Welcome to ECP - 3B
2018-2019

Mrs. Cuocolo 

 

Diocesan Wide Theme: Rejoice in the Lord Always
Francisan Value for September : Right Relationship

Important Dates

Tuesday, 9/25 -  bring in something that makes you happy for show and share - can be a picture
Wednesday, 9/26 ~ bring a picture of just YOU for a religion craft, wear a hat for H week
Thursday, 9/27 ~ Visit from the Bishop
Friday, 9/28 ~ bring a picture of your house or a house for our H collage
Friday, 10/5 ~ 11:35 dismissal for ALL friends - Eagle's Club is open
Monday, 10/8 ~ NO SCHOOL
Friday 10/19 ~ Field trip to Ramsey Farms, all students must have a chaperone

Daily Updates

September 21, 2018
Thank you all for coming out last night. It was great to see so many of you. I hope you found the evening informative. There were so many other topics I could have discussed and here are a few:

~ Code Red - As I said on Wednesday, we will be practicing many different drills in order to keep us safe throughout the year. Please know I will never let the children know if we are in danger, but I will let them know that it is an emergency and that they need to be silent and listening. I will always do everything in my power to keep them safe while they are in my care. If you ever have any questions about school safety, please email me and I will be ahppy to discuss this with you.

~ Webpage - Thank you for checking my page nightly. I really appreciate that. Please use my notes and pictures from the day as prompts for asking your child about their day. Also, our webpage does not have spellcheck so I apologize for any erroros or typos - I am usually typing while I eat or in a hurry at rest time. 

~ Missed days - We do not really track attendance at this stage. We note it just for our own knowledge, so please do not worry about your child missing school. If you have a day off of work or have a fun activity planned, please do not fret about them missing school. You really only have so many years to enjoy this luxury so i encourage you to take advantage while you can.

~ Kid Stuff books - If you do not want to purchase the KidStuff fundraising books, please put a note on it and place in your child's bookbag so we know. Thank you!

~ Please read over the packet that I sent home and sign and return the last page. 

I loved seeing all of my friends in red today. Gues who forgot her red?!?! Oops...it was one of those mornings at my house! My friends also enjoyed sharing their A for animals. We discussed some facts about each animal.

After Library, snack and morning recess ( we were busy), we tasted our red and green apples and our apple cider. I encourage the childrne to try everything and most of them did. We talked about the different tastes of the red and green apples. We then graphed our favorite - red had 9 votes and green had 5 votes. Thank you to all who sent in the items for our tasting! 

We read a story called "The Apple Pie Tree" today and pretended to make an apple pie. The children then worked with Mrs. Monarski to create stained glass apples using tissue paper (a god fine motor skill). The children also sat and painted a big A and little a and were encouraged to do their best to stay inside the lines. My friends worked with me to create a pattern with red and green apples. They are doing so well with patterning.

After recess, we read our first Scholastic News on Apples. Each week, we will read a Scholstic News magazine - a lot of times they are related to the theme we are on or the season we are in. I pull the big issue up on the smartboard and there are interactive games, videos and songs. The children really enjoyed this activity - it is a nice ending to our week together.

~ There is a banana in your child's bookbag from Valeria's dad! Thanks so much for the healthy weekend treat!

Our letter next week is H for horse and home. 

Have a great weekend and enjoy the fall weather making memories together! Thank you for a great first 12 days of school together!

September 20, 2018
What a fun and busy day we had today! This morning we started something that we will do on Thursdays when our roup is a little smaller (today we only had 10 kids.  We do tablework where Mrs. Monarski sits at one table and I sit at another and we work on a skill with that small group. Today we worked on listening and following directions - we worked on finding a designated color crayon and tracing lines from the left to the right (these are very early prewriting skills). The children also worked on a sheet where we had to find two things that were alike and find the one that was different. They did such a  great job on these skills! I was so proud of them.

