� of �1 7 SOUTH HILLS CHILD DEVELOPMENT CENTER INC.

South Hills Tax Info & Flex Accounts Our Federal Tax Identification Number is 208087978. Please contact our Business Manager, Dylan Vogt, at dylanjkvogtshills@gmail.com if you have any questions regarding your account.

For parents on Flex Accounts, Dylan is now the authorized person to sign those forms. Please scan and submit your requests to him.

This month:

• We ALL anticipate the return of spring! !

Important Dates:

• Scholastic Book orders are due Mon., March 4

• Regardless of the weather, the March 16 and 17 Maple Taste and Tour at Hurry Hill Farm in Edinboro is always a special South Hills' tradition! Details can be found in the newsletter

• March 14 and 15 will find the children engineering leprechaun traps for any potential small people dressed in green attempting to cause mischief in our classrooms

• Tuesday and Wednesday, March 19 & 20–be sure to have your child wear sneakers and a cardigan in honor of Mr. Fred Rogers!

• Artist-in-Residence, Dancer Jennifer Dennehy will spend the mornings of March 25-28 with our full day PS and Kindergarten!

MARCH 2019 The South Hills Child Development Center Inc. Monthly Newsletter

� of �2 7 SOUTH HILLS CHILD DEVELOPMENT CENTER INC.

Kindergarten and First Grade Registration Most public school districts and private schools will soon be enrolling for Kindergarten and first grade. We do post registration dates as we receive them, so please check our exit door for your district, or call your district’s Education Center to be sure you know the registration dates and the required forms for enrolling your child.

We can provide you with a copy of your child’s medical record; your child's developmental assessment is provided for you online to print and forward to your child's elementary school. Please notify Beth in writing of your request for any records at least a week prior to the date you will need them.

Erie Otters to be South Hills Guests for Read Across America Day! On Friday morning, March 1 team members from the Erie Otters will read selected books to each class. The children have made thank you cards for all our guests, which will be presented to each reader, along with a Dr. Seuss gift!

At this time we are arranging for an alternate reader for the February 28th Read Across America slot. Please watch the foyer chalk board for updates.

Maple Sugar Time! Please consider touring Hurry Hill Farm on Fry Road in

Degas!

The PreK program in the pm Red and Orange classrooms have been studying the artwork and techniques of Edgar Degas!! They each manipulated a wooden mannequin in a variety of poses and sketched carefully with the learning objective of extending observational skills and attention span. Please view all the results on the wall display outside the classrooms!

� of �3 7 SOUTH HILLS CHILD DEVELOPMENT CENTER INC.

Edinboro (Just north of the Buffalo Farm)with your family on the weekend of March 16 and 17 from 10:00-4:00! Janet Woods and Lisa Nathanson , along with their children, have long been supporters of South Hills’ program, and they offer a wonderful educational tour of their farm and maple syrup production. They have completed the first maple sugar museum in the area, which is a real treasure! Families will be taken by a tractor-pulled wagon past the trees being tapped to the sugar house where Jan will teach the techniques for tapping sugar maple trees and boiling the sap into syrup! There are lots of displays in the museum and samples to try; Hurry Hill maple products will be available for sale. Jan is a retired educator, and the visit will be meaningful for all ages! This is a

WONDERFUL winter activity for children and parents to share. Please consider purchasing a copy of Miracles on Maple Hill while you are there. This delightful Newbery winner was written by Edinboro resident Virginia Sorenson; Jan has devoted much energy to gathering stories, memorabilia, photos and background information regarding this true Edinboro story of years gone by! A few years ago, Virginia’s Newbury medal was presented to Jan by the Sorenson family, in appreciation of Jan’s work in making this special book available to our children. Jan shares the medal with our area children by having it displayed in the maple sugar museum. Every area child should be

familiar with this story and have the opportunity to see this Newbery award medal!

Details will be placed on the parent bulletin board. Parent coordinators: This would be a wonderful experience to plan for your child’s class! For additional information, www.hurryhillfarm.org or www.pamaple.org BE SURE TO LET JAN AND LISA KNOW THAT YOU ARE A SOUTH HILLS’ FAMILY MEMBER!

This was taken from the Hurry Hill Farm Website:

Free tour and free maple hot chocolate for everyone!!

� of �4 7 SOUTH HILLS CHILD DEVELOPMENT CENTER INC.

Park in parking lot. No smoking or pets. Wear boots and dress warmly. Take the wagon or walk to our Hurry Hill Sugarhouse in The Woods and see how pure maple syrup is made. The Hurry Hill Maple Farm Museum features many “Tree to Table” exhibits, sugaring antiques, maple production displays, hands-on activities for kids, and a Miracles On Maple Hill Room featuring the 1957 Newbery award for Miracles on Maple Hill written in Edinboro about making maple syrup. Many PA Blue Ribbon maple products for sale at the Museum Farm Stand to eat or take home: pure maple syrup, cream, candy, and sugar crumb; and maple peanuts, cotton candy, mustard, barbeque sauce, pancake mix, suckers, popcorn, T-shirts, candles, and more!

