Toddle Towne

We love watching the seasons change outside and fall is so much fun.  We are going to rake leaves, collect leaves, seeds, and nuts, and get our gardens ready for winter.  As it gets cooler we will continue to go outside every day that it gets above 60 degrees and not raining, so make sure you have a jacket.  The fresh air and exercise will help everyone stay healthy at the beginning of the cold season.  Please help us minimize the number of germs inside by washing your child’s hands upon arrival to and departure from school each day.

• September 28 – October 2 – We will celebrate manners and apples at the same time with an Applesauce Party. We will practice saying please and thank you and using our spoons and napkins while we enjoy the best fruit fall has to offer.  We will use apples to count and sort by size and color.
• October 5 – 9 – Apples continue to be a theme this week as we break out the paint and make prints from real apple and paint handprint apple trees. We will think of all of the words we know that describe apples and practice carrying baskets filled with apples.
• October 12 – 16 – Leaves are falling everywhere and we are going to try to catch them. We will look at all of the things that make each tree’s leaves unique as we search through piles and piles of them.  If you have any neat leaves at your house bring them in to share.
• October 19 – 23 – Have you visited the good apple tree bulletin board in the front hallway? The Beginner teachers will be posting good apple awards all month long for the children who make good choices, are good friends, good nappers, and stay dry.  Keep checking back all month long.
• October 26 – 30 – Halloween skeletons will be used as a fun way to focus on healthy life practices and ways to keep children’s bodies healthy.  Children’s own areas of responsibility for keeping themselves healthy will be emphasized.

The leaves are changing color and the air is getting cooler, it must be Fall.  We will be spending a lot of time outside this month, enjoying the weather and learning about trees and how they change throughout the seasons.  As sure as the leaves fall in October the noses start to run so we will use this opportunity to learn all about healthy habits to keep us feeling good.  We are learning that sickness is caused by germs and there are fewer germs outside than inside so please make sure you always wear a jacket we will go outside every day unless it is raining.

• September 28 – October 2 – This week it is all about trees as we learn about the life cycle of trees, talk about how trees provide for us, and what products come from trees. We will be examining the leaves, bark, and shape of the trees and learning to identify some of the common trees on our playground.
• October 5 – 9 – As we learn about the four seasons and their sequence we will also be talking about what we like best about each season and what we don’t like. We will even be creating our own season book with a different picture for each season.
• October 12 – 16 – We will be celebrating fall weather and playing with leaves.
• October 19 – 23 – Fall is a time for harvesting and we will explore all of the edible parts of plants. We will eat flowers, leaves, fruits, roots, and seeds.  We are going to do graphing activities to show everyone’s favorites.  Do you know why popcorn pops?  We do just ask us!
• October 26 – 30 – All this week we will talk about all of the things we can do to stay healthy like following rules, washing hands, staying clean, exercising, getting lots of sleep, and our favorite, eating healthy food. All week the kids will bring in special snacks from a different food group each day, don’t forget to sign up.

We will be exploring the changing seasons and learning to identify trees by the leaves and bark.  We might even find a pile of leaves around to jump into!

• September 28 – October 2 – We will be making mobiles out of found objects in nature that we collect in our time outside after homework. We will create wreaths made of the seed heads of flowers from the garden to provide food for all of the birds who will stay through the winter.
• October 5 – 9 – Seed collections work very well for exploring, measuring, weighing, adding, and subtracting. Just for fun, we will compare the weight and mass of popcorn before and after it is popped.  We will also spend some time outside cleaning out the gardens and getting them ready for winter.
• October 12 – 16 – We will be making nature jewelry using acorns, sunflower seeds, and other items found in nature.  If you have any of these items at your house please collect them and bring them in.
• October 19 – 23 – This week we will be making a leaf collection. We will collect leaves from all of the trees around the school but if you have some interesting trees at home bring in leaves to share with everyone.  We could also use magazines to press the leaves in.
• October 26 – 30 – We will be making our own sidewalk chalk in Halloween colors and using it to draw monster shadows out on the playground. We will discuss safe ways to trick or treat so everyone can have a Happy Halloween.  Please remember that no costumes are allowed at TTLC.

Each classroom will be staffed with two qualified staff member, one working the early shift and one working the late shift which would have two qualified staff members available for each room during the majority of the day and ensure that we have extra staff available to cover all of the new arrival and departure rules, vacations and absences.

The maximum group sizes are half to one-quarter of what they were before with twice as much staff so there will be plenty of time and staff available to ensure we are adhering to the strictest sanitation protocols and that we can spread out to keep a safe distance between the children.

Parents can take comfort knowing TTLC has always made sanitation a top priority in accordance with DCFS standards, but we have stepped up our efforts to meet the challenge of COVID 19. Every classroom will be sanitized thoroughly prior to opening every day and at least once each morning, during naptime, again each afternoon, and once more prior to closing each day. Playground equipment will be thoroughly sanitized after every use. 

Surfaces such as doorknobs, light switches, countertops toys, phones, keyboards, computer mouse, and other items identified as frequently handled will be thoroughly sanitized repeatedly throughout the day. Whenever possible sanitizing will be done when the children are not present.

In all of the planning and preparation required to meet the new State requirements, our directors and teachers kept our standard of “Kids learning while they play, and playing while they learn” as a top priority. This is an unsettled time for young children and we’ve made it our goal to ease that stress as much as possible.

Working closely with our state representatives, we are re-establishing routines where possible while staying flexible to meet ever-changing requirements as they are released. Your patience and cooperation are greatly appreciated as adjustments are made. Working together we will keep our children safe and happy.