After tablework, we became scientists. We used our sense of sight to describe how an apple looks. I then cut the middle of the apple out and we used our sense of touch to feel the seeds and the inside of the apple. We then used our sense of smell to smell vinegar again. I filled the cored apple with baking soda - we used our sense of sight to see that it was white. I then showed them the vinegar and we described it as clear. I then showed them green food coloring and told them that food coloring would change the color of something but not the taste. We counted as I put 3 drops of food coloring in the vinegar and we observed the change in color of the liquid. I then poured the vinegar into the cored apple with baking soda which caused a reaction that looked like an explosion - or a volcanoe some of my friends noted. We used our sense of hearing  to listen to the fizzing reaction. The children loved this experiment!

 

I read a story about an apple orchard today. The children then worked on a green and red pattern with Mrs. Monarski. They then worked on finishing apple patterns. We will do a lot of ABAB patters this year. I describe it as taking turns . 

Today in Religion, we talked about what it means to be a friend - we listed ways we show that we are friends. I told them that Jesus wants us all to be friends and to make others happy by taking turns and sharing. We will work on this during our year together. The children then created an A for angel with their handprints. They turned out so cute!

~ I look forward to seeing you tonight at 6:30 in our classroom. I am of course losing my voice and my power point presentatino won't upload! But we will make the best of it! Remember this is for parents only and that this is not a time for conferences. Thank you!

~ Tomorrow is wear red day for Apple week. My friends should also bring an animal that they love for A show and share.

~ If you volunteered to send in apples or cider, please do that at drop off tomorrow or even tonight if that is easier.

September 19, 2018
Happy, sunny Wednesday! My friends were so happy to put a sun sticker up today on our weather calendar. I am so proud of my friends - so many of them are walking down the hall on their own and with big smiles! Keep it up!!

Wednesdays are very busy days here that don't leave us a lot of time in the classroom to do our work, but that is okay because we are learning and having fun in Gym and Spanish. My friends enjoyed both specials today and I was so happy to get a good report when I picked them up from each.

I read a story about apples today and we talked about ways apples are used - apple juice, applesauce, apple cider, apple doughnuts, candy apples. My friends then stamped a letter A with apple stamps and used dot dots to fill in an apple - this is a good fine motor skill. My friends also worked on cutting a heart. We will practice using our scissor skills a lot in our classroom.

This morning we took a brief morning recess on the playground since it was such a beautiful day. I took time at the end of recess to practice a drill in case we ever have to get off of the playground quickly. I eplained to the children that I will only ever blow my whistle if there is an emergency (I will never blow it to signal the end of recess, etc) and I need them to come right away when they hear me and to line up silently. I said that sometimes we might have to take a walk away from the building and they need to stay in a silent line behind me. I told them that they will always be safe with Mrs. Monarski and me. The children did such a great job during our practice drill. I was so proud of them! We will practice other drills over the coming weeks - locking our room and staying quiet inside, leaving our room quickly and going into the neighborhood. It saddens me that we need to even practice this and to be honest it terrifies me (as a teacher and a mom) that this is a sad reality in this day and age. I promise I do not take this job lightly and will always do what I can to keep your child safe while they are with me just as I expect my own childrens' teachers to do. If you have any questions, please feel free to email me. 

After our lunch and recess, I read a story about the color red and we talked about things that are red - cherries, strawberries, firetrucks. My friends each then shared their red picture and glued them to our red collage. My friends were so proud of the pictures that they found!

Thank you for reading my page nightly - I loved how many girls had ponytails and that most of my friends had names on their shirts, as I requested!


~ Back to School Night is on Thursday at 6:30 in the classroom. This event is for PARENTS ONLY. I also ask that you please remember that this is not time for conferences as this night is about sharing our day and expectations for the year with you.

Have a great night - get out and enjoy the beautiful weather!
 

