A Message From the Principal:
It is finally March, and hopefully that means the warm weather is just around the corner! The students are eager to be able to go back outside and play. This month we will have our Scholastic Book Fair on March 23rd-March 27th. All month the students will be collecting spare change as they participate in a school-wide challenge to see which class can raise the most money. All of the money that is raised will be put back in the book Fair to buy books for their classroom. The class that raises the most money will get an ice cream party! Look for the Spare Change Jar in your child’s classroom, and donate today! Throughout the month we will be “spotlighting” literacy in the classrooms. The parent shares will focus on exciting literacy activities. There are many ways to incorporate literacy activities in our everyday lives. When I am at the grocery store with my daughter, I have her help me find items on the shelves by telling her the letter to look for. She has so much fun looking for the items, that she does not realize I am practicing letter recognition with her. It is always fun as a parent turning everyday activities into learning opportunities.
Early Bird Registration is going on for families that are currently enrolled with us. I have sent home information in your child’s communication bin. To get the early bird prices you must turn in your registration form by Friday, March 21st. If you have your account set up so that we automatically bill you for your tuition, we can add the registration fee with your weekly tuition payment. Just put a note on your form that you would like for me to automatically bill your account.
Summer Camp information will be sent home by Friday, March 20th. We are working on planning many fun summer events for your children! I will send out an e-mail when all of the information is available.
- March 21- Saturday Open House for New Families from 10:00am-1:00pm
- March 23-27- Scholastic Book Fair
- March 30-April 3- Spring Break for District 203, 204, and Chesterbrook Elementary
- April 7- Picture Day
From the Education Department
Developing Confident Future Readers
March is National Reading Month, so it is a great time to reinforce how important it is to expose children to books from an early age. We engage all of our students in language and literacy activities every day throughout the school year.
Research has shown that reading aloud to children has a profound influence on their speech development and listening skills. Reading allows children to experience the wondrous world depicted in books, and thrive on the interaction with adults.
Below are age appropriate activities that we implement in our classrooms to get children excited about reading, as well as recommended books to read with your child at home.
INFANTS – Linking sensory and reading experiences
In the classroom: We introduce language and literacy beginning with our infants, by consistently speaking, reading and singing to them. Teachers choose interactive books with bright colors, different textures and pop-up designs to help stimulate infants’ growing sensory awareness.
Books to read at home: Pat the Bunny by Dorothy Kunhardt, Fuzzy Yellow Ducklings by Matthew Van Fleet and Baby Danced the Polka by Karen Beaumont
TODDLERS – Rhyme and repetition
In the classroom: Toddlers enjoy hearing the same books read over and over again, because they are able join in as the stories become more familiar. Teachers read books with rhyme and repetition, such as Goodnight Moon, and vary their voice each time they tell the story. The change in tone gives children a chance to hear different sounds, and encourages them to practice making the sounds themselves.
Books to read at home: All Fall Down by Helen Oxenbury, Where is the Green Sheep by Mem Fox and Big Red Barn by Margaret Wise Brown
BEGINNERS – Engaging the imagination
In the classroom: Around age two, children begin to develop a love for the world of imagination. It’s important to engage children’s imaginations and encourage them to participate in shared reading experiences. A picture walk motivates children to rely on pictorial clues to decipher the story’s plot and make predictions. Before reading the story, the teacher and student flip through the book, and the child is encouraged to make predictions about the characters and plot. The teacher then reads the book aloud with the student. When finished, the child is asked to relate his predictions to the actual outcome of the story. For example, “Now that you know what happened, why was the elephant wearing a tutu?” or “What would you have done if you were the elephant?”
Books to read at home: If You Give a Mouse a Cookie by Laura Numeroff, Corduroy by Don Freeman or Bark, George by Jules Feiffer
INTERMEDIATES – Exploring the wider world
In the classroom: As our Intermediates are introduced to the Citizens of the World component of our curriculum, they read about different places, cultures and traditions in books. Books help children understand and enjoy learning about the diversity of human experience. During circle time for example, we may read a story about children living in another country, in a different type of house and wearing different types of clothes. Afterward, the teacher connects the story back to what the children know by asking, “What does your house look like?” and “Who lives in your house with you?”
Books to read at home: Abuela by Arthur Dorros, So Much by Trish Cooke and On Mother’s Lap by Ann Scott
PRE-K/PRE-K 2 – Nonfiction Adventures
In the classroom: Children are naturally fascinated by the lives of real people and the world around them. Our teachers cultivate this fascination by exposing students to nonfiction books. For example, the class may read both a fiction and nonfiction book about animals. Afterward, they are encouraged to compare and contrast the two books and discuss what was accurate in the fiction book.
Books to read at home: Stellaluna by Janell Cannon (fiction) and Bat Loves the Night by Nicola Davies (non-fiction)
By experiencing a literacy-rich environment, both at school and at home, we instill a love of reading and provide the foundation for our students to become successful, confident readers in elementary school and beyond.
– Lauren Starnes, PhD- Director of Early Childhood Ed
For Our Parents
Chesterbrook Academy Elementary School News
Did you know that we had an elementary school in Naperville? The elementary school services Kindergarten-8th Grade. If you are in need of more information or enrolling your child in our elementary school please contact them at 630-527-0833. You can also visit their website at http://Naperville.ChesterbrookAcademy.com.