WILDWOOD NEWSLETTER FOR MARCH 2010

By now we hope that all of you have purchased your tickets to our Winter Wonderland Dinner Dance and Silent Auction at the Hotel Jerome on Friday, February 26, 2010! Be sure to bring all of your friends and family as this is our major fund raiser of the year! Cocktails at 6:00 p.m.; dinner at 7:15 ish p.m.; silent auction bids accepted until 8:30 p.m.; and dancing with Bo Hale and Band until 10:00 p.m. GET READY TO HAVE SOME FUN!

We want to thank everyone for pitching in to help up at the school!! As you can see, it is a very busy time of the year for us! A big thanks to everyone who has volunteered to spell a teacher up at the school; your help has allowed for some quality one-on-one "testing" time for each staff member! It is not too late to volunteer for a time slot, so please be sure to check with your child’s teachers.

In March, "Science" will be the focus of the month in the Younger Dome! The group will be participating in a vast array of science experiments, and the children will have numerous opportunities to question; make predictions; observe and learn!

The Older Dome will be taking a trip back in time to the land of the dinosaurs! They will examine bones and fossils, and learn about the kinds of habitats the creatures needed to be able to survive in. The domers will also learn about what it means to be "herbivore" and "carnivore". As they investigate the world outdoors, the kids will measure out dino tracks in the snow; graph the growth of "Zack’s Alligator", all the while keeping a dino journal at school. Luckily, we have many dino experts and endless books to investigate all the varieties.

The class will end their month by taking a trip to the hospital to look at and compare our own bones and body. They will start out the first week of March on letter "U"; the week of March 8th will be letter "V", week of March 15th will be "W"; and we will return from spring break the week of March 29th with the letter "X".

A reminder that the "Wildwood World Cup/X-Games Ski Race and Picnic" will take place at Buttermilk on Sunday, February 28th! This is an easy, relaxed family gathering, and one of our favorites of the year! We will congregate at the metal picnic tables slope side of Bumps at 10:15 a.m. (A huge thanks to Barry and the staff at Bumps for making this area available to us this year!). A non-competitive, individual race through the cones will start on Panda Peak at 10:30 a.m. SHARP, with a picnic lunch to follow. Parents may accompany children on the lower lift. Bring your sunscreen, video cameras, smile, and a dish to share with 20 others! We are doing a food sign-up at the bus, and you will want to come hungry to the event on Sunday, February 28th, as the food is always scrumptious! Clean up should be accomplished by 11:45 a.m. Please do not leave any items at the event. See you there! PLEASE NOTE: There will be a message on the answering machine at school if the weather forces a cancellation, so please call the school if you have any concerns in regards to the weather! Thanks!

SPORTS

• Tuesday, March 2, and Tuesday, March 9-Last optional ski lesson days of the year at Powder Pandas. Parents of skiers should be sure to sign in with Megan (2nd) or Tee (9th) when dropping off at 8:30 a.m. at Powder Pandas. Normal schedule for those attending school all day.
• Thursday, March 11-Older dome swim lesson day at the ARC.

WILDWOOD REMINDERS AND UPCOMING EVENTS

• Friday, Feb. 26-FUNDRAISER AT THE HOTEL JEROME STARTING AT 6PM!!
• Sunday, February 28-WILDWOOD WORLD CUP SKI RACE AND PICNIC AT BUTTERMILK. See you at 10:15 at the base by Bumps! The non-competitive race will start promptly at 10:30, with lunch to follow at 11:00 am. Think sunshine!!
• Tuesdays, March 2 and March 9-Powder Panda ski lesson days.
• Wednesday, March 10-Preschool Pix at the library at 10:15 am-"Problem Solving", including "The Boy Who Cried Wolf" and "Harold and the Purple Crayon". Also, "TRANSITION TO KINDERGARTEN" at the Yellow Brick Building, 215 N. Garmisch, Aspen, from 6:00 – 8:00 PM. There will be a panel discussion with local principals and kindergarten teachers.
• Thursday, March 11-Older dome swim lesson day.
• Friday, March 19-No school; Parent-Teacher Conferences. Please sign up at the bus for a half-hour time slot to conference with your child’s teachers. We urge everyone to take full advantage of this wonderful opportunity to share valuable thoughts and information regarding your child’s growth and development over the course of the school year, not to mention the endearing stories and cute anecdotes! The teachers, with your help, have developed and plotted “individual learning plans” for growth and development for each child over the course of the year. The teachers continuously monitor growth and mastery for each child with supplemental notes and observations, in addition to incorporating check lists and fun "testing" techniques. These efforts culminate in the spring parent-teacher conference. It is also a time to share thoughts on what transitions are ahead for your child, whether it be a move to the older dome; to kindergarten; or maybe an extra year in your child’s current dome. Please note that additional conference dates have been set aside on Thursday, April 1, and Tuesday, April 6, should the later dates better serve your needs. In the Younger Dome, parents with Tsvetana will want to schedule on Friday, March 19, while Tee’s group should aim for the first or sixth of April. Thank you! A final note worth mentioning: the staff meets outside of school to discuss each and every child before conferencing with parents. It is a time-consuming undertaking gladly done, and we want to recognize our professional staff for countless hours culminating in a job exceptionally well done! Parents can rest assured that your children are in loving and caring hands in the hours they are in school!
• Monday, March 22, through Friday, March 26-Spring Break. No School. Please note that you were not charged for this week in your monthly tuition calculations.
• Monday, March 29-School re-opens.
• Tuesday, March 30th at 11:00 am-Older dome field trip to Aspen Valley Hospital; parent helpers wanted.
• Thursday, April 1-No school; Parent-Teacher Conferences
• Tuesday, April 6-No school; Parent-Teacher Conferences
• In April, please be looking for information relating to registering your child for Kindergarten at Aspen Elementary School. At that time you will need to take your child’s birth certificate; proof of residency; as well as a copy of your child’s current immunization record (make sure your child has gotten all shots necessary for entrance to kindergarten!!).
• Thursday, April 15-Older dome swim lesson day
• Thursday, April 22-Earth Day Celebrations. Be sure to be looking for your invitations in the weeks to come!
• Monday, May 31-No school; Memorial Day.
• Tuesday, June 1-"End-of-the-Year" Party at the school at 5:15 pm. Be sure to mark your calendars!
• Wednesday, June 2--Last day of school for children!
• WILDWOOD FORMS FOR FALL ENROLLMENT 2010-11 WERE PREVIOUSLY DUE IN (call Becky immediately if you have not signed up for days and provided a deposit); SUMMER CAMP DAYS WILL NEED TO BE SECURED BY THE END OF MARCH TO INSURE ENROLLMENT AND DESIRED DAYS AS WELL! Forms will be distributed shortly. Please note that we typically get inundated with out of town families wanting camp days, and we don’t want any of our current families to miss out so be sure to sign up in March! Thanks!
• "Word of mouth" is invaluable for our on-going enrollment at Wildwood, so please pass the word to any of your friends or neighbors who are looking for a preschool in the future! Have them check us out! Thanks for the consideration!
• Remember to check for school snow closures due to inclement weather by calling the Wildwood answering machine message; or by calling the Aspen Public School snow closure hot line; or by listening to the KSPN radio station for school closures. We typically can get some big spring snows!
In closing, we will be looking to see EVERYONE at the bash at the Hotel Jerome on Friday. It is a must to get together, a time to support each other, have a ton of fun, and insure that our children have the quality education that they deserve available to them! After all, this is about the children! See you there!

.