September 18, 2018
My friends did a great job today with their red show and share. They really are so proud of their items that they bring in and they love to see what their friends have to share. This is a great activity to reifnorce our letter of the week and to help them increase their confidence in talking in front of friends. Valeria brought in red grapes to share with the class. What a healthy treat that we enjoyed with our morning snacks!

My friends enjoyed Technology today. They watched videos all about the letter A and apples to support our letter of the week.

Today I read the story "The ABC book" and we talked again about the letters in the alphabet. My friends then created an alligator out of the letter A that I will keep for our end of the year ABC book. They also painted an fall tree using an apple half as their paintbrush! Their tress are so colorful. They really enjoyed this activity.

We also started our first science experiment today. Each week, we will do a science experiment for our theme. Today we talked about how scientists use their senses - we listed our body parts and named each sense - to learn about their world around us. Today we used our sense of touch to feel how and apple feels - smooth and heavy. We used our sense of sight to describe the apple - red and shiney. I then cut an apple into quarters and we looked at the inside of the apple and talked about the stem, the core and the seeds. I then introduced the word "liquid" and explained that a liquid is something that can be poured from one container to another and will make a puddle if it spills. We used our sense of smell to smell a cup with water, a cup with vinegar and a cup with vegetable oil. We decided that the vinegar does not smell very good. I then put one apple slice in an empty cup labeled air, one in a cup with water, one in cup filed with vinegar and one in a cup with the oil. We will make an observation - this is our big scientist word - each day this week.

We are also taking turns each day acting out a little poem called "Five Little Apples". They might be able to recite this for you at home.

~ We took a brief 5 minute morning recess on the blacktop and we were able to get on the play ground after lunch for 20 minutes before the rain started!

~ Scholastic Book Orders are due online by tomorrow. I will place the order tomorrow afternoon. 

~ Everyone needs a picture of something red for our red collage tomorrow. This can be cut from a magazine or printed from a computer. Please allow your child to help you find an object that is red. This is their "homework".

~ Thank you for all of the sidewalk chalk. You are so generous. We are set for a while now. 

~ If you are out and about and see stickers that you would like to send in, we use a lot of stickers here in this classroom! 

~ Tomorrow is Gym Day. Girls should wear their hair pulled back in a ponytail. If your child's name is not on their shirt, please stick it on with a piece of tape for Mrs. Schock. Thank you!

~ Back to School Night is on Thursday at 6:30 in the classroom. This event is for PARENTS ONLY. I also ask that you please remember that this is not time for conferences as this night is about sharing our day and expectations for the year with you.

~ Ask your child if they had a job at school. They love to do their special jobs and are so proud of themselves!

Stay dry tonight! It was a good napping day - they were all so tired and our room was so dark. But I am ready for more sunshine!


September 17, 2018
I hope that you all enjoyed your weekend! It was a gorgeous one and I hope that everyone got outside to have a lot of fun and make happy, family memories. And now here we are ready to start our second full week of school.

I was so proud of my friends as there were NO TEARS this morning at drop off! Hooray !! They are all doing so well with this huge transition to school. Even though many of them have been in day care or other schools, this is a big change for them and they are doing so well. Thank you for your work in helping to make this possible. And everyone looked great in their red, white and blue!

We enjoyed Music with Mrs. Wagner this morning and are working on a special song for when the Bishop visits next week.

My friends enjoyed their pretzels for morning snack so they may have an extra snack that they did not eat from this morning. It is amazing how many of my little friends can eat a big hole pretzel.

Today I introduced our new letter of the week - letter Aa. We practiced making the letters with our "pretend crayons". We saw pictures of words that start with A - ant, alligator, apple, ape, ABC and acorn. This week we will talk about the letter A and apples and the color red. I read the story "Ten Apples Up on Top" and we pretended to put 10 apples on our head. We counted the apples on the animals heads in the story and made predictions of what we thought might happen. The childrne then worked to paint an apple to hang fromn our ceilings. They also had to stamp and count 10 appls. The childrne also learned to do crayon rubbings that we will do at the start of each week for our new letter. We call it magic as they make the letters and pictures appear, we then talk about what pictures start with the new letter. Today we learned that A was for apron and apple. My friends were also able to play with play doh for the first time and were sp excited to do so. We reviewed the ruiles of play doh. This week they have apple cookie cutters and a cookie cutter for the letter A. 

