Welcome to West Side Preschool
We believe children learn through play!
West Side Preschool Co-Op
What are benefits of a Co-Op?
1. Parents have the opportunity to see their child in the classroom setting.
You and your child will be learning from the teacher, the curriculum, and the experience, all while making friends! We appreciate the variety of helpers our families provide- Moms, Dads and Grandparents. Your child’s experienced is enriched by the diversity of our family participants.
2. Our classes have a higher adult to child ratio than most early childhood programs.
Each class session will have our lead teacher, aide and helping family members. This makes it possible for us to offer your child a wide variety of activities and experiences with adult guidance. One of the most important pre-reading activities for a child is conversation. When adults converse with children, their vocabulary, verbal skills and understanding of ideas and concepts increase.
3. Our high adult to child ratio also allows for more frequent and positive social interactions and growth.
Children receive the attention they desire and the freedom to play quietly and independently. We allow space in our daily schedules for free choice with play, art projects, and toys. It is a joy to watch your child progress through the year and learn to interact with their peers and trusted adults.
Let us show you why we love being a co-operative preschool!
To visit a classroom please call 509-946-4656 ext. 2
All parents welcome!
Play Dough Recipe
Play dough after time in the snow!
Our area has been hit hard with the snow. It’s been fun! However, it can seem long… After working those gross motor skills outside, come inside and fine tune those fine motor skills. Children can help with this recipe! Including them in the making requires math and literacy skills and teaches science! How amazing to throw a few common ingredients together and reach a product you can play with indefinitely!
After you’ve kneaded your new play dough it is time to get creative! Play dough is an infinitely open ended medium. Even if you’ve played with it a thousand times there are still new ways to use it. See how creative you and your child can get!
Try:
- Kitchen tools such as potato mashers, spoons, spatulas
- Small containers for sorting and serving
- Legos
- Cookie cutters
- Scissors
- Stamps
- Recycle bin items
- Small dolls or figurines that can be washed
- Plastic animals, vehicles, dinosaurs
- No tools! What can you create using only your hands? With only your feet?
- Add a few drops of essential oil to include your sense of smell
- Add glitter!
- Pebbles or rocks
- Sea shells
Keep the play dough in a container with a lid to prevent drying out. Add a few sprinkles of water to revitalize when it begins getting dry. Play dough keeps a long time! Avoid playing with play dough around a carpet, it is best kept on hard surfaces. Relax and enjoy! Play dough is the ULTIMATE in comfort play. A wonderful way to spend time inside, connecting and playing with your child.
Dark Adventure
Don’t let winter darkness keep your children from getting outside! Summer is easy-with long days of light and sunshine we are drawn to being outdoors. In the winter months, when it starts turning dark at 4:30 p.m., we need to be intentional with our outdoor plan. Fresh air and movement are even more important in the winter when we tend to hunker down and stay cozy in our warm houses. Consider darkness adventures to encourage you to get out with your family and get moving!
A darkness adventure can be as simple as bundling up and heading out in your backyard after dinner and experiencing your yard in a different way. Don flashlights or headlamps or go without! It is fascinating how quickly our eyes adjust to darkness and we can see and hear in a different way. Find the moon and count the stars and experience that cold night air on your nose. Simple things become more fun in the dark!
Check out this link highlighting the importance of getting outdoors!
Open House
West Side Preschool is hosting an Open House on Sunday, January 27 from 3-4:30 p.m.
Please invite your friends and neighbors with preschool age children to come. West Side Preschool staff will be here to answer questions and/or address any concerns one may have. You may talk to any of us. We love to share why we love West Side!
Please join us!
Current families are invited to come as well if you have questions to ask and/or want to visit with the teachers in the classroom that your child will be in next year.
What Happens at West Side Preschool Doesn’t Stay at West Side Preschool
The songs sung, the rhymes chanted, the feelings of friendship-it doesn’t stay at school-it goes home.
Learning doesn’t end after a child leaves the classroom. When we enjoy what we experience we want to share it! Children want to repeat the songs learned, they want to act out a story that entertained and they want to share the struggles and triumphs of their day. Children want to include loved ones in the feelings held at preschool. Those feelings can be carried in their heart for a lifetime!
We hold a strong tradition in relationships! We value parental interaction with the teachers, the staff, the kids. We love to share our joy for play, our love of learning, and our passion for friendship. We hope you feel it and we hope it goes home with you.
I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.
Maya Angelou
Save those bows and ribbons this holiday season!
Save bows that are in good condition and drop them off in our recycling bin
by the front door of preschool.
Leaves are Nature’s Invitation to Play!
Take Advantage of Nature’s Seasonal Fun with these Leafy Ideas!
Cat and Mouse Path Game
Rake leaves to one side forming a path with no leaves. Children can help create the path or give directions on where to make connections. Put away the rake and choose one person to be the cat for chasing the mouse/mice along the path. No straying off the path! After a few times re-evaluate the path and make adjustments.
Transfer and dumping station
Use trucks, buckets and scoops to move the leaves from all over the yard to one spot. Children have a natural desire to fill and spill! The more differing size containers to fill the better!
Create an outdoor leaf kitchen
Add a small table, cooking utensils, pots and pans and allow children to pretend to be a chef!
Autumn leaves are falling down!
Take an old pillow case outside to place leaves onto. Have two or more hold onto the pillow case corners and toss the leaves into the air!
What is your family’s favorite way to play in the leaves?
By Krista McElroy
WEST SIDE PRESCHOOL 