August 2010
Hello!
My name is Ms. Young and I am your child’s preschool teacher. I have lived in Houston,
Texas all of my life. I went to school in the Cypress Fairbanks Independent School District and graduated from Jersey Village High School. I graduated from Houston Baptist
University in 2011 with a degree in Elementary Education. In my spare time, I like to make beaded jewelry and ornaments, read, listen to music and raise rabbits as pets. This will be my first year to work with preschoolers. I have had experience working with elementary school students during my field work and student teaching and I have enjoyed it. Your child will learn many things this year. I want your child to be excited about learning. You will have the opportunity to be a part of your child’s learning experience as you visit our classroom or do activities at home with your child. I will be sending you weekly newsletters to keep you posted on the activities your child will be involved in. I am looking forward to working with you and your child this year.
Your child will have wonderful learning experiences in our class. They will have the opportunity to express themselves creatively in the art and drama centers. Your child will also learn about healthy habits that he or she will carry for a lifetime. In our reading activities, your child will be exposed to a variety of children’s literature and we will have many activities revolving around the books we read in class. I also think that young children benefit from learning by discovery. We aim to make sure that every child has a good experience in learning in a safe and happy environment. I think that there is much more to preschool than just socializing children. In preschool, children get ready for kindergarten and beyond and have a desire to learn throughout their lives. You are more than welcome to come and watch our activities. With your help, I will work with you to make sure your child will have a good year in preschool. You can either call me or email me if you have concerns or questions.

Our Philosophy
Our aim is to prepare young children for kindergarten and beyond. We also prepare children for life. Our focus is to educate the whole child, not just the academic areas of reading and math. We want children to be creative, succeed in academics, be physically active and healthy. A healthy child is also a happy child who is ready to learn. We also encourage children to use their imaginations in our make-believe centers as they play house, doctor, dress-up, post office and more. To meet the needs of our students, we emphasize on using many teaching methods to reach all students and to help them reach their full potential. We also use the NAEYC (National
Association for the Education of Young Children) Standards to ensure that your child is prepared for entering kindergarten.
Our Programs
We have two separate preschool programs. There are two classrooms, one for younger preschoolers and one for older preschoolers. One program is for younger preschoolers ranging in age from 3 to 4 ½ years of age. The other program is for older preschoolers ranging in age from 4 ½ to 5 years of age. Each classroom consists of the main teacher and an aide.
The Profile of a Preschool Graduate:
Your child will learn many important skills to be prepared for kindergarten and beyond in our preschool program. By the end of the preschool years, a graduate from our program should be able to:
Math
Can identify shapes
Count to ten
Sort objects by color, size and shape
Can make patterns out of various objects
Fine Motor/Gross Motor

Dress himself or herself
Use utensils, napkins and cups
Take care of personal needs (tying, buttoning, zipping)
Comb his or her hair
Social/Behavioral
Use self-regulation for behavior
Get along with other children and adults and develop good relationships with teachers.
Help others
Follow classroom rules
Set goals and develop and follow through on plans
Find more than one solution to a question
Begins to share
Understands actions have causes and effects
Show respect for other people’s property
Listen to stories without interrupting
Participates in group activities
Develop friendships
Health/Physical Activity
Is aware of healthy and junk foods
Understands basic needs such as food, water, clothing, and shelter
Wash and bathe himself or herself
Science
Has an interest to learn about new objects and animals
Begin to carry out simple investigations
Describe observations
Fine Arts
Express feelings through movement and dramatic play
Use different mediums of artistic expression
Use art and music as self-expression
Language skills

Speak in complete sentences
Understands rhymes
Can identify some letters of the alphabet
Can write his or her name
Other skills
Knows name, address, and phone number
Use basic technology
The Constructivist Theory in Our Program
We use the constructivist approach to our lessons and activities in which our students build on what they already know and learn through their experiences and activities. We use a child centered approach to teaching and lesson planning. Our students learn by doing and are encouraged to take charge of learning activities. Our classrooms give children an opportunity to help give us ideas on what they are interested in learning. We also use scaffolding to help guide children with new skills and concepts. We aim to provide our students with opportunities to treat each other with mutual respect, as most elementary schools also teach their students mutual respect.
Assessing Our Students
The purpose of assessing students is to keep track of student progress, child development and to see if a child needs extra help. We also use assessment to evaluate our instruction so that we can help all of our students have academic success. We use observation and authentic assessments to assess all students. We use observation to observe students’ learning, social skills and behavior. We use authentic assessment to assess students on their actual work with a portfolio for each student to track student progress over time. We also assess the whole child, not just assessing students’ emergent literacy and math skills.
We also assess each student throughout the school year.