We got a morning recess in on the playground and were able to spend more time on the playground after lunch. It is supposed to rain tomorrow so please send your child to school with a jacket with a hood. Children are not allowed to bring umbrellas to school. 

~ Bring in something red for Show and Share tomorrow.
~ Pretzel money is due tomorrow. I recommend that everyone order the pretzels as it ios very sad when all of your friends have a pretzel and you do not. We send the pretzels home in a bag if your child does not want to eat it.
~ Remember to check the important dates above nightly!

Have an Amazing Monday!

September 14, 2018
Happy Friday. Today we did the Friday dance!! We celebrated the end of our first full week togther - it flew by (as a teacher, as a parent, not so much..). 

My friends all did such a great job sharing their items for "All About Me". I loved getting to know a little bit more about them and they were so proud and excited to share their items! Thank you for all reading my page and for sending these items in! This really does make a big difference.

Today we finished our "All About Me" theme by listening to the story 'What I like About Being Me". The children then got to color a boy or a girl and we graphed the number of boys and girls in the room. The children could tell by looking at the graph that we have more girls than boys. We counted and found that we have 11 girls and only 4 boys and that 11 is a bigger number than 4. The children also created a person by gluing together a head, arms, lefs, feet, hands and hair - they then had to draw on two eyes, one nose and one mouth. We then played a dice game where I rolled one dice that gave us a movement (for example, bend) and then a second dice with a body part (ex, knees) and we had to follow the directions for the movement.

We also talked more about letters and reviewed 'Chica Chica Boom Boom". The children then had a chance to hold a real coconut (from the alphabet coconut tree in the story) - we talked about whether it was light or heavy and the fact that it was not smooth - it felt kind of hairy. We then did a coconut painting where we rolled the coconut in paint to paint our papers. The kids thought it was fun to paint with something other than a brush or their hands - we will do that a lot in here!

~ Monday is TAG day for the school. The theme is red, white and blue.

~ All of my friends will get a pretzel from the Philly Pretzel factory on Monday for morning snack. Please remember to send in a drink.

~ Our theme next week is letter A, the color red and apples.

~ Remember to send the blankets and sheets back in on Monday. It would be helpful to send the same sheet as I am starting to know what sheet blongs to each child. Please send it in a bag that will stay in school until Friday.

Have a wonderful, relaxing weekend filled with laughter and happy times with your family. Thanks for a great start to the year!
 

September 13, 2018
My friends all looked so handsome and so pretty in their special picture day outfits this morning. There were some issues with the cameras during our scheduled time so we had to sit and wait for a very long time but my friends did an AMAZING job! I was so proud of them for how patient they were. They earned a long morning recess for the patience that they showed!

We read the story "Chrysanthemum" this morning. In this story, Chrysanthemum does not like her name after friends at school started making fun of her for how long it was and how funny it sounded. We talked about the fact that we each have a special name that our moms and dad chose for us and that we should be proud of our names because it tells who we are and about us. We talked again about the letters that our names start with. The children then had to find the letter that their names starts with and glue it to a sheet with that letter already on it. They did a great job matching the letters. They were also able to use water colors to paint their names. They loved this fun project!

After recess, we shared our special items that start with the same letter as our names. They loved seeing their friends items and they did a great job sharing! We will do this weekly and it is amazing to see their confidence grow as the year goes on.

My friends all need to bring in a small brown bag with 3 items that tell about them for tomorrow - family picture, small stuffed animal, small ball or little car or something that is their favorite color. We will share these to end our 'All About Me" week.

