The Wintonbury Peeper
Wintonbury Early Childhood Magnet School
March, 2023
In This Issue
Principal's Message
Community Outreach Project
Spirit Week Information
Co-Regulation
Mobile Dental Health Services
Parent Teacher Organization Updates and important Information
Friendship Day
Bloomfield Literacy Celebration
Black Inventors
Scat and Tracks and Maple Syrup at Auerfarm
Literacy at Home
Community Connections
Important Dates
March 6 - 27 BPS Community Outreach Project
March 20 - 24 Wintonbury Spirit Week
March 29 School Closed Teacher Professional Development
Summer Extension Registration
The Summer Extension Program is a seven week program that is a hands-on enrichment program for Preschool and Kindergarten age children. Students engage in exploratory activities which promote positive learning experiences. Any child that attended Wintonbury during the 2022-2023 school year may attend Summer Extension. Parents can choose any or all of the seven weeks. Options include three, four or five days. The program operates at the Wintonbury Magnet School with a tentative start date of June 20 – August 4, 2023. If you are interested in learning more, please contact Kristine Johnson at kjohnson@blmfld.org
Principal's Message
By Samantha Straker
Talk about spreading JOY. We are so grateful for all of the participation this week from families, community visitors, guest readers, and our special guest author, Mary Munson! In addition it was conference week and we were able to talk with families about their children. This is what it is all about - joy, community, and love for learning.
Please check out Mary Munson's book, Love Will Turn You Around. It comes out on April 4th 2023. All of your children have read the book and know the characters, especially the main character, "Heart," who gets turned around by his friends. My copy of the book is coming via Amazon! We are very proud of Mary Muson, a special education teacher here and an author! Mary did her reading today, you can see photos below.
From our Social Worker
By Natasha Whyte
Co-Regulation
Children develop the ability to self-regulate through a process called co-regulation, which occurs when a caregiver helps a child to calm down. The caregiver provides a warm, calming presence that allows the child to feel safe and process their emotions while the caregiver provides guidance. With consistent practice, children gain the skills necessary for managing their feelings independently.
You can co-regulate with your child during times of distress and in your daily interactions with them by implementing the following strategies at home:
1. Respond to your child in a calm manner. Your child’s ability to calm down depends on your emotional state. By modeling what a calm body looks like, you are setting an example for your child to follow.
2. Provide physical and emotional support to your child. This includes being on the same eye level as your child while you talk to them, giving them a hug or patting their back, and validating their feelings, so they feel heard and valued. ‘
3. Teach self-regulation skills.
Assist your child in labeling their emotions and coach them on how to use calming strategies. Provide additional support such as a calm spot, calm down visuals, and books on self-regulation. Gradually, your child will learn to identify and manage their emotions.
4. Structure the environment.
Children are more likely to be calm when their environment is predictable. Establish consistent routines and clear expectations so your child knows what to expect and what is expected of them.
For additional information on co-regulation, visit https://www.parentingforbrain.com/co-regulation/
PTO News
Thank you for supporting the school through your participation in the Munson’s Chocolates Fundraiser and general donations. We will be using all funds raised from the Munson’s fundraiser to purchase items for the school courtyard in an effort to help Wintonbury make some repairs and add fun, educational items to the space. If you’d like to participate in the fundraiser there is still time. Please click on this link: https://www.munsonschocolates.com/online-fundraising/wintonbury-early-childhood-magnet-schoolct/
The PTO is looking for volunteers to help assist with a spring cleanup in the courtyard, planning for teacher appreciation week in May and the end of year picnic in June. If you have some time to donate please e-mail WintonburyPTO@gmail.com. As always, thank you for all your support.
Please join us at the next PTO meeting on March 15 at 9 am in the Wintonbury conference room or via Zoom.
