The Tragedy in Haiti –

Is It Real To Your Child?

The newspapers and television have been covered with reports and photos of Haiti – the homes in rubbles, the children covered in dust being pulled out from what used to be their home and the violent confrontations over provisions. It is too much for adults to handle and just impossible for the children.

Children under the age of three cannot be reasoned with and should not unnecessarily see something they cannot comprehend and that cannot be explained. And preschool children are the center of their universe. They would not believe you if you tried to reassure them that their family and house are safe and that this earthquake occurred far, far away.

This is a time for adult outpouring of sympathy, not a time to teach the lesson of sympathy to your young child. We would like you to protect your child from these images. We believe it is important to model and teach sympathy and compassion for others to children. We just ask that you remember that a young child cannot rationalize or separate themselves from the horror and sadness portrayed.

On the other hand, if this tragedy affects your relatives - that is a whole different story and must be dealt with differently. If this is your family’s situation please let us know so we can be there for your child and your family.

Did you know…

All employees of a licensed day care center in the State of Connecticut are required to complete a mandated number of continuing education hours each year? The required number of hours is based on the number of hours an employee works per week. As an example, a full time, forty hour per week staff member is required to complete twenty hours of training per year. The training can be in a number of categories: health and safety issues, child development, licensing and regulations, family relations, social services or child abuse laws.

Kidstop fully supports the high continuing education standard and it is our goal to meet or exceed it each year for each staff member. One way we reach this goal is through our…

Staff Development Day!

On Monday, January 18th Kidstop and Cornerstone (our sister center in Trumbull) held our 9th annual Professional Development Day! All Kidstop and Cornerstone staff participated in a full day of workshops. The workshops included “Business Survival” presented by Margaret Heffel, “Developmentally Appropriate Activities” by our education Consultant Lisbeth Condo, Clear Lines, Clear Minds and Team Building both presented by Cynthia Rzasa Bess, Ph.D. Aside from the camaraderie and the valuable insights, all staff received a certificate for eight hours of training.

Happy Staff Anniversary

Karrie - 4 Years!

Congratulations and Thank You!

Reminder

Kidstop will be CLOSED Monday, February 15th in honor of Presidents’ Day!

2009 Year End Statements are available in the office upon request.

Happy Birthday

Julia - 3 Years!

Robert – 4 Years!

Did you know Kidstop has a Facebook Fan Page! That’s right, to keep up with these technological times we have created our own page on Facebook. If you have an account on Facebook, make sure to look us up and become a fan! We will use this page as another means of communicating with our community!

Loyalty Program

We want to let you know that Kidstop’s loyalty incentive program is still in effect. When you refer a friend and they enroll their child, we’ll reward your and their loyalty with a discounted rate. Who doesn’t want a discount these days? Ask your friends, neighbors, relatives and co-workers.

For each new enrollment you both get 10% off tuition. For details feel free to ask Courtney or Marge.

Parent Information Board

Kidstop has designed a specific area in the foyer for an information board. We encourage parents to display business cards, pamphlets or flyers of services they offer. We will post Kidstop business cards and other related information as well. Whether you’re a painter or a computer whiz we’d like to know. Coming together and building a sense of community is not only beneficial for the children but for parents and staff as well.

We’d also like to inform you that we will be designating the third Sunday of the month as a volunteer Work Day here at Kidstop. We have some maintenance and painting planned. Our first Work Day is Sunday, February 21st from 10 to 12. We will be organizing and sorting program supplies in the attic. If you would like to volunteer some time please feel free to let Courtney or Marge know.

Preschool’s Field Trip to Crosby Commons

We are happy to announce we can resume our trips to Crosby Commons Assisted Living Facility! We have missed the grandmas and grandpas over there and are sure they have missed the children as well. The children will travel to the facility on Thursday, February 18th where they will sing a few of their favorite songs then all the grandmas and grandpas will help decorate cookies! Don’t forget to sign up on the preschool door.

Preschool’s February Theme is Space Explorers!

This month it’s off to space as the children discover the planets, fashion space suits and build airplanes and space ships. We will explore the sun’s effect on prisms and the effects of magnets. We will apply the letter sounds for H, B & R and use one-to-one correlation for the numbers 1 & 2. Everyone is looking forward to shadow dancing on Groundhog Day, dressing in red for Valentine’s Day, fashioning masks for Mardi Gras and celebrating the Chinese New Year and Friendship Week.

Toddler’s February Theme is Icky, Sticky, Squishy and Gooey!

This month the children will explore their environment using the five senses. They will discover the world through touch, taste, smell, sight and sound. Their many celebrations include Bubble Day, Friendship Week, Valentine’s Day, and Taste Test Day!

Dates To Remember