Howe Happenings
Mary Washington Howe PreK Newsletter October 25-29, 2021
#ItsAlwaysAGreatDayAtHowePreK
Howe Families
These weeks are flying by!
At the close of this upcoming week, your preschooler(s) have learned, laughed and loved with new friends and teachers for two WHOLE months! Our school family has shared so many hugs, high fives and tear wipes-it almost feels like we have been together for two years instead!
As our time together increases, so do ALL.THE.SHARED.FEELINGS as described above.
Our smart students are lovingly encouraged each day to stretch their learning-and this can be stressful or frustrating. We will include a new section in our newsletter for 'Student Support' where we will include areas of teaching that we practice at school to share with you. These practices (often coming from our school's work with Conscious Discipline) are powerful ones that when practiced at home as well-can increase your child's comfort, confidence and communication tremendously!
Thank you for your continued support and communication.
You are still your child's first (and favorite) teacher!
We are very excited for our upcoming Virtual Curriculum Evening on October 28 5-6pm. We do look forward to campus and in person community events-however, the importance of seeing the online programs and how to help your child navigate through them when they are at home will be a great benefit. Your child's teacher will send home the virtual link this week.
Have a wonderful week-and a safe Halloween if you take part! (with a reasonable bedtime with a bright, new day the following day-Monday November 1)
Take very good care,
Lauren Nalepa
Principal/Director
Michelle Manis
Assistant Principal
Important School Reminders
Our full school day gives students the opportunity to practice and learn so many different skills. In preschool, we focus on so much more than instruction in reading, math and writing so that our students are equipped with the tools that they will need to succeed. Our students are supported with social and interpersonal skills (sharing classroom space with 17 other little personalities is QUITE THE FEAT!), patience and perseverance (how to use your time and mind productively when you are not working on your FAVORITE activity or center), grit and resiliency (how to keep going when you meet a challenge...learning letters, numbers and what their purpose is IS A WHOLE NEW LANGUAGE!!)
Rita Pierson is a fabulous and favorite educator/speaker. She has a saying from her time in the classroom that we at Howe PreK believe in and have posted in some of our school spaces *See below
When we all believe in our students - and their full day of whole child education (7:45-1:45) - their full potential is being met!
*our staff will check identification every time a child is checked out of school.
-forms of identification can include driver license, passport, school/work Id with name/photo
*our staff cannot make transportation changes by phone-these must be communicated in writing to your child’s teacher-and teachers will be responsible for updating the front office.
*students should not bring items in their backpack that are not school related. This includes outside food, hand sanitizer or any kind of medication that is not checked in by our school staff and nurse.
The safety and progress of your children and our staff will always be our primary focus.
Thank you in advance for your continued support of Howe PreK and each other in our school community.
Student Support
We recognize that when students begin to exhibit different behaviors-it means that they have increased their trust in us to show their true selves. This is a gift. We appreciate the opportunity to support and share strategies to cope and communicate with our little learners.
When we put feelings into perspective as adults; what it takes to trust-explore-question-care and be brave...we know it takes a lot out of us and our emotions! So, it is even more growth and activity for a three-four or five year old body each day! We believe that behavior IS communication and that sometimes it takes a bit of time-and a few shared adult conversations to determine what our kiddos are trying to communicate with us.
Every person-adults included have their own way of working through tough feelings. This can be seen as quiet/ignoring, compartmentalizing/saying "I am fine", arms crossed/staring down, sadness/crying & big-grand tantrums...each kid (and adult copes differently)
Please do not hesitate to reach out to your teachers or our support staff with questions or needs.
We are so grateful to be a team of teachers with your child this year!
Included below is a link of Discipline Tips from Conscious Discipline. As I read through them myself (thrilled that there is a teen/tween section) I know that some may not be as useful but some may be worth a try.
Ask your child about the calming, STAR Breath that we have practiced every morning in Sept/Oct on our morning announcements.
Please do not hesitate to reach out if you have specific questions. We would love to share what we know...and if we do not know-we look forward to learning with you!
Updates & Events
Important Dates
PreK Curriculum Night October 28 at 5pm - links to join our virtual meeting will be sent that week by your child's teacher. This valuable meeting will have our staff showing details of the online programs utilized by our students that can be accessed at home by you.
Please plan to attend.
Transportation
*If you are in need of bus transportation and your child is not currently scheduled with a stop and time. Please contact the front office.
