By Helene Welsing, Preschool Director
For more information about Prince of Peace Preschool, please visit princeofpeacenj.org, call 201 965-3354, or visit our fb page at Facebook.
October happenings
“I’m so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers.” is a quote from L.M. Montgomery, and so do we! October is a special time in our preschool calendar. In addition to our students and staff becoming a school family with our youngsters settling into routines and the business of discovering and learning, we have the first two of our annual special events. Both of our events are fun, of course, but they also have benefits for our students and families.
Our first event, an annual trip to a pumpkin patch, will be to our area’s local family owned farm, Stokes Farm in Old Tappan. Our students will enjoy a hay ride, choose the most perfect pumpkin, enjoy an apple cider donut and have a greenhouse tour with Farmer Ron. Our second event is Trunk-or-Treat: our families decorate their car trunks with fun but not spooky themes and our students go “trunk-or-treating” to the different cars for treats.
Besides the fun that happens at these events, we also plan these events to provide experiential learning and build community amongst our families. As young children are hands on learners, our trip to Stokes Farm provides a full sensory experience touching, smelling, hearing and seeing the farm, putting science into a real-world context, visiting with the Farmer Ron’s, 5th and 6th generation farmers, and tasting fresh baked goods. These experiences will build vocabulary and curiosity and an appreciation of the work that goes into the tomatoes, lettuce and other produce we buy from supermarkets. Both events build community with our families, introduce to new families to the POPPS’ family, strengthening the school-home connection. This connection supports a child’s early learning, emotional security and sense of belonging. So, while we are visiting each decorated car trunk for a treat or listening to Farmer Ron Sr.’s farm jokes while visiting his greenhouse, we are modeling that the important people in a child’s life work together while supporting their learning.
Farmer Ron: What did the corn say when it got complimented? “Aw, Shucks!”
For more information about Prince of Peace Preschool, visit www.princofpeacepreschoolnj.org or call 201 956-3354.
Sincerely,
Helene Welsing
POPPS Director
