WILDWOOD NEWSLETTER FOR MAY 2010

As the end of the 2009-10 school year is rapidly approaching, we want to THANK YOU ALL for your wonderful support, involvement, and kindness this year!

The theme in both domes for May will be "Gone Fishing", and many exciting outdoor adventures are being planned for the children! Our green thumbs already have been busy planting seeds for the Grow Dome, and the month of May is always special for us as we get to celebrate ALL of our special MOMS as well!

The Older Dome children are asked to bring in "share items" that relate to our natural environment or pertain to an adventure the child participated in! Thanks to our parents for your active involvement in helping your child chose pertinent share items each week all year long! Hope you all found it relevant and fun!
Please note that we will be sending your child’s sleeping bag home with your child the last week of school. For those of you attending the Summer Camp, please feel free to launder the bag and send it back when camp starts. Otherwise, they are yours to keep! To those returning in the fall we will assume that you will continue to make use of your bag at that time. If you would like to order a new fleece bag for the 2010-11 school year, please call the office as soon as possible to make us aware of your intentions. Thanks!

We are all busy preparing for our END OF THE YEAR PARTY up at the school. PLEASE NOTE THAT THE DATE OF THE PARTY has been changed to Thursday, May 27 at 5:15 pm!!

A BIG THANKS TO KIDS FIRST/ CITY OF ASPEN

We are happy to announce that we have received grant funding from Kids First/City of Aspen for the 2010 grant cycle. We have received partial funding to add wood fibar to our playground area; purchase new playground trikes; purchase new listening centers and CD players; make additions to our dramatic play areas; as well as replace some tables and chairs.

As always, we are happy to acknowledge all the wonderful ways the Daycare/Housing tax funding helps early childhood centers! We encourage you all to continue to support this very important tax base!

TEACHERS ATTEND CONFERENCES AND COMPLETE CLASSES

We are fortunate to have a staff committed to excellence and personal growth! Every teacher at Wildwood commits to taking at least one- 3 credit Early Childhood Education class each year, in addition to logging upwards of 45 hours or so attending conferences, workshops etc.
Tina has just returned from the Colorado Association for the Education of Young Children Conference in Denver, where she was again one of the presenters at a work shop
encompassing nature and children.

We are also lucky to have YOU supporting us and our efforts every step of the way! For instance, supporting "professional development days" for the staff is an integral investment towards the quality of our program offerings. It clearly serves to complement and support the personal time commitment each of the staff invests in addition each year as well!

SCHOOL REWARDS PROGRAM WITH AMAZON.COM

This is a reminder that Wildwood School has a sponsored link on our website "wildwood school.org" so that we can participate with School Rewards with Amazon.com!! ANY TIME YOU ORDER ANYTHING from Amazon.com please go to our website FIRST at "wildwoodschool.org" and click on "School/Rewards" which will line you up with Amazon. Com-and WILDWOOD SCHOOL will get referral fees donated to the school on any purchases that you make!!! Please note that there is no way for you to go directly to Amazon.com and indicate that you want your purchase to benefit Wildwood, you must go through our link every time. Tell your neighbors, family, and friends, and get ready to use your rebate money making lots of purchases! Thanks for remembering, and please feel free to call the school if you have any further questions.

PARENT WORK FEE/CLOSING BALANCES

Please make Becky or Anne aware of your plans in regards to the parent work fee by Tuesday, May 4, 2010. Any fees donated to the school will be greatly appreciated and will go towards purchasing supplies for the children. Thank you! PLEASE NOTE THAT OUTSTANDING BALANCES FROM THE 2009-10 SCHOOL YEAR MUST BE PAID BY MONDAY, MAY 10. (Also, there will be no admittance to the Summer Camp until your fall balance is taken care of as well). Please call Becky or Anne if you have any questions or concerns.

SPORTS

• The last session of the Aspen Gymnastics program will run through the four Wednesdays in May.

UPCOMING DATES AND REMINDERS

• Thursday, April 30th-Due date for Wildwood Parent Survey. Your thoughts; suggestions; and comments are invaluable to us, and we appreciate you taking the time to complete the survey and return it to us! Thanks!
• Tuesday, May 4-Older dome goes fishing with Leslee!
• Thursday, May 13-All-school field trip to Difficult Campground at 10:30 am.
• Wednesday, May 14-Preschool Pix "Discovering Nature".
• Monday, May 17-All-school field trip to the landfill at 10:30 am.
• Tuesday, May 18- Kids First is making plans to host a Community "Open House" for our local kids and their parents at the Yellow Brick; 5:30 to 7:30 pm. We are asking for 2 volunteers to bring a couple of cheese pizzas to the event (parents from all the schools are pitching in!) We will pass along further information as we receive it.
• Friday, May 21st-"Kids First Parade" through downtown Aspen, starting by Boogies at 10:00 AM. All the city preschools will be participating! Come march with us through the downtown streets, or cheer for us from the sidelines as we pass by! Everyone join in the fun! Parent volunteers are always needed for this busy event. Thanks!
• Tuesday, May 25-"Move Up Day" at Wildwood at 10:30 am for those children moving up to the Older Dome in the fall of 2010, as well as their parents! More details to follow.
• Monday, May 31-No school in observance of Memorial Day.
• ***Thursday, May 27, 2010-WILDWOOD END OF THE YEAR "SAFARI PARTY", PICNIC, AND SLIDE SHOW!! Please note the date change and mark your calendars; not to be missed! We will be doing a food sign up at the bus in the weeks prior to the event, and we are hopeful that the final snow melt will coincide with our party plans! Please feel free to bring blankets or low chairs to sit on during our performance in the front yard! We are in need of at least two 6 ft. plus folding tables that we can use for food and drinks the night of the event! Please contact the school if you can help us out! Thanks!
• Wednesday, June 2-Last day for children.
• Monday, June 14-First day of the Wildwood Summer Camp! Get ready for summer fun!
• Please remember to send your child to school dressed and prepared for weather changes. Also, you will want to slather on some sunscreen before school, and have your child wear a hat outdoors as well (remember to put your child’s name on the hat). A daily check for ticks is a good idea as tick season is upon us. Long sleeves and long pants are highly recommended when possible, especially as the children will be participating in nature hikes. Light colored clothing make the ticks easier to spot as well. We will do tick checks, but it is important for you to do full body and scalp checks in the privacy of your home. A reminder to check your pets too! This is not only for your pet’s safety, but yours as well! Also for your information, Wildwood School does participate in a local environmentally-friendly larvicide program which has proven to be highly successful in the past in cutting down in mosquito populations.
• MAY WISH LIST: BIG ITEMS-NEW WOOD SIGN FOR the DRIVEWAY ENTRANCE TO THE SCHOOL; NEW MATS AT THE EXITS. Small items: pegs and peg boards; small wood cookies
• Wildwood Yearbooks coming soon!! Please be looking for information to reserve your copy! Again, not to be missed!
• Tuesday, August 31-Tentative first day of school for the 2010-11 school year.
In closing, we want to thank you again for your support and encouragement this year. A huge thank you to all of the parents that have prepared lunches for the staff throughout the school year; washed the sleeping bags; baked with the kids; joined us on field trips; worked in the classroom; done special projects with the children; served on the Board of Directors; supported our fund raising efforts; worked on the Wildwood Yearbook-the list is long and we applaud you all!!

We hope that you will continue to steer your friends and family toward Wildwood in the future as "word of mouth" is extremely important to us! Please feel free to call the school if there is any way we can be of help to you, and best wishes for a wonderful summer to you all!

Fondly, Tina, Megan, Jenny, Leslee, Jenna, Tee, Simone, Anne, and Becky

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