3191 Riverside Dr. Ottawa, Ontario Telephone: 738-0305
Riverside Park Nursery School (RPNS)
RPNS offers preschool and nursery school classes for children aged 18 months to four years. Located in Ottawa, Ontario, RPNS is a cooperative, non-profit nursery school that offers a safe, educational and fun, integrated-learning environment. Children have fun and socialize with others while developing essential skills that will prepare them for kindergarten and grade-school. Centrally located, RPNS has been serving the communities of Hunt Club, Riverside Park, Alta Vista, Manotick, and Riverside South, Ottawa East, South Keys, as well as other parts of the Ottawa region for almost 40 years.
From the Director's Desk
(aka "little office cupboard in the storage room")
Happy New Year! We hope you all had a wonderful holiday break. 2012 is shaping up to be a fun-filled action-packed year. We are kicking off the New Year with "Winter Fun". The Children's Music & Movement program with Jane Stott was well received and we plan to have her back this month.
Chinese New Year is on Monday, January 23 and we will celebrate with a rice noodle snack.
Cheers,
Paulette Young, Director of RPNS
Picture Day - Feb 1st and 2nd
Picture Days will take place on Feb. 1 and 2 so bring your smiles and good hair days! Carpediem Photography also welcomes siblings and families for photo ops. See the sign up sheet posted near the Communication Box. No sitting fees and parents choose their photos from a few proofs.
Tuition Receipts
Tuition receipts will be prepared this month and should be ready at the end of January. The receipts will be hand delivered to you by Paulette and please sign the tracking sheet. The amount on the receipt covers tuition fees paid from September to December 2011. (note: registration fees and activity fees are not part of tuitions) Another set of receipts will be provided in June 2012.
Before & After Care tuition receipts (attached to monthly invoices) can also be used for tax purposes. Nursery School tuition receipts can be used for income tax purposes under Child Care. Keep your receipts as there is a $15 administration fee for additional receipt requests.
Thank Yous
The Christmas Cheer Boxes and Gingerbread Houses were a big success due to all the generous donations of hats, mittens, toiletries, clothing, and toys. They were very much welcomed by the families of Better Beginnings, Better Futures. The toddlers enjoyed decorating the boxes and the preschools filled bags with toiletries. Everyone had lots of fun decorating the gingerbread houses and cookies.....a couple of little sneaky tasting too!
The holiday concert and party were a delightful time. The children had been practicing the songs all month long and did a wonderful job. We hope everyone had a good time. A big thank you goes out to all who brought in refreshments, it was a tasty spread!
Heartfelt thanks to all the families that donated to our "Giving Tree" and for participating in Fund Raisers for our new building. Date Nights have been a huge success and we are in the process of planning more of these fun filled evenings (see Parent Zone Bulletin board).
Award Roast
Paulette wishes to thank the Board of Directors for organizing the December 2 Prime Minister's Award Night in her honour. She was well "roasted" with humorous photos and speeches. Many thanks to all the families that showered her with their presence and warm hugs.
February Fundraiser: For the Love of Dance!
An evening of cultural dance entertainment will be held on Saturday, Feb.4 (7:30- 9:30 pm) at University of Ottawa, Alumni Theatre. Donna Bueckert, President of our Board of Directors, has made arrangement for all proceeds of this event to be donated to the RPNS Building Fund! Tickets (cost $15 each) can be purchased at www.annabellydance.ca/events or email safiyadancer@gmail.com.
Looking For...
Speaking of Dance......our theme for February is the "ARTS". Do you have any artistic talents (dance, music, arts) that can be shared with the children? See Paulette or your child's teacher to make arrangements for a visit to the classes.
Algonquin Early Childhood Education Student
Julie Anderson will be joining the Senior Preschool classes for a 4 week field placement here at RPNS. Welcome, Julie!
Winter Clothing Reminder
It's that wonderful time of year... when parents and teachers around the country must accept the reality of SNOWSUITS!! Here at RPNS we encourage self-help skills for all the children. The children practice their undressing and dressing skills every day, and with the added winter apparel this can get frustrating for them. Here are a few tips and suggestions to help make this process an enjoyable one for you and your child!
- The most important item to have is a properly fitted snowsuit. Whether a one or two piece, your child should feel comfortable in their suits. This allows for better movement when playing outdoors. Snow pants that can cover over boots are idea.
- As convenient as they can be, mittens with strings can be a potential choking/strangulation hazard. We recommend individual mittens with a thumb hole and not attached to strings. Please make sure that your child's mittens fit properly. Extra pair of mittens in their backpacks is always a good idea and please no gloves.
- Another potential safety concern is a scarf. Children can pull on a scarf and choke another child, or themselves! We recommend neck-warmers, they are easy for children to put on and provide just as much protection as a scarf.
- Proper winter boots are a must for outdoor play. Please make sure that your child has boots that fit. Velcro tab boots are easy to adjust and are quick to slide on. Laces can frustrate both children and adults!
- Hats should fit your child's head properly as well. Please make sure that your child's hat covers their ears. Again, hats with ties at the chin can cause a strangulation risk so Velcro is best.
- We also encourage the "Fliperoo" trick for jackets! It is a fun way to get your children to dress on their own! If you are unsure about how it is done, ask any of the teachers to show you.
Upcoming Birthdays
Ross - Jan.12
Glory - Jan. 16
Taiya - Jan. 22
Jane - Jan.22
Mitchell - Jan.24
Sophia B. - Jan.28
Happy Birthday to all of you celebrating this month!
Staff Changes This Month
Due to low enrolment in the 3Day Senior Preschool, the board of Directors has decided to cap the class size to 12 children. Tina Zandri will continue teaching this class along with the duty day parent.
Our 2Day Senior Preschool remains full at 16 children, so for the interim, Paulette will co-teach along with Tina until a new teacher is hired.
Chinese New Year Songs: From All the Teachers
Chinese Hello Song (tune: Farmer in the Dell)
Let's wave and say "Ni Hao"
Let's wave and say "Ni Hao"
Let's say hello to all our friends,
Let's wave and say "Ni Hao"!
The Lion Dance (tune: Mary Had a Little Lamb)
See the lion dance and prance, dance and prance, dance and prance!
See the lion dance and prance and Chinese New Year's Day!
Hear the fire crackers, pop! Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop!
Hear the fire crackers, pop! Pop! Pop! On Chinese New Year's Day!
