Thank you to all who were able to attend our Olympic opening and closing ceremonies.  The children really enjoyed our Olympic activities.  It was fun to watch them figure skating on paper plates, bobsledding on our outdoor hills and playing ice hockey in the atrium arena. It was also nice to see so many of you at Parent/Teacher Conferences this week.  It is always nice to have our families in the building. 

            As many of you know, St. David’s Nursery School has completed our registration process for the 2010-2011 school year and the school is full with a waiting list.  If your child is not returning in September, please let the office know as soon as possible so that we can contact another family who is waiting for admission.  If you are interested in receiving Tuition Assistance information, please let the office know and we will send you a packet.  All Tuition Assistance applications are due by April 1, 2010.

            The Kindergarten Enrollment Contract for the 2010-11 school year will be sent home shortly.  An enrollment fee will be due on April 1.  Please contact the school office if your child is registered for the St. David’s kindergarten but will not be attending in September.

            Thank you to all who contributed to the Annual Fund.  As you know, the Annual Fund Drive closed on March 1.  St. David’s received $11,700 in donations for which we are very grateful.  If you would like to make a donation but were unable to do so by March 1, please feel free to contribute at your convenience.

            It may seem hard to believe but the Book Fair chairs are already planning next year’s event.  This year’s Book Fair was a huge success with St. David’s Nursery School realizing a profit of $8100.  The 2010 St. David’s Nursery School Book Fair will kick-off on Wednesday, October 20 and run through Friday, October 22.  The 2010 co-chairs are Jennifer Franklin and Kiki Rosenberg.  The book fair is a great opportunity to get involved at the school and to meet other SDNS parents.  If you are interested in volunteering, please contact either Jen or Kiki at jcfranklin@comcast.net or kikirosenberg@hotmail.com.  Thanks in advance for your support!

            Thank you to all who have remembered to take St. David’s medical forms with you when your children have their annual physicals.  The nursery school is required to have an updated form for every child each year.  Having the form filled out the day your child has his/her physical examination is the easiest way to ensure that your child’s file remains in compliance.

            March Fun Club, Junior Fun Club, Drama/Science and Story Hour registration forms have been sent home.  The make up for the missed February 25 Fun Club will be held on April 8.

            Summer Camp information has been sent out.  Please return your child’s registration form by April 16 if you would like him/her to attend camp at St. David’s this summer.

            All final payments are now overdue.  This includes tuition, EA, LB, ED, Pre-K Enrichment and Computer.

            If your child comes for EA, LB and/or ED and you are not contracted, the cost is $8.00 per hour (siblings are half price).  This fee is due the day your child stays.  We do not routinely bill for this service and appreciate your cooperation in paying daily.  Please include your child’s first and last name on the envelope when you attach payment to the school bag.  Thank you.

            In order to keep the car line moving, we ask that parents please pick children up on time.  Dismissal times are as follows:

2’s and 2 ½’s                           11:40

3’s and 4’s                               11:45

Pre-K                                       11:50

LB                                           12:50

Pre-K Enrichment                   2:55 (TWTh)

Kindergarten                           12:55 (M&F)

                                                2:55 (TWTh)

            We still have some individual and sibling photographs that have not been purchased.  If you would like to purchase them, please stop by the office.  Class photographs will be in May.  At that time we will be returning any leftover individual pictures to the photographer. 

            Winter is almost over but please continue to check in with KYW 1060 should we have inclement weather.  The Nursery School does not use snow chains so it is each family’s responsibility to listen for information about school closings, late openings or early dismissals.  If you are on our e-mail list, you will receive an e-mail containing this information.  You can also check the KYW website for weather related announcements.

            St David’s will once again participate in the chick hatching project.  The eggs will arrive on Monday, March 8 and should hatch on Monday, March 15 and Tuesday, March 16.  They will stay at school until Thursday, March 18.  This was one of the highlights of last year and we are confident it will be a hit with the children again this year.

            On Monday, March 15, the children will attend a concert in the atrium.  Joann Mitchell, one of our parents, has offered to bring her musical group to St. David’s to entertain the staff and children with some Irish music.

            Snacks for the month include: apple juice, graham crackers, pretzel and cheddar goldfish and animal crackers.

            Calendar Reminders:

March 29 to April 5                                                    NO SCHOOL – Spring Vacation

March 29, 30 and 31                                                   Spring Workshop

Tuesday, April 6                                                         Back to School

Friday, April 30                                                          NO SCHOOL – Staff In-service day

May 5, 6 & 7                                                               Spring Show Dates

Friday, May 28                                                           School Closes at Noon.   No LB/ED

Monday, May 31                                                        NO SCHOOL – Memorial Day

Thursday, June 3                                                         Dismissal for all at noon

Wednesday, June 4                                                     Kindergarten Graduation  9:00 a.m.

Monday, June 7                                                          Summer camp begins

Joanne Lorine

Thank you for joining us for the Open House, Book Fair, Pep Rally, Halloween Parade and Parent/Teacher Conferences. We enjoyed spending time with you at these events and thank you for taking time from your busy schedules to visit with us at St. David’s Nursery School. Attending school functions is a wonderful way for parents to remain active in their children’s educational journey.