The New Maple Tasting Room will feature maple products tasting, maple hot dogs, free maple hot chocolate, nutritional and agricultural displays, and picnic tables.

Directions: From I-79 Edinboro exit, east on 6N .25 mi., turn left (north) on Fry Rd., 2 mi. to 11424 Fry Rd.

Fred Rogers’ Birthday We will be honoring Fred Rogers’ birthday on Tuesday and Wednesday, March 19 & 20. Mr. Rogers was born on March 20. As you may know, Connie considers him to be her mentor, and had the great fortune to meet with him personally many times throughout his life. During these two days, we will be listening to the music of Fred Rogers, and creating puppets, king and queen crowns, and participating in a variety of other activities.

WEAR YOUR CARDIGAN AND SNEAKERS!!!!!!

For those families who do not celebrate birthdays, this will not be a formal birthday celebration/party. Please bring your child to share in the activities honoring the life of Mr. Rogers.

Artist in Residency Program The week of March 25-28, South Hills will welcome dancer Ms Jennifer Dennehy as our Artist-in- Resident! She will be sharing her talents with the full day and Kindergarten students as we “dance the week away” incorporating movement, music, literacy, math, and

� of �5 7 SOUTH HILLS CHILD DEVELOPMENT CENTER INC.

creativity. Ms Jennifer will be teaching the children that we can tell stories without words, just using four types of movements, which take place on three levels in space. The full day children will create a dance, incorporating their work on Carnival of the Animals! If your child is participating, s/he must wear socks, sneakers (always required), and girls should wear pants.

I would like to thank all of the generous parents who contributed to this enriching program--how your children will benefit from this experience! If you have not yet contributed, it is not too late!

Kindergarten Students Most of the follow up studies on our students in last year’s class have been returned; we are happy to report that all students are excelling academically in their elementary classrooms! The schools report that the South Hills students excel in reading, math, writing, social studies and leadership qualities, some in third and fourth grade levels! We were pleased to hear that the majority of the children were targeted for accelerated enrichment programs, and that all public, parochial and private schools are keeping the children challenged, and appreciating their high level skills. The students this year are all reading at a high level; many are reading chapter books already, with excellent comprehension. All of the students are excelling in math and can count out coins to make numbers up to 50. (For example, Ms. Robin/Ms. Pam might ask them to see how many ways they can make 27 cents using pennies, dimes, nickels and quarters).

They completed an in depth study of Asia in February, including a presentation to all of the preschoolers regarding the Chinese New Year and an elaborate Lion Dance. March’s curriculum will introduce them to a study of Mexico!

We are all so proud of this year’s Kindergarten class and their exceptional abilities!

Next year’s Kindergarten class filled quickly during December’s enrollment. We are THRILLED our Kindergarten is so popular and successful, but sad that we will not be able to accommodate all the students who would like to take advantage of our Kindergarten program. Please be sure to add your child to the waiting list if you have any future interest. There is no obligation to be on the list.

� of �6 7 SOUTH HILLS CHILD DEVELOPMENT CENTER INC.

Staff Training Successes! In February, the entire staff successfully completed their annual Medication Administration training.. In January , the staff successfully completed the annual review of the entire Emergency Preparedness Plan for the school.

ABL Daily Work The children participate in daily Action Based Learning activities which involve various equipment such as balancing domes, balancing ‘rocks’, balance beams, and ABL ladders which require the children to balance and walk on rungs, rails, in-between rungs, etc. All of this work is challenging but developmentally appropriate to strengthen brain connections.

We require children to wear sneakers daily so that they might participate, but many children still wear ‘dress shoes’, shoe boots, or other types of shoes. We cannot allow the children to participate if they do not have proper footwear, as there is an injury risk. PLEASE have your child wear sneakers every day. We have children who have NEVER been able to participate in this curriculum, or even ride a tricycle here as they do not wear sneakers to school...

Now that we will be going outside more regularly, (Optimistic!) sneakers are CRITICAL!

From Connie

March will be a most special month as we celebrate Fred Rogers’ work and anticipate the return of “Light and Warmth”! Read Across America Day will be celebrated with our friends from the Erie Otters team, reading Dr Seuss stories to each class. In March, ALL of the classrooms will participate in engineering feats as Leprechaun Traps are developed for use on March 14 and 15! Artist-in-Residence, Ms Jennifer Dennehy will provide us with even more physical movement March 25-28 as the children tell stories through dance! We all look forward to warmer days and time outdoors, enjoying the changes in nature on our playground. Those bulbs the children planted last fall may soon begin peeking through the ground! (There is strong evidence that our chipmunk friends needed them

� of �7 7 SOUTH HILLS CHILD DEVELOPMENT CENTER INC.

for winter food… the children said "It's ok! It's awesome to share!" There are still plenty left for blooming! )

Enjoy this special time of the year with your child! The light is returning!

❤Connie