Dear Families,
I want to thank you all so much for supporting our school and your children by supporting our October Fall Festival event last week. The children had a blast with their grandparents (or “grandparents for a day”) at the Pumpkin Picking Hayride event. This week, on Wed. & Thurs. 10/30 and 10/31 are the Halloween Parades at 10:00 a.m., and parents are invited. If your child does not attend on a Wednesday or Thursday, you may bring him/her to the parade on either day. Kindergarten will only participate on Thursday, 10/31.
And, we have another special event for families coming up, and we hope you will continue to participate! Please mark your calendars for our Thanksgiving Feast, Scheduled for Friday, November 15th at 6:00 p.m. To assure we plan accordingly, please RSVP for this event either by sending back the form that is being emailed to all families or by the paper form that will be sent home, or simply email me with the number of adults and children that will attend. Email me at val@pepperminttree.com . We want to make sure we are prepared! This will be a “Potluck” Thanksgiving Feast, so please consider bringing one of your favorite holiday dishes to share. We will also email a list of what is needed, and what people are already bringing. If you can bring anything that is still “blank” under “Family Bringing” please let me know and we will add you to our list. (NOTE: We still need 4 cooked turkey breasts, sliced!) Or, if you have a favorite dish that is not listed, please let me know. We appreciate your participation! This is a FREE event for your entire family, and you are welcome to attend whether you are able to bring anything or not.
Happy Thanksgiving to all. We are thankful for our Peppermint Tree families!
Sincerely,
“Miss Val”
Valerie Frost-Lewis, MS Ed.
Owner/Director
Food Drive at Peppermint Tree, November 1 – 15, for “Students Change Hunger 2013”
Once again this year, our school is participating in a food drive to benefit the FoodBank of Monmouth and Ocean County. Please consider donating non-perishable food items (No Glass please), please also tell your child about your donation, and allow them to place the food in the box that will be in our side hallway. The food drive ends on November 15th, the day of our Thanksgiving Feast. You may bring your donations to the feast, also (remember: no glass). Thank you for contributing to our community, and helping us to teach our children about the importance of giving to those in need.
Toms River Schools are closed Tues, Thurs & Friday, November 5, 7 & 8.
We will NOT be holding classes on these days, however we will be providing child care. For those of you who are registered for our Peppermint Tree calendar, we are open and we will be expecting your child to attend. But please be advised that every teacher does not work every holiday. We also do not use every classroom. Please prepare your child for these changes. Please use Mrs. Sullivan’s (front/left) door for entrance.
If you follow the Toms River calendar or attend 9:00 – 11:30 (quarter day) we will not be expecting your child. But, if you need child care on this day please call the office and we can arrange to care for your child. You will be billed for the care on a per day basis.
We will be CLOSED for the Thanksgiving Holiday, Thursday and Friday, November 28th & 29th. No classes or child care offered.
Enjoy yourselves!!
Pre-K and Kindergarten Field Trip to Johnson’s Corner Farm Wednesday, 11/13 9:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
Permission slips have already been sent home to children in those two classes. The children will be picking cotton, sweet potatoes and corn, and will see how a real farm operates. It is an enriching experience. Children must bring a brown bag lunch. Permission slip must be returned for participation. All Pre-K and Kindergarten children are invited to attend the field trip, whether they normally attend on Wednesday or not. Kindergarten children will not be back in time for the public school afternoon session bus. Children are not required to attend and there will be a regular session at school for those who do not attend the field trip.
Our next Strengthening Families Meeting will be held on Wednesday, 11/6 at 6:00 p.m.
We will be making last minute plans for the Thanksgiving Feast on 11/15 and planning more family fun events for the rest of the school year. All parents/guardians and staff are welcome to attend. There is no charge for child care during this one hour meeting. Join us! The meetings are a fun and informal way to get to know other parents and the staff.
Children’s ID Cards:
The Ocean County Sheriff’s Office will be at Peppermint Tree on Wednesday 11/20 and Thursday 11/21 at 9:30 a.m. to create ID cards for each child, that include a photo and their fingerprints. Please watch your child’s backpack for a permission slip and a card to fill out the pertinent information that will be on the final ID Card. These cards will be sent home for your use, if needed in an emergency. No copy is kept by The Peppermint Tree or the Sherriff’s Department. If your child does not normally attend on a Wednesday or Thursday, you may bring him/her in for the ID card project on either morning.
The Girl’s Leadership Institute program for Kindergarten and First grade Girls
Peppermint Tree is hoping to be the first school in Ocean County to host this national, non-profit organization’s leadership workshop for young girls. In this workshop, parent-daughter pairs learn about identifying healthy relationships, finding their voices, and communicating more effectively. Girls develop resilient responses to conflict, drama, challenges, and mistakes. The program is interactive, fun, and enlightening, and it’s also a great opportunity to gain insight and spend time with your daughter in a new and different way.
This is a unique opportunity to better prepare our daughters for successful, happy lives, and I hope you are as excited about it as I am. If you’re interested in participating, please let me know by November 15th, as we need demonstrated interest for GLI to bring the program to Toms River.
To learn more about GLI, please visit their website at www.girlsleadership.org.
Exciting Announcement: Peppermint Tree T-Shirts and Sweatshirts and other apparel will be for sale soon!
Watch your email, and your child’s backpack for details. Thank you to parent volunteer Karen Donohue who is helping to organize this sale. We will be taking orders at the Thanksgiving Feast, and for the following week. Items will be ready for you to give as gifts by Christmas time!
“Soccer Shots” is coming to Peppermint Tree!
Soccer Shots is an outdoor soccer program, taught by an experienced soccer coach, that will be offered at Peppermint Tree as an optional activity for children 3 years through Kindergarten on Wednesday or Thursday afternoons at 2:00 p.m. (If your child usually leaves at 2:00 p.m., he/she can stay for this class at no extra charge from Peppermint Tree: just pay for the Soccer Shots class.) We selected this program to offer because it makes learning soccer fun (non-competitive), and they also teach character development as a part of the curriculum. They will be offering a FREE 15 minute DEMO class to all children in attendance on Wednesday 11/6 and Thursday 11/14 at 10:00 a.m. More information to follow. In the meantime, check out their website at, http://www.soccershots.org/.
Inclement Weather
In case of snowy or icy conditions, please check our website announcement on the home page, or your email box for updates about school opening on these days. We also provide this information to WOBM radio “Storm Watch” program and change our outgoing phone message. We make every effort to be open, however the safety of our staff and families are our first concern. As a guideline, if The Toms River Public Schools have a delayed opening or are closed due to inclement weather, the earliest we will open is 8:30 a.m. This will give us time to get our driveway and walkways plowed, salted and sanded and determine if we will delay further or have to close for the day. There are no refunds or credits for inclement weather closings.
Donation Requested for Extra Clothes to have on hand at Peppermint Tree:We need sweat pants with elastic waist, all children’s sizes and (new/like new) boys and girls underwear. Thanks!
Parent Reminders:
- Check backpacks daily for information from the office or your child’s teacher and art projects from your child.
- Label everything, especially backpacks, lunch boxes, jackets and sweatshirts!
- Please send in an extra set of clothes for the cooler weather. We play outside every day as long as it is not raining or snowing or below 32 degrees F.
- All children under the age of five MUST get a Flu shot before December 31 each school year. Please send in update immunization record after the shot is given.
Tags: children's holiday activities, Early childhood education, Family Activities Toms River, Full Day Kindergarten Toms River, grandparents, nursery school toms river nj, Pre-K Toms River NJ, Preschool Toms River NJ, Strengthening Families, toddlers
