January Overview

At the end of each month, our teachers, Site Managers and Family Advocates put together an overview, which our Program Director, Prerna Richards, sends out. Each site usually recognizes one of their classrooms, or they send pictures of all the different activities that happened during the previous month. It's a great way to stay connected with all the different classrooms!


Crossover would like to recognize Class 3 this month. As we talk about the new year and new beginnings, it reminds us of Ms. Gonzales in Class 3 who is new this year, and doing a great job learning from her mentor and lead teacher, Ms. Negron. They make a great pair! They showed off their teamwork skills by being the first ones to finish the Lap 3 assessments, and their classroom always displays lots of varied activities, including a lot of parental support!

Cockrell Hill would like to recognize Ms. Cano's class this month. She has started implementing the Second Step program, a program designed to promote social competence and reduce social-emotional problems. She has put up Second Step posters around the classroom and the children play around the posters, talk to the posters, and act out what the posters reflect. It's a very neat program! If you are interested in learning more, check it out here. In Mrs. Martinez's class, the children had been learning about Eric Carle and reading his books. She was very surprised when the children told her that they had seen Eric Carle, and that he was here, over by the computers! She went to look and found our nutritionist, Geary Laird. The children were very convinced he was Eric Carle because he looked very much like the pictures they had seen of him.

Here's a picture of our nutritionist, Geary, doing a presentation to the kids:
 
And here's a picture of Eric Carle:

I can definitely see the resemblance! 

At Bethany, the children are really enjoying their new math activities. They have particularly enjoyed the shape finder--they walk all around the classroom identifying different shapes! They also enjoyed sorting canned food and discussing what was in each can, whether it was a fruit or a vegetable, and which ones they liked best. When we had snow a few weeks ago, the children went outside to feel the snow and discovered ice as well! They brought some snow and ice inside and monitored it melting with their new thermometer.

Buckner would like to highlight Mrs. Cross's classroom. They are learning about different types of animals and how to make bubbles.The children even learned how to milk a cow and what it feels like. Mrs. Cross made a prediction chart to ask the children open-ended questions about this topic, and some of the children responded that after milking the cow, they would buy the milk from the store and make pancakes! Last week the children learned all about different kinds of animals--zoo animals, farm animals and wild animals. They had fun with activities that reinforced what they were learning by sorting the animals according to size and other criteria. They also did a science activity where they learned how to make bubbles and made a chart showing which brand of soap made the best bubbles. We recently celebrated National Hug Day and the teachers had a competition to see who could give and receive the most hugs. Mrs. Cross won with 89 hugs in one day!

St. Matthew's had a new volunteer Foster Grandparent start in January--Ms. Dominguez. The children love having her and interacting with her and all the volunteers at St. Matthew's! It is fun for them to get so much extra attention from the volunteers. This month St. John's Episcopal School's 5th graders came to do math activities with our students, which was very enjoyable and educational! St. Matthew's would like to recognize Ms. Silva and Ms. Duran's class for always having such varied and creative activities always ready in advance in a very clean, organized and fun classroom! 

No update from Wesley Rankin this month, but we'll catch up with them at the end of February. Great job to all our teachers and staff! Hope you enjoyed this peek into classroom life!

The Holidays at Mi Escuelita!

Wow! It's hard to believe that the holidays have already come and gone and here we are in a new year! The three weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas were, per usual, packed with activity at Mi Escuelita. We had sixteen volunteer groups come to our different centers to make the holidays special for our children and we want to say a huge THANK YOU to all of them for their hard work to make those volunteer events successful, as well as share a deep appreciation for the time and effort they spent to share with our children.

You can see all the pictures from the different groups here on our Picasa site: http://picasaweb.google.com/miescuelitapreschool

The Highlight Reel:
December kicked off with an extremely well-organized event put on by Deloitte at our Cockrell Hill campus. They shared lessons about diversity and multicultural holiday celebrations which was a great lesson enjoyed by all. The kids had a particularly fun time playing bingo with the volunteers and making wreaths out of their hand prints!

