We need your help! In conjunction with our health unit this month, we will be doing our annual Parker Task Force food drive for the entire month of February. The Parker Task Force serves many families in our area who are in need of food, whether it is from job loss or natural disaster. Please bring in any non-perishable food items, toiletries (shampoo, toilet paper, tooth paste, etc.), and baby items (diapers, wipes, etc.) to school and place them in the box outside of your child’s classroom. As you look for items to bring in, this is a great opportunity to talk to your child about healthy eating habits. Because hunger is an issue at all times of the year, we hope you and your child will join us in gathering a record amount of food for this years drive!

This month our Kindergarten groups were so excited to make their way to Downtown Denver to experience the annual National Western Stock Show and Rodeo at the Denver Coliseum. It was quite a show for all of the kids as they got to visit many different stations about farm and ranch life! As the made their way through the stock show they got to see pigs, sheep, graft horses, and highland cattle up close. After visiting with the funny farm creatures the children took their seats to experience and Colorado tradition, the National Western Rodeo. Some of the events included bare back bronc riding, saddle bronc riding, barrel racing, and of course bull riding! After the rodeo our children made their way back to school worn out but with huge smiles on their faces after such a fun and exciting day!

Happy Holidays from Orange Room! Through out the month of December we learned a lot about what types of “traditions” families have for Christmas or Hanukkah. Ms. McGrew and Mrs. Kugeler shared a few traditions of Orange Room as well. We went on an elf hunt and found “Chippy”, a special Christmas helper who visits our classroom everyday and returns to the North Pole each night. We practiced singing our Holiday Carols and were amazed how many parents joined us each morning to listen to our wonderful singing.

We studied the letter D this month an were busy creating projects like delicious donuts and “Dear Santa” letters. We are also working very hard on writing our names, ask your child to show you their handi-work!

Next month we are looking forward to studying farm and ranch life. Be on the look out for a pet visitation sign-up sheet. We are going to display photos of our pets so you are welcome to send along a picture with your child. Pictures will be returned at the end of the month.

Thank you and Happy New Year!

Mrs. Kugeler and Ms. McGrew

Pre-school and Pre-kindergarten classes have been working hard on their singing skills as well.  Please join us for caroling, at each location, during the week of December 12 at 8:30 am each morning.  We will share our holiday songs with you and help you get your day started off great!  Holiday parties will be December 15 and 16 at all centers.

Just a reminder, Willows Child Learning Centers will be open for daycare only on December 19, 20, 21, 27, 28 and 29.  We will closed on December 22, 23, 26, 29 and January 2.  We wish you a very happy holiday season with your family!  See you at caroling!

October was an exciting month for Orange Room. We enjoyed two days of nature walks in the open space behind our schools. We looked for seeds, animals, and signs of fall. We all took the challenge of climbing a big “mountain” and succeeded! It was a lot of fun!

We continued our study of fall and the seasons in the classroom by growing seeds, having fun with leaf rubbings, and learning how animals prepare for winter. A week was spent reviewing the letters N,W,A,&P. Letter “H” was introduced just in time for Halloween themed projects, and Mr. Happy Hair graced us with his presence.

A special “Thanks” goes out to the families that provided us with treats for our Halloween parties. We had a “spooktacular” time! All the children were excited to “show off” their Halloween costumes to their friends and everyone had a blast participating in our Halloween parade!

The Willows Family

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Orange room is off to a busy start.  Safety was our social studies unit for September.  We learned that many harmful medicines or cleaners look like something that could be tempting to eat or drink.  Officer McGruff & McKnight stopped by for a special visit to remind us not to talk to strangers and to stay away from guns.  We finished our safety unit with a visit from Mike the firefighter and watched him climb a 60 ft ladder. We also took

a safety walk around the neighborhood to look for street signs and to look both ways when you cross the street. 

During table time, we introduced some new friends, Mr Noisy Nose, Ms. Wonderful Words and Ms. Pointy Patches.  Together, we discussed what different types of things are noisy, water colored worms and painted paper bag pumpkins.  We are working hard on writing our names, recognizing and writing shapes, plus counting to 20.

Next month we are looking forward to exploring seasonal changes, planting seeds, going on a nature walk and celebrating Halloween.

Special dates to remember in October:

5th & 6th            nature walks
11 & 12            individual pictures
25 & 26            Mrs. Kugeler’s conferences
27 & 28            Halloween parades and parties
November 1 & 2        Ms. McGrew’s conferences

Mrs. Kugeler
Ms. McGrew

Kindergarten students were also visited by the Aurora Police Department.  An officer spoke with the children about how to stay safe while biking and the importance of following the rules.

At Willows Child Learning Centers we are looking forward to a very fun fall.  The changing leaves on the playground make a magical backdrop for exploring nature.  Pre-school and pre-kindergarten students will be discovering seeds and plants and discussing the seasons.  Kindergarten students will be enjoying many field trips outdoors, enjoying the changing seasons.

Well it’s that time of year when our summer has come to an end. We had a fantastic summer here at the Willows!!! Our summer elementary program was filled with fun and we enjoyed our many field trips that took us all over Colorado as well as our own backyard swimming pool. We hiked around Reynold’s Park in Jefferson County Open Space, caught some fish with the Division of Wildlife at Lake Lehow, biked and hiked our way around Chatfield State Park, toured the house of the Unsinkable Molly Brown, and played field games and had a hot dog roast at Sterne Park. The older elementary children went with us up 10,152 feet to camp in Leadville, we went camping with the younger elementary children to explore the wonder of Rocky Mountain National Park, all three schools joined together for our annual Willows swim meet, and we trekked up to listen to the amazing sounds of the Central City Opera in “Amadigi di Gaula”. To end our fun summer we had our Parent’s Night, which featured a fun and entertaining swim program, a slide show of all the memories that we had made over the summer, and the presentation of all the mini courses that the children have worked so hard on over the course of the summer. This was an amazing and fun filled summer and we look forward to another great summer next year! Thank you again to all of our parents. We will miss all of your wonderful children! See you next summer!