Discovering Spring  

The other day I went for a walk with the preschool class and we discovered the first snow drops pushing through the ground in search of the warming rays of the spring sun. The children were fascinated by the sight of these delicate flowers and kept pointing them out left and right. I knew spring couldn't be far and sure enough, we all got a climpse of spring this past weekend. But unfortunately, the days of bundling up are not other yet. So, be sure to keep an eye on the weather and dress your child appropriately. But winter wasn't all bad. The children had a blast going out in the snow for walks and sledding down the hills on campus.

Parents Making A Difference  

Many of you have been supporting Oak Lane over the past 6 months in various different ways...anything from cleaning toys to providing yummy snacks and helping out in the classroom. While the contract states that every family is required to contribute 6 hours, many families have already done more and we're only halfway through the year. The value of these in-kind donations and volunteer hours is priceless and we can't thank you enough.

However, Oak Lane also relies on money contributions to ensure that bills can be paid on time and supplies be purchased for the classroom. The economic crisis is putting a burden on everybody, including Oak Lane, but it is also forcing us to rethink how we do certain things. We have become much more dilligent about turning off lights when we're not in the classroom, giving children smaller portions at snack time and then giving seconds if needed, and being resourceful with art materials.

When the Board of Advisors sent out the Annual Giving Letter in December, we anticipated receiving less donations. But amazingly, that's not the case! To date, we have received 43 donations, which is only 4 less than last year and we still have 6 months left in our fiscal year. Annual Giving contributions are at $3180, which averages out to over $250 per month. What does that mean? It means that we can still afford to have Jitterbugs come to Oak Lane every month and that we can still purchase construction paper and other supplies when needed and that we can cover the ever increasing costs of daily operations.

Though so far, only 12 out of 27 Oak Lane families have made a contribution to Annual Giving. I know we can do better! So, if you haven't made a donation yet, look at your budget and see what you can afford. We wouldn't want you to go beyond your means. Just remember, every dollar makes a difference!!! Thank you to all the families that have already made a donation.

Reuse, Reduce, Recycle

The teachers are always looking for used or recycled (and sometimes new items) for their classroom and art activities. So, before you throw something in the trash, look at the list and see if the teachers could use it. If you have something that is not on the list and you think we might be able to use it, just ask us. Thanks!!!

• Paper Towel Rolls 
• Shaving Cream
• Glue Sticks
• Stickers
• Puzzles
• Old clothes, costumes and accesiories for dress up.
• Radio with CD player                                                                  

Charity Drive for Maternal & Child Health Consortium

The Maternal & Child Health Consortium is an organization serving Chester County and helps poor and underserved pregnant women receive prenatal care through a program called Healthy Start. The organization also provides parenting classes and helps the families enroll their babies in health insurance. Katie Wooten, an Oak Lane parent, is on the board of this organization and asked me if I would be interested in doing a charity drive for them. Of course, I was immediately on board and hope you will join us in supporting this wonderful cause.

Here is how you can help: The organization provides mothers with a "Baby Bundle" which includes items such as diapers (small), wipes, lotion, onesies and receiving blankets. Starting Monday, March 16 we will have a donation box located in the cubby area where you can drop off the items. The box will remain at Oak Lane until Thursday, April 2.

For more information about the organization you can visit their website at www.ccmchc.org. or take home one of the brochures located by the sign-in sheet.

Tuesday, March 10 @ 9 a.m. - Jitterbugs
Wednesday, March 11 & 18 - No Pizza for lunch
Friday, March 13 - Inservice Day - OLDC closed
Monday, March 16 - Thursday, April 2 - Charity Drive for Maternal & Child Health Consortium of Chester County Saturday, April 2 @ 9 a.m. - Spring Clean-Up Day

Fruit for Snack: Courtney Phillips and Amy Brooks
Lunch for the teachers: Rebecca Rakes
Toy Cleaning: Tess Way and Colleen Perrin

We are happy to welcome 6-month old Scarlet to our class. She is a cutie and is adjusting well to her new surroundings. Her big sister, Juliet, in the Oddler Toddler class, loves to come visit her and make sure she's okay.

Chloe, William, Kai and Frederika are doing very well and are anxious to get outside for some serious recess. They are also increasing their vocabulary through books, singing and following instructions. Charlotte, Liam and Eric are crawling better and faster every day. The also love to listen to and learn from the big kids. Ainsley is progressing nicely into the routine of fun and games and is getting more and more comfortable walking on her own. Hooray for the Infants and Toddlers!!!

  T. Sheila and T. Savannah

February's theme was fairy tales and rhymes. We read "The lion and the mouse" and made lions out of paper plates and mice out of cups, which are displayed on our bulletin board. We also read "The tortoise and the hare" and crafted paper plate tortoises and hare puppets. The children really enjoyed the stories.

The children also had fun putting together the "Jack & Jill", "Mary had a little lamb" and "Jack and the beanstalk" puzzles and listening to the stories. In between we made some beautiful Valentine's cards and gifts. It was a love fest! We enjoyed eating pancakes in our pajamas for Valentine's Day.

It was lovely and informative as well as helpful meeting with many of you at the conferences. Thank you for making the time to come out. We have all been trying to stay well and we thank all of our parent toy washers.

T. Margaret and T. Jean

We had loads of fun in February. During "O" week we made octopuses, learned about outer-space and enjoyed orange jello. The children have been throroughly enjoying the non-fiction books about space. Many of them can name some planets and are using their imagination for the rest of their stories about outer-space.

Pajamas and pancakes were enjoyed by all at our Valentine's Day party, which happened to be "P" week. Thanks to all the parents who helped make our party special. The children put lots of love into their Valentine's Day gifts and cards. The highlight of "Q" week was our friendship quilt, which is hung up in our classroom.

By "R" week everyone was healthy and back to school. The kids did a great job coloring their rainbows and completing an "R" worksheet. We attempted a rainbow jello mold but after realizing that it took longer than expected for the jello layers to harden, we decided to stop and eat the red, orange and yellow jello. We are saving the other colors for future cooking projects. We read many books this month, including "The Solar System", "My visit to the dinosaurs", "Pinochio" and "If you're happy and you know it".  

T. Rachel and T. Christy