Next up was Capital One at our St. Matthew's campus. They made reindeer by tracing shoes, read books about Frosty the Snowman, and even danced around to get all the wiggles out. Our children made fast friends with the 15 Capital One volunteers that came to visit!

 

Estrada Hinojosa brought 6 volunteers to our Buckner campus to share Christmas stories, decorate ornaments and eat holiday snacks. The put out quite a spread for our children! The classes all got together and sang Feliz Navidad to thank the volunteers for coming to spend time with them. 

  Hein & Associates also came to visit, bringing about 15 volunteers to our Cockrell Hill campus. They decorated cups for the children to take home and got to interact in the classroom doing holiday activities. This was the second year that they have come to visit in December.

 The next week, we had a visit from St. John's Episcopal School's 5th graders. Their fifth grade classes have been coming to visit our St. Matthew's campus all semester but this time all the classes came at once. It was a crazy, fun-packed morning filled with activities and calisthenic dancing to get our energy out! They played Dreidel; Elf, Elf, Santa; made snowman, and read books together.

The next day, Crow Holdings and Monticello West came to visit our Crossover campus. Crow Holdings brought coloring books and crayons for the children to take home, and each of our classes performed for the volunteers. The parents also brought hot chocolate, arroz con leche and empanadas for the volunteers to try. Monticello West is a retirement home that comes to visit every Christmas. The children enjoyed singing to them!

Our next visit was from McGladrey at our Bethany campus. The volunteers helped them make stockings and Santa--the children really enjoyed using the glitter and the cotton for the arts and crafts! Then they played musical chairs and brought presents for the children. It was a very fun day!

Later that afternoon, the DFW HOLA chapter of Bank of America visited our Crossover campus and brought Santa! Santa delivered toys to all the children while the volunteers shared snacks and read books with the children. The children were amazed that HOLA went all the way to the North Pole to bring Santa to visit!

On the Thursday before school let out for the holidays, the Texas Instruments Christmas Angels came to both our Bethany and Buckner location to deliver presents they had brought for the children. The TI readers have been volunteering at Mi Escuelita for more years than we can count and every Christmas they come to visit with presents in hand. We appreciate their continued support!

Capital One's Hispanic Associates Network came to our Crossover campus to read to the children. This group visits the children quarterly, so it was fun to share one of our last days before the break with them. They brought donations as well as lunch for the staff, which was greatly appreciated! Our teachers work so hard they deserve to celebrate as well. Thank you Capital One!

On the last day of school before the holidays, we had our annual holiday visit from Elaine Johnson at our Bethany campus, Hein & Associates sent another group of volunteers to our Wesley Rankin campus, and Comerica came to our parent program at Buckner and managed to bring Santa with them! The kids and parents had a blast seeing Santa!

 We enjoyed having so many people come visit our children in December. We really appreciate the time that it took for you to come, and we hope that it gave you a sense of how important these children and their education are. There are so many ways that you can help make a difference in these children's lives throughout the year, from coming to work with the children, to prep-work for the teachers, to attending or helping organize events, to simply being an advocate for Mi Escuelita and early childhood education.

THANK YOU! 
Bank of America HOLA
BOMA
Capital One and the Hispanic Associates Network
Comerica
Crow Holdings
Deloitte
Dieste
Elaine Johnson
Estrada Hinojosa
Hein & Associates
Monticello West
Meadowbrook School
McGladrey
St. John's Episcopal School
Texas Instruments Christmas Angels

The One Day in a Hundred Years

Today is January 11th, 2011.  Abbreviated, that's 1-11-11, a nice series of ones that happens once every hundred years.  A day like today that translates into 1s, begs for a consideration of all things that are equal to one.  We at Mi Escuelita Preschool are taking a moment to consider how important the number 1 is to us and to the mission our organization undertakes everyday in our classrooms.