~ I am asking that EACH CHILD bring in a small canvas tote (can be purchased at AC MOORE) or a reusable bag from the Disney Store (or something similar). Please make sure that your child's name is on the bag. If you buy a canvas one at AC MOORE, feel free to decorate it at home. This bag will carry their blanket and  sheet back and forth to school. You can send it on by Friday so we can send blankets home in it or you can send it in on Monday when you send in their clean sheet and towel. This bag will stay in their cubbie all week but it will make transporting their towels and blankets easier - they often don't fit in their bookbags. Thank you!

September 12, 2018
What a wonderful Wednesday! My friends came in ready for our day - and what a busy day it was! On Wednesday, we go to Gym and Spanish so we do not have a lot of classroom time to get things done!

We talked about the fact that the cafeteria was going to look different for Gym and my friends were excited to see this. Mrs. Schock said that our class was so well behaved and such good listeners. We are looking forward to playing games and having fun each week as we exercise and release some energy.



We had a nice time in Spanish also and were very good listeners and got to sit in big desks in the big building. 

We listened to "Chica Chica Boom Boom" today and talked about all of the letters. We talked about the letters that start each of our names. My friends also learned a fun ABC march - this was a lot of fun and we will do it almost daily. My friends each made a coconut tree using their handprints as the tree and then used stickers to create their names - these are hanging on our bulletin board. My friends will hopefully learn to recognize and spell their first names by the end of the year. After recess, we watched a "Chica Chica Boom Boom" video that the children enjoyed.

~Tomorrow is Picture Day. Please remember to sen din your form or a print out from your online order - please do not email me this as I will not be able to print these in the morning for you. My friends should wear an outfit that you would like for pictures but they MUST WEAR SNEAKERS. Moms of girls, I know this may not be the outift that you envision but I promise you do not see their feet in the pictures. This is for safety reasons for the playground. Safety and comfort are key when you are three!

~ My friends also all need to bring in something that starts with the same letter as their name tomorrow. Make sure they know what letter their name starts with and what their object is. This will be for our first show and share.

~ I am asking that EACH CHILD bring in a small canvas tote (can be purchased at AC MOORE) or a reusable bag from the Disney Store (or something similar). Please make sure that your child's name is on the bag. If you buy a canvas one at AC MOORE, feel free to decorate it at home. This bag will carry their blanket and  sheet back and forth to school. You can send it on by Friday so we can send blankets home in it or you can send it in on Monday when you send in their clean sheet and towel. This bag will stay in their cubbie all week but it will make transporting their towels and blankets easier - they often don't fit in their bookbags. Thank you!

Have a nice night - hopefully it stays dry for some after school play time!


September 11, 2018

What a great job my friends did coming into the room today! There were far less tears than yesterday. Every day will get easier!

I loved all of my friends nice colorful shirts today! It is fun to see their personalities come through on these dress down days. Good job, moms and dads, all of my friends were dressed down. Thank you for reading my page and remembering!

This morning, we took a walk to the big building for technology with Ms. Luce. The children did such a nice job of walking over to the big building and up the steps to the second floor. I was so proud of them! The children enjoyed watching 'Pete the Cat' videos. Each week, they will watch videos that correspond to our theme for the week.

After Computer, we took a walk to meet our school nurse, Mrs. Perrine. I explained to the children that Mrs. Perrine will help them if they are ever not feeling well, have to take medicine or fall and need a band aid. I also explained that she will NEVER give them a needle (as this was a concern). I don't want them to ever be afraid to go see the nurse. We talked about what a bright and happy office she has!

In Centers, we talked more about what makes us each special and we read a fun book called "I really like me". We talked about the fact that we are all different but that we are all friends and a team now that we are in the same class. The children then had their hand painted to create a friendship tree. We also talked about our flag ( we say the Pledge each morning) and the colors that we see in our flag. We certainly did not talk about 9/11, but we did make a little flag for each of them to hold. We talked about how special our flag is. Remember to hug yuor loved ones a little tighter tonight!