St. David’s Nursery School will be participating in the Muscular Dystrophy Hop-a-Thon on Thursday, November 12. Mrs. Bower will lead the children in a two minute group hop beginning at 10:00 a.m. Children who do not attend school that day are welcome to join us accompanied by a parent. We hope you can join us for this very special event.

Since this is the season for coughs, colds and viruses, I ask all parents to take a few minutes to review the illness policy set forth by St. David’s Nursery School which can be found in the Parent Handbook. Children may not return to school until they have been fever free without the assistance of medication for 24 hours. Children must be free of throwing up and/or diarrhea for 24 hours prior to returning to school. Parents will be called to pick up their children if the school nurse and/or director determine that their child is not well. The director and/or school nurse will make the final determination as to whether or not a child is well enough to be in school. We ask for your support and cooperation in helping to keep all of our students healthy.

Thank you to Kim Fredrick and Jennifer Franklin for the fantastic job they did organizing this year’s Book Fair. We sincerely appreciate all of the hard work that it took to make this event so successful. Thank you to all who donated items, volunteered their time and/or purchased books. Your generosity is much appreciated.

School pictures will be available beginning on November 12^th. You may view your child’s picture in the school office prior to paying for it. Unfortunately, we do not allow pictures to be taken from the school unless they have been paid for so please plan to stop by in the next few weeks to view your child’s picture. If you would like to purchase pictures without seeing them, you may send in a check for $40.00 made out to St. David’s Nursery School. Once we receive your check, we will send your child’s picture home in his/her bag.

The 2010-2011 registration process will begin on November 30. Registration information will be sent home shortly. If you need an additional registration form for a sibling, please contact the school office. Registration forms for children who currently attend St. David’s will be accepted from November 30 to December 4 only. Registration forms for siblings of students will be accepted from December 7 to December 11 only. Registration forms will not be accepted early.

We have several spaces available in the November Fun Clubs, Story Hour and Drama/Science classes. Please contact the school office if you would like your child to attend. Unfortunately we are unable to prorate the fees of these programs, and we do not offer a sibling discount on these activities. A one week Holiday Story Hour, Junior Fun Club, Fun Club and Drama/Science Club will be offered during the week of December 7. Registration forms will be sent home shortly.

Winter Workshop will be held in two sessions beginning on December 16. Registration forms have been sent home and are due on Friday, November 27. As long as you register by that date, your child will be guaranteed a space. If you register after November 27, your child will be placed on the waiting list and we will contact you if a space becomes available.

Our Holiday Program will be held on Monday, December 14 and Tuesday, December 15 at 10:30 a.m. We will use the following schedule:

Monday, Dec. 14

MWF 2’s

MWF 2 ½’s

MWF 3’s

5 Day 3’s

4’s

Pre-K (Borden/Boult)

Pre-K (Fusaro/Kuhn)

Tuesday, Dec. 15

TTh 2’s

TTh 2 ½’s

TTh 3’s

Young 4’s

Pre-K (Vernot)

Pre-K (Genoni)

K (Brundage/Simcoe)

The Holiday Shows will be held in Fellowship Hall which is located in St. David’s Episcopal Church. All parents are invited back to the classrooms after the performances. An invitation from your child’s class and more information from the school office will be sent home in the next few weeks.

Please note that school closes at 1:00 on Monday, December 14. There will be no extended day activities that day. School closes at noon on Tuesday, December 15. There will be no lunch bunch or extended day that day.

St. David’s Nursery School has a second phone line. That number is 610-995-0313. I wanted you to be aware of this because some parents have reported that the school’s name does not always appear when we contact you on that number.

The second tuition payment is due on December 1. You will receive an invoice for your child’s tuition and other activities in the next week.

A parent suggested that I address a general question or two in my newsletters this year. If you have a question for the director that you would like addressed in the next newsletter, please submit it to me via e-mail (JBLorine@gmail.com). I will do my best to address two general questions from parents each month. Hopefully this will be informative for all.

This holiday season, St. David’s Nursery School is partnering with The Salvation Army to help spread joy to those less fortunate. I will be e-mailing the classroom parents later this week to schedule a meeting so that I can share the details. The classroom parents will then be contacting the other families with more information on how we can all help with this worthwhile project.

Snacks for the month include: apple juice, animal crackers, graham crackers, pretzel goldfish and cheddar goldfish.

Reminders:

November 25, 26 & 27 NO SCHOOL – Thanksgiving vacation

December 1 Second tuition payment due

December 14 School closes at 1:00

December 15 School closes at noon

December 16, 17 & 18 Winter Workshop Session I

December 21 & 22 Winter Workshop Session II

January 4 Back to School

January 15 Kindergarten tuition due

On behalf of the staff, I wish you and your families a blessed Thanksgiving season. Enjoy this special time with your children and travel safely.

Joanne B. Lorine