Being that 1 is the first number in mathematics, it’s no surprise that it’s the first number that most children learn in life and at Mi Escuelita it’s a starting point for early math proficiency in our students.  The number 1 also signifies singularity, which is a concept that children learn quickly in early development as the “self” becomes the first significant aspect of communicating with the world.  At Mi Escuelita we strive to make sure each child has a unique learning experience in our classrooms and that their individual needs are met, whether those needs are academic or otherwise.  Still, Mi Escuelita takes this a step further.  Each child that walks through our doors is an individual, however, an important component of a quality preschool experience is providing healthy examples of a sense of community and proper social behavior.  Youngsters at the preschool age are impressionable, and at Mi Escuelita we teach them early on that there is room in their small worlds for both a sense of individuality and being a part of a family.  

The number 1 is often thought of as being a ranking; everyone wants to be number 1.  Mi Escuelita Preschool is no different in that naturally we want to be considered among the top choices a parent has when they are choosing proven, quality preschool education.  What sets Mi Escuelita apart from any other non-profit organization who strives for first place, is our serious, research driven approach to finding out what works best in childhood development, focusing first and foremost on language intervention.  Being number 1 means being ahead of the pack and Mi Escuelita is proud of the facts that define us as a contender for that role, such as the fact that out of 2500+ day cares and preschools in Dallas, only 32 are nationally accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children, and 6 of those 32 are Mi Escuelita campuses.

Everything starts with 1, such as the one single idea to teach English to one classroom of non-English speaking children that blossomed into an award winning non-profit organization serving hundreds of children city wide.  Despite the ever growing need for more programs like ours here in Dallas, Mi Escuelita finds that on days such as today, focusing on the most basic element of our mission is crucial;  Teaching English…one child at a time.  Even just one child’s educational success is a testament to the possibilities that Mi Escuelita’s classrooms offer.  One child.

Today, in the spirit of celebrating our mission of teaching English, one child at a time, Mi Escuelita would like you to be among the first to know about “Alex’s Journey”, a web series of videos that will begin appearing on our website this month.  These video shorts will focus on a current, first year Mi Escuelita student, Alex, who is learning English and becoming a part of the Mi Escuelita Family.  Starting from the very first day of school, this documentary-style web series will give you have a unique opportunity to follow Alex on his educational journey and find out for yourself why Mi Escuelita is the number one preschool for Dallas children to excel in.  Through real classroom footage, interviews with parents and teachers and monthly updates to the series, we hope to tell a compassionate and honest story of what modern preschool education looks like at Dallas’s best kept secret, Mi Escuelita Preschool.

On this day of 1s, Mi Escuelita invites you to frequently check out our website, bookmark our Youtube and Vimeo channels and sign up for our mailing list so that you will be the first to know when the premiere video in the “Alex’s Journey” series is on the web.  This online experience is a first for Mi Escuelita Preschool and it’s a chance for us to share the precious, everyday moments of classroom life that continuously fuel our passion for our work.  Watching a child grasp a concept for the first time in class, or encouraging them to make their first friend outside of the family home, or being there to experience their first educational success…these are firsts that should not be missed.

The Month of November at Mi Escuelita

Bethany: November was a community involvement month! There were so many wonderful presentations that exposed our children to various interesting topics. The Museum of Nature and Science came and presented about stars. They set up a planetarium using a dome tent and the children were really amazed.  All the teachers kept hearing was "Wow!" The children took a trip to the moon, saw stars, observed sunrise and sunset and located star patterns in the sky. Children were also introduced to dental health by Jason from Metroplex Dental Care, and he was very impressed with all that the children knew about taking care of their teeth. Also, our health support staff, Patricia and Daisey, did a wonderful presentation on hand washing.

 Cockrell Hill: They had a Harvest Dessert Contest and the winners were:
1st Place--Mrs. Rodriguez; 2nd place--Mrs. Martinez; and 3rd place--Ms. Lopez.
Honorable mention goes to Ms. Graciano--her cake had a lot of personality. 
Congratulations to the winners and thanks to the judges; Phillip and Lindsay. Frito Lay visited the children with Chester the Cheetah and brought coats for a few children. Mrs. Martinez and Mrs. Flores's classroom took a trip to Hawaii. Children had their passports, beach wear, and money to spend while there. They sure enjoyed their plane ride! Mrs. Rodriguez and Mrs.Fernandez had some Indians living in their classroom in a teepee.

