Celebrate Earth Day with your Child!

Earth Day began on April 22, 1970 and has been an important day to think about our environment and what we can do to help keep it healthy for us to live.


From the beginning, children and schools have supported the many efforts of Earth Day. This is the time to train the younger generation about the importance of keeping our planet clean and healthy for everyone.

Younger children can get a feel for what Earth Day is all about by singing songs, coloring pictures, making crafts, doing clean-up projects, and learning about recycling.

1. You can start by making crafts out of recycled items. Think of all of the possibilities of using paper towel tubes: spy glasses, musical instrument, towers, just to name a few. You can reuse aluminum foil to make picture frames, a ball, or shiny toy.

2. You can start a recycling collection at your home. There are drop off sites in your community for: plastic bottles, glass jars and bottles, newspapers, and mixed paper. By recycling these items, you are helping to protect the environment and putting an end to overloading the landfills with trash.

3. Older children can do an Earth Day project and then write a letter to your local government official and share what you have done. There's nothing more inspiring than seeing people put thought into action; "This is what I have done to help fix the environment in my neighborhood." Maybe other kids will be inspired to take on similar projects.

Enjoy Earth Day and make a pledge to recycle and reuse items on our planet. It only takes a few minutes to make a big difference in our world. Let your few minutes be spent on helping to keep our environment healthy and safe for years to come.

Helpful Tips to Parents to Prepare Your Child for Kindergarten

After you have preregistered your child for Kindergarten, the teacher may give you list of items you can work on with your child during the summer to prepare him/her for Kindergarten. Here are a few tips you can use to practice with your child:


1. To learn his/her name, have your child practice saying his/her whole name. For example, if your call him TJ Smith for short, have him repeat his whole name: Thomas James Smith.

2. To learn colors, use color words when dressing: blue jeans, red shirt, brown socks, for example. Use color words when playing with toys: green tractor, yellow ball, orange top. Use color words with animals: black cat, brown dog, grey and white horse. Look for colors in nature: pink flowers, green grass, purple flowers, blue sky, yellow sun, white moon, for example.

3. To learn counting: practice counting fingers, toes, toys, books, etc. Work on counting objects up to 10. Start with three and then add on and until your child begins to understand the concept of counting items in sequence of 1-10. This takes a lot of practice so don't be discouraged if your child doesn't know all of the numbers before starting into Kindergarten.

4. To learn how to cut with scissors: make safety scissors available for your child to practice cutting play dough, scrap paper, old newspaper pages, and old magazine pages. It is important to set safety rules for using scissors and always supervise your child's cutting practice. To help strengthen your child's fine motor skills (hand muscles), have your child squeeze play dough or small rubber balls. This is a good exercise for the fingers so he will be able to hold the scissors more comfortably.

5. To learn how to write: small hands need larger pencils or markers to grip to practice writing. Scribble is an appropriate developmental stage that all children have to go through to learn how to write. So encourage your child to make marks freely on paper, cardboard boxes, old newspapers and magazines. Sidewalk chalk is another way to help your child learn to handle writing and drawing.

6. To learn shapes: help your child identify shapes around your home. Look for circles in the kitchen with lids on containers or tops on jars. Think about food items that are circular: like cookies, pancakes, sausage, and tomato slices. Then there are CDs and DVDs and old records that make perfect circle examples. Try looking for squares and rectangles with cereal boxes, granola bars, and pop-tarts. Triangles may be a little more challenging to find but you can use some snack food items that have triangles shapes in them. Make "shape-hunting" a game and be on the lookout for circles, squares, rectangles, and triangles.

7. To learn the alphabet: sing the alphabet song with your child. Watch kids' shows, like Sesame Street, where alphabet letters are taught. Read alphabet books and visit your local library for extra help.

All of the skills mentioned will be taught in Kindergarten so don't feel that your child has to master them all this summer. But your are giving your child a great start to learning how to read and write and do math. Your dedication to helping your child will make a positive impact on his/her time in school.

Is Your Child Ready for Kindergarten?

During early registration for Kindergarten, your child will have an opportunity to meet K teachers and visit classrooms. During this time, your child may be invited to do a Kindergarten screening. This is an informal conversation between the teacher and child that will give you helpful tips to use at home to help your child transition into Kindergarten.


