Apollo Early Childhood Center
December, 2021 Updates
Principal's Corner
It is hard to believe that 2021 is drawing to a close. My hope is that 2022 brings joy, peace and comfort for all of our Apollo staff and families. As a reminder, our school year program students will be on winter break from December 18th through January 2nd. Additionally, child care will be closed December 23rd, 24th, 30th and 31st.
I know that last week's violence at Oxford High School has had a tremendous impact on so many. Our thoughts and prayers are with the students, families and staff members of their community. To echo the words of Dr. Salah, this tragedy is jarring.
At Apollo, our highest priority continues to be the safety and security of all of our students and staff. Please know that we take our responsibility to care for and educate your children seriously. We want students to feel safe, loved and well cared for when they are with us. As such, I want to reiterate some very important points that are specific to Apollo:
We have a strong partnership with the Oakland County Sheriff's Department. We are grateful for their continued support of our building.
As awkward as it feels, please do not hold outside doors open for others. Anyone who needs to enter the building will have a key, code or badge.
Our main entry code for child care families to enter the building is changed often for safety and security purposes.
We update our emergency procedures on an annual basis. As a staff, we reviewed these procedures with our classroom teams again last week. Additionally, we practice emergency drills (fire, emergency evacuation, tornado and lockdown) monthly throughout the year. Our procedures are reviewed and approved by the Oakland County Sheriff’s Department, the Bureau of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs and the Huron Valley School District.
As we head into winter break, I want to say thank you for all that you’ve done to support our students and our staff through this year's challenges. We understand that it hasn’t been easy on you as parents and our team wants you to know how much we appreciate YOU.
From our early childhood family to yours, we wish you a relaxing and happy holiday season. As we end 2021, know that we look forward to seeing everyone in 2022.
Warm Regards,
Jen Kidd
Last Month's Friday Forum Features
Inclement Weather
Effects of Screen Time
We are noticing some behaviors that are a direct result of what our preschoolers are viewing on television.
How can you help? As a parent, you can help decrease the harmful effects of digital media and can prevent your child from seeing things before they are emotionally ready to understand issues by monitoring the type of programming they are viewing and limiting your child's screen time. For tips, visit the Love & Logic blog HERE.
Getting your Student to School on Time: Why it's Important
Mornings can be challenging! Coming in late to school can be, too. Young children are easily distracted so a classmate who comes into the room after an activity has started often causes disruption. Disruptions can take time away from valuable activities. Children want and need time to visit with friends and to settle into the classroom routine. Being late doesn’t make that transition easy for them and they may feel anxious or rushed. Some children are embarrassed when everyone’s attention is drawn to them. Being on time means that they are not an unexpected center of attention. Some tips that may help with morning routine and arriving to school on time include:
Be conscious of time: Set all your clocks and watches to the same time. If you’re someone who may typically run late, set them up a little so that you’ve got some “wiggle room”. Things usually take longer than you think, so make sure you’ve allowed sufficient time to get out of the house and on your way.
Wake up when you’re supposed to: Don’t hit the snooze button for just a few more minutes. Set a time to get up and do it! This is much easier if you go to sleep on time.
Re-examine how long your daily tasks take: Make sure that you’re not underestimating the time it takes to get ready and out of the house in the morning.
Plan your daily commute: Check out the shortest route, where traffic jams might occur and alternate routes. Do this before you actually have to arrive at school. Check the weather reports for road conditions during inclement weather.
Organize yourself: Pick out clothing the night before. Plan lunches and put together what you can the night before. If you need to take something with you to school, put it next to your keys or purse.
For children: Have their clothes ready (including coats and mittens). It may be helpful that they get baths the night before in lieu of the morning of. Inspect backpacks and diaper bags and make sure all the books, materials and other items they will need the next day are there—put it by the door for easy pick-up on the way out.
If getting to school on time is something that your family would like additional resources or ideas for, please feel free to reach out to any of us here at Apollo. We're happy to help!
Prepared by:
Southern Early Childhood Association
http://www.southernearlychildhood.org
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About Us
Email: jennifer.kidd@hvs.org
Website: https://www.hvs.org/schools/earlychildhood/apollo-center/
Location: 2029 N. Milord Road, Highland MI 48357
Phone: 248-684-8040