Wesley Rankin: This month was filled with wonderful events! Prestonwood Christian Academy volunteers came and a fabulous time was had by all making dream catchers with the children, which was a great way for the children to learn about Native American culture. The children also did a reenactment of the original Thanksgiving for the volunteers. Texas Winds came and taught the children about the piano and cello. Their new favorite song is one they learned about the piano. The Museum of Nature and Science came as well and did an awesome presentation on magnets called “Magnet Mania.” The children learned so much and it was so cool to watch them as they discovered everything magnets can do. The staff would particularly like to thank Patricia, Daisey and Mr. Geary for doing wonderful presentations for the children. They did an awesome job!

St. Matthews: The month started off with the children having their pictures taken. Later, fifth graders from St. John’s Episcopal School came and did a science experiment with the children. It was gooey and fun!  Mr. Geary did a presentation on nutrition for the children and also spoke to the parents about nutrition during their parent meeting, which was greatly appreciated. The children sang Thanksgiving songs for the parents who attended the meeting.  The party really got started when the volunteers from Prestonwood Christian Academy arrived! They did face painting, reading, and lots of interacting with the children.  Ms. Silva and Mrs. Duran’s classroom had a dance party going on, complete with flashing lights and music filling the room. Everyone was dancing to children’s music. Patricia and Daisey also did their hand washing presentation for the children of St. Matthew's. They did an amazing job and really got the point across. The Museum of Nature and Science did the “Magnet Mania” presentation here as well. The hands-on activities with different types of magnets intrigued the children.  Last but not least, the children shared a Thanksgiving lunch with a member of their family and everyone got plenty of turkey!  Someone posted an “Eat Ham” sign but it clearly had no effect.


Crossover: November has been a short and exiting month at Crossover. This month they would like to highlight the fathers, uncles, grandfathers, great-grandfather and older brothers that attended the “Bring Dad to School Day” today.  These men came into the classroom and made hats, turkey hand prints and dream catchers with the children. It was great seeing them interacting with the children. They would also like to say a huge thank you to Patricia and Daisey for their hand-washing presentation--the children are still talking about it!


Buckner: The month started with Lifetouch taking holiday portraits of the students. Texas Winds came out  and exposed the children to classical music. Our “Bring a Dad to Lunch” Thanksgiving meal was success; we had over 50 fathers, grandfathers and male role models show up for the event and the children were ecstatic! Our guest speaker, Mr. Henry Jackson of Buckner Children and Family Services, shared a powerful motivational message for the males that attended and some of the mothers volunteered to serve the participants. To close off the month, our special services specialist will speak at our parent meeting about “Child Discipline and Guidance”. We have also invited Bryan’s Place Dental to share a little about what services they have available at their clinic for our community. This month they would like to highlight Class 1, where the children learned about Thanksgiving. They learned about the Pilgrims coming from England in a ship called the Mayflower and how the Indians showed the Pilgrims how to plant seeds and hunt turkeys. They also learned that the Pilgrims wore black hats while the Indians wore headdresses with feathers.

Thanks for stepping inside our classrooms!

October Overview

Every month Mi Escuelita's Program Director compiles stories from each of our six sites and puts them all together for an overview of activities that happened in the last month. This month in particular we had a lot of groups of volunteers, one of which helped us put on a huge Field Day at our Buckner location. We bused all the children from all the sites to Buckner to celebrate. Thanks so much to our Executive Director, Gayle Nave, for putting it all together! Everyone had a great time!

Take a look inside our classrooms:

Buckner: This month they had a group of volunteers from Texas Instruments read in the classrooms and help spread the woodchips in the playground, a much needed job! Thank you volunteers for doing this for us! The teachers kicked off literacy month with a skit of the Three Little Pigs. We are so proud of the teachers for working together to create such a wonderful program for our students. This month they would like to highlight class 3, Mrs. Eshiett and Mrs. Villareal’s class. The teachers introduced their students to different math concepts such as the difference between small, medium and large, and the children sorted and counted color bears.  They also made patterns using shapes. In science, class 3 explored with gadgets and also examined nuts and bolts. They took them apart and found ways to connect them together. They also were able to charge a telephone gadget and reconnect a cord according to the way they thought it could power up a phone. Wow! We have little budding scientists among us!