We were able to play outside after lunch - my friends loved sidewalk chalk so if you would like to send some in, we would appreciate it!

~ Please remember to reach out to Mrs. Malatesta at mmalatesta@sjbdel.org if you need to start the process for your background check. It is helpful if both parents complete this process. It is $30 and is good for 5 years. You mus have a background check completed in order to vlunteer in any way here at school. You must also have a signed Volunteer Covenant on file - this will be signed annually. OUr first field trip is Friday, October 19, so please make sure all forms are done by then as all friends need a chaperone to attend.

~ I will be sending out a sign up genius for apple tasting next week. PLease let me know if you do not receive the sign up genius. I will send it this afternoon.

~ Picture Day is Thursday. I know that some of my friends are not here on Thursday. They can have their picture taken at retake day in October. Our scheduled time is 8:00. If your schedule allows, you can meet us at the Library at 8:00 for your child to have their picture taken and then you may take them home with you (THIS IS ONLY FOR MY M,W,F friends). Please remmber to send in the picture form with your child or the printout if you completed the form online. 

~ Remember to check the dates above for all important information about classroom fun!

~ I am asking that EACH CHILD bring in a small canvas tote (can be purchased at AC MOORE) or a reusable bag from the Disney Store (or something similar). Please make sure that your child's name is on the bag. If you buy a canvas one at AC MOORE, feel free to decorate it at home. This bag will carry their blanket and  sheet back and forth to school. You can send it on by Friday so we can send blankets home in it or you can send it in on Monday when you send in their clean sheet and towel. This bag will stay in their cubbie all week but it will make transporting their towels and blankets easier - they often don't fit in their bookbags. Thank you!
September 10, 2018
Happy Monday. Welcome to our first full week of school! I hope that everyone enjoyed the weekend, despite the weather. It looks like it will be a rainy, dreary week but we will make the best of it! This morning we sang the songs "Rain, Rain go away" and "It's raining, it's pouring"...we talked about good rainy day activities - jumping in puddles, watching a movie, doing a puzzle, reading a book. 

I know drop off was hard for some of my friends today. Let's be honest, who wants the weekend and time with family to end? But all of my friends were settled after just 10 minutes. I was so proud of them. Goodbyes are hard but once they realize the fun we will have and how fast our day goes by, it will get easier for them. Again, I THANK YOU for dropping them at the door. It really does make the morning transition easier for everyone - you included!

Today we met Mrs. Wagner and had our first Music class. The children had the chance to sing, dance, play with scarves and wooden sticks. I was so impressed with how well they did for their first class! It was a lot of fun. Mrs. Wagner will come each Monday morning for 45 minutes!

We talked about ways that we are special and what makes us special. I asked the children who was a boy and who was a girl, who has brothers and sisters and who doesn't, who has blond hair and who has brown hair. We decided the world would be really boring if we all looked alike or only wanted to play soccer or play with dolls. God made us each special and He loves us just as we are. We sang a little song about being special. I then read a book called "Designed by God so I must be special". We talked about what our eyes and ears do and how special each of our body parts is. The childre then created a person using materials to decorate our Religion bulletin board. They did such a nice job and really took their time doing this! I also worked on a sheet with each child where I asked questions in an effort to get to know them better. After our crafts and play time were done, we all gathered to do our Religion pamphlet (this is in their folder). We talked about the fact that we are meeting new friends in school and we named the friends we know and all of the fun things we will do. It is going to be a great year of learning and fun and celebrating what makes us all special!

We were able to get outside for recess after lunch. We ran around on the blacktop for a bit since the  playground was wet. After we came in, we watched a brief 15 minute Daniel Tiger show. We will sometimes watch shows on the SmartBoard but this will not be a daily occurence. I usually only do it on days when we cant't stay outside because of the weather.


~ Tomorrow is wear your favorite shirt day for "All About Me" week. Children can wear whatever pants they want or their gym shorts.