*Thank you for your patience with car drop off and car pickup as well. Tremendous progress has been made with our AM and PM times for car line! Please remember to stay in your vehicles and let staff walk students to your car. If your vehicle requires you to be out of your car to safely buckle your child in, our staff may ask you to pull into another space to keep our line moving in a timely manner.
*Car tags provided by your child’s teacher are required for PM car pickup line. If you find yourself without one at car pickup, you will need to drive to the front of the school and sign your child out where we will check Id. If you are missing and/or need a new car tag, please reach out to your child’s teacher.
Attendance
Thank you for working so hard with us to have your child at school on time and for keeping them in school until dismissal at 1:45pm.
There will always be the occasional appointment-but the benefit to your child keeping this routine allows them to stay involved and connected with all learning all activities that will take place in their classrooms from the morning late bell at 7:45am until the afternoon dismissal bell at 1:45pm.
2021-2022 Howe PreK Center Family Handbook
2021-2022 Howe PreK Center Family Handbook-Spanish
Volunteers/Adult Visits on Campus
Families-as we get acclimated to this school year and the needs of our staff and students, we hope to have volunteers and visits on campus. Thank you for being patient with us as we focus our attention on the needs of the children first as they transition to our building and staff.
As you know, we will only share information with you as your child's guardian/parent-please share with grandparents and/or other loved ones of your child that we appreciate them greatly-but that we will not have visits on campus just yet.
The below link is the NHCS Volunteer Training Level 1 and the form linked is a mini quiz to show evidence that you have reviewed this mandatory material before volunteering on campus with us when we do start having more adults on campus with us.
(The NHCS link also has information on the Tier II Training which is the background check)
Howe PreK Volunteer Training Documentation
Paperwork
Thank you for getting all necessary paperwork and items back to your child's teachers. All forms are safety and licensure related. Please touch base with your child's teacher if you have any questions about forms.
NHCS District News & Opportunities
ACES
Are you a parent of a student with an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) or a 504 Accommodation Plan that attends New Hanover County Schools? NHCS has an Advisory Council for Exceptional Students, with the following goals:
To study the school offerings in-depth to determine how well schools are serving children with special needs
To make recommendations for improvement to our local board of education
To serve as an avenue of public sentiment for improvement.
Please submit an application by 10/13/21. Link to Form
NHCS Read Lead Succeed
Every month of the 2021-22 school year we will be sharing a mobile-friendly, interactive Literacy newsletter. You can look forward to:
- Teacher Tips on how to engage students of all ages in the love of reading.
- A peek inside a NHCS classroom to show you what literacy instruction looks like in our schools.
- Student features with book recommendations from grades K-2, 3-5, 6-8, and 9-12.
- A Community Partner spotlight showing how volunteers and community organizations are helping us expand literacy in our schools.
- And more!
Make sure you are subscribed to receive this and other text and email communications from our district. Text "Y" or "Yes" to 67587 to opt in.
Below are the links to the September Newsletter in English y Espanol.
Instruction & Classroom Learning
A number of the programs we discussed at the family Orientation meeting on your child's first day of school may have been shared with you already-if not, they will be or may be available for review on your child’s teacher website.
These are helpful online resources that can help your child practice when away from school. Your child’s teacher can provide guidance on how best to utilize these.
*The last thing that we want is for students to be home ill or home from covid quarantine. However, we recognize that this is very possible.
Your child's teacher will be sharing information on practice work if you child is home for an extended period of time due to quarantine.
We have shared a form to seek your current access to technology at home. This link is below.
Current & Health/Safety Updates
*Please remember, that we will not provide daily screening at school when students arrive. Families are expected to review these symptoms daily with your child(ren).
Staff are expected to review with ourselves on a daily basis as well.
The following form has been shared with each of you on bright neon paper.
Feel free to keep on your refrigerator or in a place that may reminded you to review daily.
Covid Daily Home Screening Questions
*If your child is directly exposed to an individual with a positive Covid-19 diagnosis, please contact Mrs.Nalepa and our school nurse.
We will work with our Nurse and NHC Health Department to determine best next steps.
*Parents; if your child requires medication while at school-please make sure the prescription is in the original packaging and the label from the pharmacy with child's name and medication amount is visible. Students may not keep medication on them-but can be signed into school and kept locked and contained..
Mary Washington Howe Prek Center
Email: lauren.nofziger@nhcs.net
Website: https://howe.nhcs.net/
Location: 1020 Meares St, Wilmington, NC 28401, USA
Phone: 910-251-6195
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/category/Public-School/Mary-Washington-Howe-Pre-K-124326561093703/
Twitter: @PreKHowe