Bethany: October was full of learning at Bethany! They had the Museum of Nature and Science come and do a presentation for the children involving learning about their body. She had lots of hands-on material--the children really enjoyed putting on a doctors coat, using the telescope, using their senses to find the matching smell! It was great! The fire department brought their fire truck for a presentation and the children tried on a helmet, went inside the fire truck and listened to the sound a fire truck makes when on a call. They also had literacy day where the children performed "The Little Red Hen" and parents made a book with their children, decorated pumpkins and sang finger-play songs with the children. They also had a pumpkin decorating contest and their volunteer reader Mr. David got to select the winners. Texas Instruments Facilities group also came out to fix Bethany's leaking roof, trim trees and install new shelves. A huge thank you to them! Last but not least, Mrs. Rodriguez would like to wish Mrs. Espinoza a very happy birthday!

Our Teachers in Little Red Riding Hood

 St. Matthews: It has been a very busy month at St. Matthew’s!  The teachers did a “Bring a Book to Life” performance for the children and acted out “Little Red Riding Hood”.  Ms. Romero did a great job of acting like the BIG BAD WOLF!  The Dallas Museum came to do their “City Critters” presentation which kept the children very attentive!  Everyone was excited to see the big, red fire truck pull up to our school!  The Dallas Fire Rescue squad introduced the different parts of a fire truck, dressed up in fire fighting gear, and answered questions for the children.  Class 1 (Ms. Silva/Mrs. Duran) made some very creative and edible fire trucks.  Next, Mr. Herrin’s advisory fifth graders from St. John’s Episcopal School came to act out fairy tales for the children. The children did an awesome job of acting out fairy tales for their parents. They knew their lines and played their parts like pros!

St. John's 5th Graders Acting Out Fairy Tales

Cockrell Hill: The Museum of Nature and Science presented “Basic Engineers”; Bear Creek Dental Bear visited the children and talked about dental hygiene; and Cockrell Hill police showed the children how to dial 911 and talked about what an emergency is. Also, Northwood University students came out twice to volunteer in the classrooms and the Ursuline and Jesuit students started coming. For their "Bring a Book to Life" celebration, the teachers presented “Little Red Riding Hood” to the children.  They are having good parent participation at the center and with homework!

 

Face Painting at the Fairy Tale Ball

Wesley Rankin: Wesley Rankin has had a very busy October that has been filled with so many awesome events! They had a very successful Literacy Night on October 8th where the parents enjoyed doing activities with their children in every classroom. I think the parents had more fun then the children! :) The classrooms brought a book to life and it was just fabulous. They did such a wonderful job and the children were just adorable. After that the gym was turned into a "Fairy Tale Ball" where the children enjoyed activities like bowling, musical chairs, face painting, ball toss and much more. It was so much fun and even more fun to watch the kids have a blast as they ran around in their cute costumes.

 

Our Parents as Actors

Crossover: Wow! October was a very exciting month here at Crossover.  At the beginning of the month our very talented teachers presented “Jack in the Beanstalk” to kick-off the literacy month.  The children's parents decided to join in the fun by acting out “The Three Billy Goats Gruff” and “Little Red Riding Hood”. It is so impressive to see our parents taking on acting to celebrate "Bring a Book to Life" as well! Hopefully we are bringing the joy of literacy to the entire family not just our students. To close Literacy Month with a BANG the children presented various books. All the children did a wonderful job, but they would particularly like to applaud the “Rocking Performance” by Class 4 in the “Three Little Pigs.” Also a Special Thank You to Caroline and Mark Davidson from Frito Lay for helping beautify our school.  Frito Lay had 38 volunteers who planted flowers, painted two classrooms, fixed closet doors, and donated landscaping/maintenance equipment such as a lawn mower, weed eater, blower and other garden tools!! Frito Lay--you are GREATLY appreciated! 

That's all for this month!