Join The Wintonbury PTO Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/6588099102?pwd=d2xscDlzZ25PVys3RmdxK0NzVkUxZz09
Meeting ID: 658 809 9102
Passcode: PTO
For any questions, comments, and volunteer opportunities please email us @ mailto:wintonburypto@gmail.com
Thank you so much for your continued support of the PTO!
From the School Nurse
Friendship Day 2/14/23
Children decorated personal "mailboxes."
Children gave all their friends a Valentine.
Some Valentines were hand delivered.
Bloomfield Literacy Week Celebration
This week Bloomfield Public School celebrated literacy with a variety of activities. At Wintonbury, we shared our favorite books from home and wore shirts with words and pictures.
On Thursday we welcomed Bloomfield Board of Education members and staff, as well as, volunteers from United Way. Guest readers visited each classroom and read Hair Love, by Matthew Cherry. This was followed by an activity in which children represented a characteristic of their hair (color, texture, length, style, feel) with a yarn/ribbon sample and added it to a classroom hair collage!
On Friday each classroom had the honor to visit with guest author, Mary Munson, a special education teacher here at Wintonbury. .She previewed her book Love will Turn you Around which will be published next month. After reading the book the students wiggled and waggled to meet some of the characters in the book. The grand finale of the presentation was a visit from HEART, the book's main character!
Robert Ike, from the Bloomfield Board of Education, was one of our guest readers.
Each student picked a fabric piece that represented their hair.
Same color? Same length? Same texture?
Room 202 students matched fabric colors to their hair.
A mirror helped students pick the just right sample!
Shamar Mahon from the Bloomfield Town Council read to Room 103.
Mr. Desi Nesmith, Assistant Superintendent, read to Room 301.
The final collage for Room 301!
Singing about hair in Room 105.
I love my short hair, I love my short hair, I love my short hair.
Mrs. Munson read her book to the group.
Students practiced sending love to Heart.
Everyone wiggled and waggled to meet Heart's friends.
Students answered the question, "What makes you twinkle?"
Heart (aka Mrs. Straker) made an appearance!
A high five from Heart!
Curriculum Corner
Dental Hygiene Lessons
NIcole Drummond, a dental hygienist, from CT Pediatric Dentistry in West Hartford, is visiting classrooms with her "dog" Ollie. Nicole cleaned Ollie's teeth while explaining the importance of brushing teeth at least twice a day, She did little circles over each tooth and counted to eight, before moving on the next tooth. Nicole also identified some healthy foods for teeth and foods that should only be an occasional treat.
Nicole brushes Ollie's teeth.
Nicole talks about healthy snacks.
Students in Room 102 help Nicole sort snacks.
Foods were sorted into healthy snacks and occasional treats.
Black History Month Celebrations
Every February, people in the United States celebrate the achievements and history of African Americans as part of Black History Month. This year, our classrooms learned about Black Inventors. Teachers and students discussed how problems were solved through these inventions and how those inventions have impacted our lives today. In addition to the inventors highlighted below, classrooms also learned about George Crum, Lewis Latimer, Dr. Mark Dean, Sarah Goode, Benjamin Banneker, Alfred L. Craile, J.F. Pickering and Augustus Jackson. Each classroom has documented their learning and experiences on the outside classroom windows. Come at your leisure to view displays in classroom windows by taking a walk around the outside of the building this weekend or any day after school hours.
Jerry Lawson
Room 201 learned about Jerry Lawson who invented the first gaming console with removable game cartridges, which changed the gaming industry and paved the way for gaming today!
Exploring game cartridges
Students explored gaming systems like the Nintendo Entertainment System with big cartridges and joysticks and then a smaller hand held games with much smaller cartridges.
Video game design
Students used boxes to create own game consoles.
Garrett Morgan
Rooms 101, 105 and 302 studied Garrett Morgan who invented the traffic signal! He solved the problem of too many cars, people, and horses and buggies on the road at the same time. The traffic signal kept everyone traveling safely.
Room 105 worked together to make big traffic lights..
The students also made small individual lights with cellophane.
