January Notes

“Therefore if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.”
2 Corinthians 5:17

WELCOME BACK!  WE HOPE THAT YOU ENJOYED A BLESSED HOLIDAY!

Friday, January 17th:  Kindergarten Preview Day- Any student who will be eligible for Kindergarten next September is invited to join us for the morning to get an idea of what Little Lambs Kindergarten is like.  Students may bring a lunch with them to school that day and enjoy some Kindergarten-ready activities.  The schedule is the same as other days, 8:30am-12:00pm.  The preview day will be offered Friday, February 21st as well; students may attend one or both days.  Please tell Mrs. Ratten if your child will be joining us.

Monday, January 20th:  School closed in observance of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.

Valentine Party:  Your children already may be asking about Valentines for their classmates.  We always encourage the children to make homemade Valentines, if possible, so it can be a good idea to start early.  And remember, it’s the thought and effort that count, not a “perfect” result!  Some simple heart shapes, traced and cut out of construction paper, make great Valentines. We currently have 16 children enrolled.  More information about the party will come in February.

2014/2015 Enrollment:  We anticipate beginning enrollment for the 2014/2015 school year by the end of February.  Registration forms will be available then.  We anticipate more openings than we typically have, so if you know any other families who may be interested, please feel free to give them my phone number (503.706.1161) or email address (kristinratten@gmail.com) so that they may be added to our waiting list.  Thank you!

Receipts:  If you need a year-end receipt from us, please let us know as soon as possible. 

We appreciate you:  We extend a sincere “thank you” to parents and students for thinking of us at Christmas.  The kind words, gift cards, and many other remembrances were greatly appreciated and enjoyed.  We look forward to sharing the rest of the school year with you and are anticipating God’s blessings in 2014.

Parenting Thought:  Although we have enjoyed a pretty dry winter so far, we are bound to have a lot of inside time coming our way.  This is the perfect time to re-commit to good reading habits for your children.  A quick trip to the library, or some time looking through your own bookshelves, will turn up some good books to enjoy. You are also welcome to borrow books from our classroom library.  Research supports the clear benefits of children reading, or being read to, at least 20 minutes per day, so don’t wait to get this habit started.  Why is reading so critical?  Consider the following statistics, from the National Education Association and Begin To Read:

• Twenty-six percent of children who were read to three or four times in the last week by a family member recognized all letters of the alphabet. This is compared to 14 percent of children who were read to less frequently.

• The Educational Testing Services reported that students who do more reading at home are better readers and have higher math scores.

• Two-thirds of students who cannot read proficiently by the end of fourth grade will end up in jail or on welfare.

• Illiteracy and crime are closely related. The Department of Justice states, "The link between academic failure and delinquency, violence, and crime is welded to reading failure." Over 70% of inmates in America's prisons cannot read above a fourth grade level.

Consistent reading is one of the biggest predictors for future school and life success, and one of the greatest gifts we can give our children.  It’s worth every minute of our time to get our kids reading!