Here are a few questions that teachers use to get to know your child:

1. What is your name? (Does your child know his/her whole name?)

2. What are these colors? (The teacher will have colored paper or crayons for your child to identify: red, blue, orange, green, yellow, purple, brown, and black).

3. Can you court to 10? Show me how your count these objects. (She will have your child count blocks, Popsicle sticks, or crayons up to 10 items).

4. Use this pencil and write your name. (It is not necessary for your child to know how to write his/her name. The teacher is looking for how the pencil is held, if your child is left handed or right handed, and if he/she can form letters at this time).

5. What are these shapes? (She will have 4 shapes cut out of paper for your child to name: circle, square, triangle, and rectangle. Then she will ask your child to draw each share. Here again, this is just to see the developmental level of your child's fine motor skills).

6. Take these scissors and cut on this line. (She may give your child a pair of safety scissors and have your child cut on a line drawn on a sheet of paper).

7. Can you say the ABCs? (Your child may sing the alphabet song or recite the letters in order. It is not required to know all of the alphabet letter names at this time but she may ask your child to identify certain letters, as well).

Remember that early Kindergarten registration is designed to give your child a head start with getting ready for the next school year. This Kindergarten screening will also be helpful as you prepare your child for school.

Checklist for Early Kindergarten Registration - 3 Important Items

To be prepared for Kindergarten registration, there are a few steps you will need to take prior to the registration date. You can check your school district's website for registration requirements. Here is a list that is commonly used at public and private school registrations.


1. Birth Certificate and Social Security Cards: There is an age requirement for entering school and the birth certificate (BC) verifies your child's eligibility for entering this school year. The BC and SS numbers will be recorded by you on your child application form. No copies of the BC or SS card will be made by the school personnel. You just need to show the original documents to the person in charge of registration. If you need to get an original copy of your child's birth certificate, contact your State Department of Vital Records for an application to complete. There is a small fee for receiving a copy of the birth certificate and it does take a few days to make the transaction. SS numbers are issued through the Social Security Office or visit their website to take care of an application on line. These documents will need to be presented before your child enters Kindergarten. You may bring these items in at a later date if they are not available during early registration.

2. Proof of Residency: By bringing a copy of your home phone bill or electric bill that has your 911 mailing address printed on it, (not a Post Office Box number), you will have your "proof of residency" document. Any requests for "out of district" school registrations must be approved by the district's superintendent. If you are requesting for your child to attend a school outside of your living community's district, you will need to write a letter to the district superintendent explaining your request for a different school placement. In most situations, a request outside of the child's school district may be approved but the parent will be responsible to provide transportation to and from school each day. Public school buses must follow their assigned routes to a particular school or schools.

3. Physical Examination and Shot Record: The final items needed for early registration will be the evidence of your child's physical examination by a physician and the shot records since birth. All of this information can be gathered from your family physician. The doctor's office will have the examination form that is required to be completed for school registration. Usually the deadline for this information must be complete for the first day of school or your child will not be allowed to enter on time.

Early registration for Kindergarten is very helpful to the school and for your child. So take advantage of this opportunity to help your rising Kindergarten child to get ready for school.

April is Early Kindergarten Registration Time - Be Prepared!

April is the month that early registration begins for rising Pre-K and Kindergarten students in public and private schools. The purpose of early registration is beneficial for the school system and for families getting ready to start a new school program.


First of all, the school uses the early registration information as a sample guideline for hiring the proper number of personnel necessary for each class of students. Secondly, the parent and child have the opportunity to visit the child's new school, meet administrators and teachers, and to visit in Pre-K and Kindergarten classrooms. By visiting the school with early registration, you will be helping your child adjust to a new environment ahead of time. It will also give your child something to look forward to during the summer month, as you remind him/her of the time you visited in the "new school".

Early registration is a smart move on your part as you are preparing your child for his/her formal education. Be sure to ask the teachers about ways you can help your child to be ready for the new school year. Teachers will provide ideas and sample materials for you to use over the summer to work with your child. You are building strong relationships with the school personnel that will help to ease the transition into Pre-K or Kindergarten in the fall. So take advantage of the early registrations being offered in your school district and local community. Visit their websites for further information concerning dates, times, and necessary documents needed for early registration.