~ Please remember to reach out to Mrs. Malatesta at mmalatesta@sjbdel.org if you need to start the process for your background check. It is helpful if both parents complete this process. It is $30 and is good for 5 years. You mus have a background check completed in order to vlunteer in any way here at school. You must also have a signed Volunteer Covenant on file - this will be signed annually. OUr first field trip is Friday, October 19, so please make sure all forms are done by then as all friends need a chaperone to attend.

~ Picture Day is Thursday. I know that some of my friends are not here on Thursday. They can have their picture taken at retake day in October.

~ Remember to check the dates above for all important information about classroom fun!

~ I am asking that EACH CHILD bring in a small canvas tote (can be purchased at AC MOORE) or a reusable bag from the Disney Store (or something similar). Please make sure that your child's name is on the bag. If you buy a canvas one at AC MOORE, feel free to decorate it at home. This bag will carry their blanket and  sheet back and forth to school. You can send it on by Friday so we can send blankets home in it or you can send it in on Monday when you send in their clean sheet and towel. This bag will stay in their cubbie all week but it will make transporting their towels and blankets easier - they often don't fit in their bookbags. Thank you!

Stay dry out there!

September 7, 2018

Happy 2nd day of school and Happy Friday! In our room, we celebrate Fridays by doing the "Friday dance"...many of the children will also want to do this at home!

There were some more tears this morning as the reality that this was happening again set in, but for the most part it was a smooth transition into our room again this morning. Again, I thank you for saying goodbye at the door and understanding this is a "rule"for a reason - it would just prolong the tears and the goodbyes. I do not allow you in the room even on mornings where your child is crying. I will pry them off of you and wave you on, as hard as it may be for them and for you. A few weeks from now, the tears will all be a distant memory!

Today we visited Mrs. Oldiges and Mrs. Tobin in the library. We got to walk over to the "big building" and had a lot of fun in the library listening to a story about Courduroy and playing a game of 'Who Stole the Cookie from the Cookie Jar." We look forward to going back to library next week!

We took a brief morning recess on the playground after our morning snack. The children really enjoyed running around and having fun with their friends. I will try to get out for a morning recess or walk every day as this is an important part of the day in the life of a three year old! Please remember to always dress your child for the weather!

We listened to the story of "Pete the Cat Rocking in his School Shoes". In the story, Pete was in the library, the cafeteria and the playground - all of the places that we go. He was not nervous or scared because he sang his school song - we rocked a long to this also. The children then made Pete the Cat headbands and I painted their hands to create a Pete the Cat in his school shoes.

~ Your child's water bottle or drink for lunch must fit in their luncbox. We cannot remember to grab water bottles from cubbies to take to the cafeteria with us. Thank you for understanding.

~ Please make sure your child's morning snack is in their lunchbox and marked somehow either with a sticker or the words. Again, please pack what they will eat  (but no cookies or fruit snacks for morning snack). We have had some tears over not liking our morning snacks!

~ Towels and sheets will be sent home next Friday to be washed.

~Remember a small stuffed lovie in their bookbags please! This helps with rest time.

Have a wonderful weekend filled with lots of family time! Remember that Monday might be like starting all over again after 2 days off....I promise, it it will get easier!

 

September 6, 2018
What a great first day we had - we all survived (moms and dads, that includes you, too). I know, believe me, I know, how hard it is to "let your child go". Even if they have been in a day care prior to this, this is a change and this is "school" so I am sure this was hard for you. Thank you for following and respecting my rule that goodbyes are said at the door. It really does make our morning easier on everyone! You did it! I am proud of you. Thank you for trusting me with this immensely important job of teaching your child. I promise this is not something that I take lightly!

The children all came in so nicely with minimal tears - I was so impressed and so proud of them! Today was a busy day talking about all of the things we will do in school and learning some of the routines and rules of our day. In no time, they will have it down pat - they learn and adapt so quickly at this age.

