the Schecter and Luber families. We are so happy to have you as part of our Carrington family!
As always, thank you for sharing your children with us!
With warmest wishes,
Jan Migliaccio, Principal
Reminders:
- Refer a new family to Carrington Academy and receive a $100 statement credit. Credit given when the new family begins attendance and pays the admission fees.
Important Dates:
- January 1-2: School Closed
- January 5: No School – Forsyth & Fulton County, GA Pre-K
- January 5-9: Coat & Mitten Drive
- January 19: No School – Forsyth & Fulton County, GA Pre-K
- January 26-30: Souper Bowl Canned Food Drive
Links to Learning Goals:
This is a glimpse of what each classroom will be focusing on. Please see the classroom bulletin board for more detailed lessons.
Infant:
Baby Sign Language – This month’s baby sign is “milk.” To sign the word “milk,” open and close your hand to resemble milking a cow. For further assistance, have your child’s teacher show you how to make the baby sign, or refer to videos and articles on the Web.
Toddler:
This month, your child will practice retelling stories in her own words, understand the concept of four, and learn names for types of locations (i.e. beach, park, mountains).
Preschool:
This month, your child will continue using sequence vocabulary (i.e. first, second), name basic shapes, and learn about farms and farm animals.
Pre-K:
This month, your child will continue to identify uppercase and lowercase letters, recognize numerals 1-40, and create original patterns.
Read Together, Talk Together:
This is a glimpse of the books that will be introduced this month. Please see classroom bulletin boards for additional themed books.
- Sam and the Lucky Money by Karen Chinn
- New Year’s Day by David F. Marx
- Happy Chinese New Year Kai-Lan! by Lauren Silverhardt
Vocabulary Words: new year, calendar, celebration, resolution, happy, bells, party, decorations, balloons, time
Monthly Spotlight: Marshmallow Snowman Treats
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Place graham crackers and marshmallows in a baking dish.
- Cover it up loosely so that the marshmallows won’t turn brown.
- Bake for 12 minutes in the preheated oven.
- Meanwhile, prepare snowman’s heads.
- Place heads on the heated marshmallows, then press them down a little bit.
- Wait for them to cool down, then decorate the snowmen the way you like.
Employee of the Month: Luisa Montes
Our January Employee of the Month is Miss Luisa! Miss Luisa is always sporting a smile and her good attitude is contagious. Not only is Miss Luisa a happy, fun spirit, but she is a sweet and gentle teacher as well. She provides the perfect balance of fun and nurturing to her classroom, and we are so thankful that she is part of our Carrington family. Thank you Miss Luisa for being such an awesome team player!
News from the Education Department:
Embracing Diversity and the Traditions of Others
Children as young as two years old begin to notice differences among people. For instance, they may notice differences between boys and girls, or recognize that some families eat different foods or celebrate different holidays than their own family.
Research shows that children who learn to have a strong appreciation of their own family traditions and culture have an easier time appreciating the traditions and cultures of others. With this foundation, as children progress through elementary school and beyond, they have more social confidence and success in interacting with many different types of people.
Below are some ways that we focus on self-awareness and the appreciation of diverse cultures in the classroom, as well as some ideas you can try at home.
Infants/Toddlers: In our classrooms, infants and toddlers look at photos of familiar people and practice pointing to and naming each person, helping them to communicate a concept of self and family.
At home, collect photos of people your baby knows, and place them where he can see and reach them. Talk about the photo with your baby. For example, “Look Jake, here’s your grandmother. Who’s she holding? That’s you, Jake!” Toddlers may be able to find and name different family members.
Beginners (Ages 2-3): We introduce Spanish in our Beginner program to give children a head start on mastering a second language and understanding different cultures. In addition to Spanish language, students explore different traditions in Spanish speaking countries, such as music, musical instruments, and food.
At home, discuss your own family’s traditions with your child. Show him photos from different holidays and explain why you celebrate your traditions, such as why you go to Grandma’s house for Christmas or why you light candles for Hanukkah.
Intermediates (Ages 3-4): As children read stories about different family structures, home environments, and traditions around the world, our teachers encourage them to share their own experiences. During circle time for example, we may read a story about children living in a different country, in a different type of house and wearing a different type of clothes. Afterward, the teacher connects the story back to what the children know by asking, “What does your house look like?” and “Who lives in your house with you?”
Recommended books to read with your 3 or 4 year old include The Sneetches by Dr. Seuss, The Color of Us by Karen Katz, Why Am I Different by Norma Simon and It’s Okay to be Different by Todd Parr. After you’re done reading, share what’s unique about your child and ask him to discuss how he is different from the characters in the story.
Pre-K/Pre-K 2 (Ages 4-5): Pre-K children are curious to share their experiences and learn about those of others. Our teachers cultivate this curiosity with a focus on diversity. One way is by transforming their classrooms into international markets. Parents and teachers provide food, magazines, currency and musical instruments from various countries, and children are given the opportunity to shop for items found around the world. Some schools hold a cultural block party in which families share their heritage, including traditional foods.
Recommended books to read with your child at this stage include Whoever You Are by Mem Fox and Hats Off to Hair by Virginia Kroll.
In summary, we provide many opportunities for children to build self-identity, share family traditions, and learn about diversity in the classroom and around the globe. The better children understand themselves and the world around them, the easier they will make friends, accept others and appreciate differences as they transition into elementary school and beyond.
