Happy Anniversary Carelot!

WOW! Carelot celebrated its 24th anniversary with treats and fun activities. We thank all of our staff and families for making Carelot what it is today. It's hard to believe that children who were students in our infant program are now employees of Carelot!

Our centers once again are hoping for a visit from “Lucky the Leprechaun” this year. We always see some mischief on St. Patrick's Day! Don’t forget to wear your GREEN for St. Patrick's day on March 17th.

This month our curriculum focuses on Literacy! The classrooms will be learning about several Authors and Illustrators. Our adventures will take them through the world of books and make-believe as they learn rhyming, letters, craft-related literacy activities, parts of a book and so much more!

March typically brings a little spring fever & we begin to think of the summer months. Our camp programs are being planned with some very exciting theme weeks. We are hoping to get back to field trips and incoming programming for the children! Stay tuned in the weeks to come for more details.

The importance of Routines for children.

• Routines may seem boring to adults, but children thrive on them. Daily Routines:
  
• make children feel safe
  
• Promise them comfort
  
• Make them feel in control
  
• Routines provide a framework for a child’s day. Children like knowing:
  
• What’s coming & what’s happening
  
• When things will happen as well as the order of events

Children like sameness and repetition. Routines provide them with consistency and security. Routines also help them move from one activity to the next.

Routines develop out of your own family's daily habits. Encourage your children to become as independent as possible in carrying out certain basic routines. These routines include dressing, undressing, napping, using the toilet, and cleaning up. Slowly, they will be able to do these things without your assistance.

Here are some ideas and guidelines you can use each day so that your child knows what to expect:

• Morning Routine: Get up at a set time, start off with affection, personal grooming, brush teeth, wash face, comb hair, and get dressed at breakfast time.
  
• Leave for work routine: A special goodbye kiss or wave from the window
  
• Mealtimes: Set the table, have conversations about each other day.

You can continue these simple routines throughout your day.

Even at Carelot, we try to stick to our daily schedules and routines for consistency for the children. It gives them a sense of security and responsibility to know what comes next or what is expected of them!

If you would like to see something added to the newsletter, please don't hesitate to let me know by emailing me at holly@carelot.net. I would love to hear your feedback!

We ask that you please abide by your contracted hours and if you need to make a change, please see your program's site manager or director in order to make those changes. ALL changes need to be made in advance so that we can make staffing arrangements accordingly. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation!

Food Guidelines

Please be aware the following foods are considered choke foods & should not be offered to children less than 4 years.

Whole Peanuts/Nuts, Whole Grapes, Raisins, Hot Dogs whole or sliced into rounds, Candy, Raw Peas, Hard Pretzels, Spoonful's of Peanut Butter, Chunks of Raw Carrots, Meat larger than can be swallowed whole, and Popcorn. (5.B.14)

Please cut food into pieces no larger than ¼ inch square for infants and ½ inch square for toddlers/twos, according to the child’s chewing and swallowing capability. (5.B.14) This will ensure safe eating at all times!!!

Scheduled hours

Please be respectful of your scheduled hours. The staff schedule is based on the schedules chosen by the families. There may not be the correct amount of staff members available if you arrive before your scheduled time and staying late may cause a staff member to be late getting home to their families, school, or appointments. Thank you so much for your help and respect.

Attendance

Please call the center by 9:30 am if your child will not be attending. Thank you!

Bedding

Please make sure you are placing your child’s bedding on their own cots! Please help us meet this state requirement.

Handwashing: Help us out by washing your child’s hands each day when you drop them off to help eliminate the spread of germs.

Congratulations to:

Veronica C. (Michael in Waterford) FOR FEBRUARY!

It's easy to win by just emailing us an answer! $25 tuition credit!

It's easy to win by clicking below and submitting your answer!

Last month: Describe Carelot in 1 word!

Nurturing

Positivity

Awesome

Thanks for helping us make our programs better! Without everyone’s input, we are not able to effectively assess how our programs are doing! We appreciate you taking the time to help us assess our policies, procedures, curriculum, and more!

February was filled with so much learning about our community! The children learned about Drs, Nurses, Grocers, Chefs, Vets, Police, Fire, EMT and so much more! Talk to your child about the amazing people that live in your community!

Carelot’s Curriculum is designed for the children to develop each child as a whole. Lesson plans are developed using the Creative Curriculum aligned with the CTELDS and we use Focused Portfolios to assess your child’s growth and development along with the CT DOTS program.

Our Preschool Curriculum is designed to follow the state standards and enhanced with additional curriculum elements for the children to thrive and grow!

We are proud to teach your children daily when they are in our care!

• shaving cream
• paper plates
• gardening supplies
• old working iphones or ipads
• paper bags
• seeds
• egg dye kits