I read the story "The Kissing Hand" today and we talked about who was nervous or scared this morning . In the story, Chester Racoon was also nervous and did not want to go to school. His mom kissed his hand and told him to put it to his cheek anytime that he needed to feel her love. Chester then realized that school was fun and that he enjoyed meeting new friends and that his mom's love was always with him and that she would always get him after school. The children then worked to create a Chester racoon. I painted their hands - they all said it tickled - and we made a kissing hand for you to remember that their love is always with you. We also made preschool headbands for them to wear. The children also learned a little racoon hand poem that they enjoyed! It was a busy morning mixed with work, play and fun! It will be a great year in Ec-3B!

The children all did a great job eating in the cafeteria! I think they thought it was a lot of fun to eat with "the big kids."

Some children were looking for stuffed animals at rest time. Please remember to send one in their bookbag tomorrow if you did not today. We will not send sheets and towels home to be washed tomorrow since it is a short week.

We took 7 group bathroom breaks today and had several children tell us when they needed to go. Knock on wood, it was an accident free day! Let's keep it up tomorrow!!

I hope that everyone has a great night - and gets to bed early. I know I will! See you tomorrow - let's hope that day 2 goes just as well!!

September  2018
It was so nice to meet you at orientation! I know I covered a lot of information in a short amount of time. Please feel free to email me with any questions. I will cover much more at our back to school night on Thursday, September 20.

~ Please remember to bring a white empty icing container on the first day of school if you did not do so for orienation. This will be your child's crayon can for the year.
~ Please remember to send in two pictures of just your child if you did not do so already. One picture will mark your child's cubbie and one will mark your child's seat at the table.
~ Please read and review the potty training policy and sign and return on Thursday or Friday.
~ I look forward to a great first day on Thursday or Friday! Remember that if your child is only registered for M, W, F, their first day will be on Friday. Only children who are full time or registered T, W, Th will start on Thursday.
~ I know I said that we do not have an Independence Day in our program, but I do ask that you leave your child at the classroom door. Please say your goodbyes at the door and allow them to come into the classroom on their own. Mrs. Monarski will greet them at their cubbies and will help them unload all of their supplies. Saying goodbye at the door allows for a smoother transition in to the classroom.
~ Remember to bring your smiles (and brave faces, parents) to school for the first day. It WILL be a great year!

 

August 2018

I hope that you are all enjoying your summer and have made a lot of fun memories at the beach, playground, pool, library and spending time with family and friends. I look forward to meeting some of you at the social on Monday, August 27 at 6:30 in the back parking lot of the school. When we meet for our orientation on either Tuesday, September 4 or Wednesday, September 5, please bring the following items:

 

1. Student information sheets
2. Change of clothes and shoes - in a ziploc bag marked with your name and in a bag - does not need to be a gym uniform - seasonably appropriate clothes 
3. Blanket and fitted crib sheet labeled with your name for rest time - FULL DAY STUDENTS ONLY
4. Box of tissues - 1
5. Clorox wipes - 1
6. Baby wipes - 1
7. 2 pictures of just YOU for your cubby and seat
8. A clean, empty white frosting container for your crayons
9. A happy smile ready to make friends and have fun while learning!

*** Remember that ANY VOLUNTEER must have a background check and volunteer covenant on file to volunteer at school and attend field trips. Please make sure that all paperwork is in to avoid confusion. You can check wih Mrs. Malatesta to see if you have all papers on file. If you are in need of a background check, please email mmalatesta@sjbdel.org and she will respond with the steps needed in order to complete this process. I will have copies of the volunteer covenant at Orientation. 


If you have any questions or concerns, please email me at kcuocolo@sjbdel.org


Enjoy the last few weeks of summer,
Mrs. Cuocolo

Specials Schedule
Monday -  Music 8:25-9:10
Tuesday - Computer 8:45-9:00
Wednesday - Spanish - 9:25-9:55
                 Gym 9:55-10:40
Thursday - Art 12:00-12:30
Friday - Library - 8:25 - 9:10