– Lauren Starnes, PhD- Director of Early Childhood Education
January 2015 News
“If you can imagine it, you can achieve it. If you can dream it, you can become it.” – William Arthur Ward
Message from the Principal:
Happy New Year! I hope that each of you were able to spend family time with your loved ones over the winter break. I know I really enjoyed the time with mine. I’m sure I speak for the whole staff when I say thank you to everyone for all the holiday gifts and goodies! Your generosity and thoughtfulness truly warms my heart.
As we wind down 2014 and gear up for the New Year, I look forward to lots of wonderful things here at Carrington! I am so excited to see our program grow and am truly blessed to be a part of it! My prayer for everyone during this New Year is that we all remember and share the warmth and joy we experience during the holidays all year long!
Our community outreach programs for January will be a coat and mitten drive as well as the “Souper Bowl” at the end of January where we will be collecting cans of soup. I hope everyone will be able to help out in some way.
I also would like to welcome the Schecter and Luber families. We are so happy to have you as part of our Carrington family!
As always, thank you for sharing your children with us!
With warmest wishes,
Jan Migliaccio, Principal
Reminders:
Important Dates:
Links to Learning Goals:
This is a glimpse of what each classroom will be focusing on. Please see the classroom bulletin board for more detailed lessons.
Infant:
Baby Sign Language – This month’s baby sign is “milk.” To sign the word “milk,” open and close your hand to resemble milking a cow. For further assistance, have your child’s teacher show you how to make the baby sign, or refer to videos and articles on the Web.
Toddler:
This month, your child will practice retelling stories in her own words, understand the concept of four, and learn names for types of locations (i.e. beach, park, mountains).
Preschool:
This month, your child will continue using sequence vocabulary (i.e. first, second), name basic shapes, and learn about farms and farm animals.
Pre-K:
This month, your child will continue to identify uppercase and lowercase letters, recognize numerals 1-40, and create original patterns.
Read Together, Talk Together:
This is a glimpse of the books that will be introduced this month. Please see classroom bulletin boards for additional themed books.
Vocabulary Words: new year, calendar, celebration, resolution, happy, bells, party, decorations, balloons, time
Monthly Spotlight: Marshmallow Snowman Treats
Directions:
Our January Employee of the Month is Miss Luisa! Miss Luisa is always sporting a smile and her good attitude is contagious. Not only is Miss Luisa a happy, fun spirit, but she is a sweet and gentle teacher as well. She provides the perfect balance of fun and nurturing to her classroom, and we are so thankful that she is part of our Carrington family. Thank you Miss Luisa for being such an awesome team player!
News from the Education Department:
Embracing Diversity and the Traditions of Others
Children as young as two years old begin to notice differences among people. For instance, they may notice differences between boys and girls, or recognize that some families eat different foods or celebrate different holidays than their own family.
Research shows that children who learn to have a strong appreciation of their own family traditions and culture have an easier time appreciating the traditions and cultures of others. With this foundation, as children progress through elementary school and beyond, they have more social confidence and success in interacting with many different types of people.
Below are some ways that we focus on self-awareness and the appreciation of diverse cultures in the classroom, as well as some ideas you can try at home.
Infants/Toddlers: In our classrooms, infants and toddlers look at photos of familiar people and practice pointing to and naming each person, helping them to communicate a concept of self and family.
At home, collect photos of people your baby knows, and place them where he can see and reach them. Talk about the photo with your baby. For example, “Look Jake, here’s your grandmother. Who’s she holding? That’s you, Jake!” Toddlers may be able to find and name different family members.
Beginners (Ages 2-3): We introduce Spanish in our Beginner program to give children a head start on mastering a second language and understanding different cultures. In addition to Spanish language, students explore different traditions in Spanish speaking countries, such as music, musical instruments, and food.
At home, discuss your own family’s traditions with your child. Show him photos from different holidays and explain why you celebrate your traditions, such as why you go to Grandma’s house for Christmas or why you light candles for Hanukkah.
Intermediates (Ages 3-4): As children read stories about different family structures, home environments, and traditions around the world, our teachers encourage them to share their own experiences. During circle time for example, we may read a story about children living in a different country, in a different type of house and wearing a different type of clothes. Afterward, the teacher connects the story back to what the children know by asking, “What does your house look like?” and “Who lives in your house with you?”
Recommended books to read with your 3 or 4 year old include The Sneetches by Dr. Seuss, The Color of Us by Karen Katz, Why Am I Different by Norma Simon and It’s Okay to be Different by Todd Parr. After you’re done reading, share what’s unique about your child and ask him to discuss how he is different from the characters in the story.
Pre-K/Pre-K 2 (Ages 4-5): Pre-K children are curious to share their experiences and learn about those of others. Our teachers cultivate this curiosity with a focus on diversity. One way is by transforming their classrooms into international markets. Parents and teachers provide food, magazines, currency and musical instruments from various countries, and children are given the opportunity to shop for items found around the world. Some schools hold a cultural block party in which families share their heritage, including traditional foods.
Recommended books to read with your child at this stage include Whoever You Are by Mem Fox and Hats Off to Hair by Virginia Kroll.
In summary, we provide many opportunities for children to build self-identity, share family traditions, and learn about diversity in the classroom and around the globe. The better children understand themselves and the world around them, the easier they will make friends, accept others and appreciate differences as they transition into elementary school and beyond.
– Lauren Starnes, PhD- Director of Early Childhood Education