Room 101 designed a signal similar to Morgan's originial invention.
Room 101 used their design to manage an intersection in the multi-purpose room.
Room 302 made a life size traffic signal.
Students also designed individual signals by cutting out their own colored circles.
Phillip Downing
Several classrooms studied Philip Downing, who designed the first mailbox. In 1891, anyone interested in mailing a letter would have to make the long trip to the post office. Philip Downing solved this problem with his invention. He called his device a street letter box and it is the predecessor of today’s mailbox.
Room 303 students designed their own mailboxes.
Students worked with their families to make their boxes.
Students delivered mail to each other.
Auerfarm: Tracks and Scat
Classrooms explored what animals eat and the scat (droppings) they leave behind. As they walked the grounds at the farm, students looked for scat and tracks and matched them to the animals that left it, using a field guide.. Below are pictures from Room 306 visiting the farm.
Students became familiar with the field guide.s
They searched for signs of animals.
"I see a track."
"I see some scat."
The kids have arrived!
There are now 15 baby goats at the farm! They are so cute.
Stamping fun in the farm classroom.
Making tracks in sand.
Writing farm vocabulary words!
Auerfarm: Maple Syrup
The sap is flowing at Auerfarm. Students followed the process of maple sugaring from tapping the tree to eating the finished syrup. Classrooms learned how to identify maple trees (having leaves of 5 points.) Students peeked into buckets to see the sap collected. Next they went into the sugar house, where students saw the sap bubbling in the "evaporator". It takes 40 gallons of sap to make one gallon of maple syrup! The pictures below are from Room 205 and 206's visit to the farm.
We looked at the sap collected from the maple tree.
We went to the sugar house!
We saw the evaporator!
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We pretended to make a fire in the evaporator.
We pretended to fill the container with syrup.
We used a hand drill to make holes in wood.
This is the same hand drill used on the trees to insert the spile (a tube that directs the sap into the bucket).
We pretended to make and serve pancakes.
We poured water through "trees".
We ate pancakes with maple syrup!
Parent Resource
LIteracy at Home
Resources / Publications / Teaching Young Children / February/March 2013 / Message in a Backpack™ Read Anything and Everything with Your Child
In our classrooms, we introduce the children to different kinds of writing— storybooks, books about topics we are studying, magazines, how-to guides, recipes, and content on the web. These are the kinds of writing that children and adults read in school and in daily life. You can read anything and everything with your child too. This helps your child learn how and why writing and reading are important and useful. Here are some ideas.
Read magazines and newspapers. Talk about the photos and illustrations. Find an article by using the table of contents page. Discuss the different sections, such as sports, local news, and advertising.
Write a letter together. Use it to say “Thank you,” “I hope you feel better soon,” or just “Hello.” Explain why you write the date and include the name of the person whom you are writing to. Sign it and have your child sign her name too.
Follow a recipe in a book or instructions on a food container. Work as a team to gather the ingredients. Then follow the directions step-by-step. Ask your child to help you figure out what comes next.
Read a variety of books. At the library, help your child pick storybooks, nonfiction books, and books to read together. Your child might choose a book of poems or a book with lots of detailed pictures to look at together.
Click on this link to access current Product Recalls:
Community Connections at Bloomfield Public Libraries
Read to a furry friend
Come read to a furry friend! A registered therapy dog and handler, trained in the Reading Education Assistance Dogs (R.E.A.D.)® program, will visit the library to meet with young readers.Sign up at https://bplct.evanced.info/signup/
Virtual parent education
Do you know how to spot the signs of readiness for toilet training? An Early Childhood Specialist from 211 Child Care will be facilitating a discussion and providing resources for the families in our program.
Sign up at https://bplct.evanced.info/signup/
First day of spring!
March 20th marks the First Day of Spring and also Very Hungry Caterpillar Day! Visit McMahon Wintonbury or Prosser for your free celebration kit to take home