The Importance of Play
Play is not just all about having fun. Young children learn social and problem solving skills when they play. Through our program, your child has many opportunities to play each day. When children play with toys, they learn how the toys work. Children also use their imaginations as they play, this helps foster critical thinking. We have many age appropriate toys in the classroom your child can choose from.
Planning and Curriculum
We have a curriculum based on the Pre-kindergarten guidelines located at http://www.ritter.tea.state.tx.us/ed_init/pkguidelines/index.html
. We also keep the interests and needs of our students in mind in planning activities. When students are interested in a certain topic, it is important to satisfy their curiosity and they are more likely to be excited about learning. We want your child to be excited about learning throughout their lives. We also use questioning strategies to assess students’ knowledge and how they are learning in our program.
Recommended Resources for Parents
All parents should be involved in their children’s learning. I have included a list of helpful resources to help extend learning activities at home and in outings. http://www.preschoolrainbow.org/
Gayle’s Preschool Rainbow
- this website has great ideas for activities for preschoolers to do with their families at home. http://www.best-preschool-games.com/birthday-games.html This website has ideas for indoor and outdoor games for school and home. Seasonal and party games are also included. http://www.first-school.ws/theme/alphabet.htm
This website has ideas for preschool activities and printable coloring pages. http://preschoolrock.com/ Preschool Rock - This website is a good resource of information about preschoolers for preschool teachers and parents. There are arts and crafts, game ideas and advice on children’s fitness and health. There is list of books for preschoolers. http://www.agatebooks.com/preschool-books/2.html
This website provides a list of recommended books for preschool aged children. There is also a list of Caldecott Winning
Books that are good for preschoolers.

Daily Schedule
7:45 A.M.- 8:20 A.M. Arrival, Children’s choice of activities.
8:20 A.M.- 8:30 A.M. Clean up time
8:30 A.M. – 8:55 A.M. Morning Circle Time. Talk about the weather, the day, and any birthdays of the students. Do a finger play, movement activity or sing a song.
8:55 A.M.- 10:15 A.M. Centers (math, reading, listening, science and writing)
10:15 A.M. – 10:25 A.M. Clean up time
10:25 A.M. – 11:20 A.M. Outside Play. On days with inclement weather, do indoor activities with children’s choice and/or watch a children’s video.
11:20 A.M. – 11:35 A.M. Restroom and wash up for lunch
11:35 A.M. – 12:20 P.M. Lunch time
12:20 P.M. – 12:30 P.M. Clean up time
12:30 P.M. – 12:55 P.M. Story time
12:55 P.M. – 1:55 P.M. Naptime or quiet activities for children who cannot fall asleep
1:55 P.M. – 2:50 P.M. Centers (art, music, make-believe, and dramatic play)
2:50 P.M. – 3:10 P.M. Clean up time/ Restroom
3:10 P.M – 3:30 P.M. Snack time
3:30 P.M. – 4:00 P.M. Children’s Choice
4:00 P.M. – 4:20 P.M. Get ready to go home

Reasons for my Classroom Design
I organized my classroom layout so that children would have enough space to move around. I wanted to keep the library, sand and water sensory center, dramatic play, computer station, music, group time and the writing center against the walls so children would have more classroom space. If a child who has mobility needs like using a wheelchair or a walker, he or she could be able have an easier time to maneuver around the classroom.
Contact Information
Ms. Jamie Young, preschool teacher
Preschool address: 12345 Rolling Fields
Houston, Texas 77065
Main Phone of the Preschool (281) 123-4567
Ms. Young (281)555-5555
Email youngjamiepreschool@email.com